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If GAA players start stealing this ridiculous rugby exercise, God help us all

Published 15:48 31 Dec 2018 GMT

Updated 13:47 1 Jan 2019 GMT

Conan Doherty
If GAA players start stealing this ridiculous rugby exercise, God help us all

Homesport

Rugby players have literally lifted all the weights, there are no more.

So the only thing for it is to start working out necks instead. There's a lot of crossover with rugby and the GAA - Gaelic Football in particular. Upper leg strength is huge for both. Power is one of the greatest assets in each. Breaking lines, standing strong against momentum, ploughing on upfield even when you're being pulled back - they're elements that all the best rugby players and footballers have. All the average ones too. More and more, these things are no longer advantages, they're just obligatory. They're the bare minimum. It's expected of rugby players and Gaelic Football players to develop these physical attributes and, with it all still being a relatively new - at least conscious - idea in the GAA world, it's still hugely beneficial to work on these aspects of your game. That's why we have the culture we do now, with lads squatting more than they solo. And that's why we also have the GAA still borrowing ideas from their egg-ball neighbours. This is what GAA pre-season looks like. https://twitter.com/nigemcdermott/status/702403206777847809?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw This is what GAA sessions look like. https://twitter.com/FirstStep_PT/status/611795909849051136?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw Free-takers are going to bloody love this invention. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H61abZqTykQ And O'Neill's have already given us assurances. https://twitter.com/ONeills1918/status/793018127760105472 Expect to see these workshops being rolled out at a club near you very soon too. https://twitter.com/IRUPA/status/715147107271843841?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw But now... but now. Prop training has been taken to a whole other extreme. One of the toughest exercises anyone who has ever dabbled in white collar boxing would've faced is letting your head hang from the ring whilst lying on your back and simply lifting it up and down. The strain it puts your neck muscles under is incredible - muscles you probably never use. Some guys can't get enough of it though and they need to load their necks up with weights. Yep, this is what is happening now. https://youtu.be/RlNkV9XNLIw If that sounds a tad extreme, how about these doozies: https://youtu.be/umjJfH_d6R0 Can't really imagine what use a GAA player would have for it but they'll probably find one. *Updated from post first published in November 2016 WATCH THE HOUSE OF RUGBY AWARDS HERE:

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If GAA players start stealing this ridiculous rugby exercise, God help us all