New season - junior sessions
Information on the new season including registration, training times, matches, communication, and club gear.
Meeting for junior parents
We are having a meeting for junior parents on Thursday 9 September at 7.15pm – 7.45pm in the Falls Leisure Centre.
The topics covered below will be discussed and it will be an opportunity to ask questions about these or any other matter. Coaches will be in attendance.
If you cannot attend but would like to discuss a matter please contact us.
Registration
Swim Ireland require us to register all members at the start of each season. The form is online and will be circulated in WhatsApp groups. It can be accessed on the download and links page. The deadline for registration is 30 September 2021.
Training
Training resumes on 9 September 2021 and will run this term until Thursday 23 December.
Times for Thursday night training this term are as follows:
FUNdamentals, U9s and U11s: 7.00 to 7.45
U13s and U15s: 7.45 to 8.45
U17s and U19s: 8.45 to 9.45
On Thursday 9 September for FUNdamentals, U9s and U11s we will be assessing ability for the purposes of delivering more focused swimming lessons.
If you are unsure what session your child should attend, please contact Ronan or Joe. Alