[title size=”1″]Quick Interview #5 – Sarah Walsh[/title]

When did you start Softball?
Started playing softball from age 5/6 with my dad think bout 1993

Why Softball??
Softball is in my blood my dad made name for himself among the Irish community and I loved it as much as he did so have been throwing a softball since I could walk. Also i played in the states for 7 years and loved every minute of it.

Have you played any other sports?
Yes I’ve played volleyball from age 10 and basketball from 11, also played soccer from age 15

What club do you play for?
I play for Oddsoxs Green

Do you have any pre-match routines?
I like to watch the other team warm up to get an idea of there skill set and hopefully find a weakness, also I like to plan what goals I’d like to achieve in each game.

When was your first international game?
In 2006 I traveled to the Europeans in Slovenia

How many caps do you have?
I don’t actually have a count but I’d say 15 or more between the euros and inter travelling years

What can we do to continue to getting people interested in Softball?
Best place to start is with the youth going out to the schools and talking to the kids, the younger we get them the better players they will become

Are you sponsored?
No, but if there’s anyone out there who’s interested we could do with as many sponsors as possible as we mostly fund ourselves

What’s your international Goal?
Strive for gold of course

Who is your favourite female player?
Jenny finch USA phenomenal player

Who is your favourite male player?
There’s too many to choose 🙂

[title size=”1″]Quick Interview #4 – Ruth Lillis[/title]

When did you start Softball?

I started softball in 2009

Why Softball??

I was in UL and my friends brother played and they were always looking for girls to play. She didn’t want to go on her own and asked me to go with her so I did. Had so much fun the first day with some great people and I’ve never looked back since!

Have you played any other sports?

I play golf. I played Camogie up to this year since I was 10 which certainly helped the hand-eye coordination! I also played badminton up to college level.

What club do you play for?

I play for the Kegs in Ballsbridge

Do you have any pre match routines?

Just the usual stretch, throw a ball and warm the arm and get a few hits in… Just to relax more than anything before the game starts

When was your first international game?

In 2011 I was picked to represent Ireland in Bulgaria… I think my first game was against Slovenia. I played right field and dropped the first ball that was hit to me! I’ll Never forget it! Thankfully things have improved since…!

How many caps do you have?

I’ve been lucky enough to make the last two international teams and have 10 caps

What can we do to continue to getting people interested in Softball?

Try and play in areas where there may be people around to see it
A number of softballers are teachers and could introduce into schools and playoff against each other’s

Are you sponsored?

Unfortunately no… It’s an expensive hobby and we have to fund ourselves but we do fundraise to try and ease the financial burden.

What’s your international Goal?

To be on the team that wins Ireland’s first Competitive fast-pitch game!

Who is your favourite female player?

Natasha Watley is pretty awesome…

Who is your favourite male player?

The only guys I know that play softball are my friends so I’m not going to give any of them big heads!

Which countries have you played Softball in? Where was your favourite?

I’ve played in the uk, the Czech Republic and Bulgaria. My favourite so far has been Paradubice in the Czech Republic.

[title size=”1″]Quick Interview #3 – Marian Neill[/title]

When did you start Softball?
I started in 2009.

Why Softball??
My dad saw an advertisement on Gumtree for an Introductory league run by Softball Ulster, so I decided to go along and try it out! We were split into 3 teams, trained in the basics like batting and throwing and then played matches over a couple of weeks. After the final week those interested in continuing with softball had a meeting with Softball Ulster who helped those of us start a team. We formed Belfast Sliders Softball Club and played the second half of the 2009 season – 8 of the original group still play!

Have you played any other sports?
I played Camogie until I was 18/19, and I currently play hockey for Pegasus and Baseball for Belfast Buccaneers.

What club do you play for?
I play for Belfast Sliders in the Ulster League.

Do you have any pre match routines?
No.

When was your first international game?
I played for Team Ireland at Diamond 3 in London in July 2014.

What can we do to continue to getting people interested in Softball?
I think things like social media and “word of mouth” help Softball as it’s one of the those sports locally a lot of people don’t realise exists, while events like introductory leagues or open days are a great way to boost participation.
I also think if we could get people involved from a younger age it would really help the develop the sport, as a lot of people are either established in a sport or are not longer interested in playing sport by the time they would be allowed to play softball.

Are you sponsored?
No – it’s all self-funded, so we also do fundraising to try subsidise the costs.

What’s your international Goal?
This summer I’ll achieve my first goal when we compete in the European Championships. I want to be part of a medal winning Irish squad.

Who is your favourite female player?
I couldn’t pick one, I’ve trained and played with some brilliant girls and it helps push me to improve my own game.

Who is your favourite male player?
Again I couldn’t pick one – you’re continually learning from the people you play with!

Which countries have you played Softball in? Where was your favourite?
Back in 2009, I travelled to Hluk in the Czech Republic to play in the Burcak (Young Wine) Tournament, up to that point I had only played a couple of games within the Ulster league so it was an brilliant experience.
In July 2014, I played in England at the Diamond 3 tournament. It was my first time playing on proper diamonds and the standard of softball was so different to my normal league. I couldn’t pick a favourite – both were great experiences for very different reasons!

[title size=”1″]Quick Interview #2 – Grace Kearney[/title]

When did you start Softball?

I started in the summer of 2010 in Cork. This would be my third season in the Leinster League.

Why Softball??

I had a very bad injury when I was playing rugby and was out of sports for over a year. In UCC one day, there was a recruitment drive for different sports teams and I used to play rounder’s for community games so I thought that this could be fun.

Have you played any other sports?

Yes. Lots. I competed in athletics for years underage. I represented Munster on the U19 Ladies Rugby team. I’ve played tag rugby, soccer, hockey, badminton, Gaelic football and tried a bit of Cricket. And not to mention Wii Tennis!

What club do you play for?

Currently I play with Renegades on the Prem Team Beachers.

Do you have any pre match routines?

Trying not to break speed limits as I rush out of school to make the journey from Limerick to Dublin in time for the first pitch!

When was your first international game?

In 2013, I was a member of the Irish Co-Ed team that traveled to the Czech Republic for the European Co-Ed Softball Championships.

How many caps do you have?

5 I think.

What can we do to continue to getting people interested in Softball?

For the last number of years I have introduced softball into schools. I have worked on getting the sport known and played at a younger age. I think it is really important to get students involved when they are in school and develop their skills and knowledge of the sport early. At present, I have the other PE teachers working with groups of students in the PE classes and we will be running a fun tournament before the end of the school year. In every school that I have taught softball, there has been positive responses from both the students and the teachers with some of the teachers joining the league on different teams.

It would be my goal to introduce softball as one of the sports included on the PE teacher’s curriculum in the different universities so that it can be added to the school academic curriculum as another option to rounder’s in the summer months. I think re developing the University Clubs and getting new members joined up would also encourage more players.

Are you sponsored?

I wish unless you can count the bank of Grace. Unfortunately we have to fundraise for all tournaments and pay for everything ourselves but I think that this makes us even more determined to work hard and play hard in order to achieve our goals.

What’s your international Goal?

Personally my international goal would be to play well for my country and to play my part in winning a team medal at the Europeans.

Who is your favourite female player?

My favourite female player is one that I had the honor to play with before she moved back to the US. Her name is Prudence Cathaway Kjontvedt and she is a two time All American in softball who was inducted into the CLU hall of fame in 2013. Not only was she an amazing player but she is also an amazing teacher and friend. http://www.callutheran.edu/alumni/hof

[title size=”1″]First up… Ciara O’Gorman[/title]

By way of introduction, over the summer months we are pulling together some short pieces around the Fastpicth & Slowpitch teams. Asking all players to fill out answers to the light hearted questions below. To kick it all off, we’ve started with Ciara O’Gorman and here’s what she had to say –

When did you start Softball?

I started back in 2012, this will be my 4th season playing.

Why Softball??

A girl I played badminton with mentioned she used to play and with my cricketing background I might enjoy it. So I Google’d softball and emailed the first club I found, fell in love with the game and that was it!

Have you played any other sports?

I’ve played cricket for nearly 16 years now, badminton for 6 and a bit of golf here and there!

What club do you play for?

I play for Kiely’s Kegs based in Ballsbridge

Do you have any pre match routines?

When you have an hour to get to games – running to the Dart/Bus is the pre-match warm up! 🙂

When was your first international game?

I represented an Irish development team at the World Series tournament in London in September 2012.

Do you aspire to be Irish Captain?

I would be silly if I didn’t, I think it would be an honour, but these things take time and experience which I’m getting plenty of each year!

What can we do to continue to getting people interested in Softball?

There are so many ways to get people interested, and Softball Ireland, Softball Leinster, Ulster and Munster do trojan work. I think that schools are a great way to get kids/teenagers interested – how many of us played rounders in school??
Colleges in particular have been important for softball, UCD and UL being two prime examples of this, so many players in the Leinster League have come from colleges.

Are you sponsored?

Unfortunately not, every player pays their own way to tournaments etc, with the help of team fundraising!

What’s your international Goal?

To play at a European Championships, and come home with a medal around my neck!

Who is your favourite female player?

There are too many players to pick just one in Slowpitch, and that’s not me avoiding the question – it’s the truth, I’ve been lucky to play with and against some amazing female softballers!
For fastpitch, I would have to say Jennie Finch from the USA, a fierce competitor and someone who put in the hard work and reaped the rewards, not everyone can say the have an Olympic gold medal!

Who is your favourite male player?

As with the female players, it’s so hard to pinpoint just one person, I’ve learned a lot from the male players I’ve played with!

Which countries have you played Softball in? Where was your favourite?

So far I have only traveled to the UK, but the different tournaments have been eye openers to what I have to do to get to the top level.

Slowpitch or Fastpitch? Which do you prefer?

Something tells me I’d get in trouble with either answer – so I’ll take the diplomatic route and say that I love both because they are so different in ways which keeps you on your toes! Slowpitch is what I am used to and what I’ve loved playing for nearly 4 years, and the excitement behind the beginning of the fastpitch programme is infectious!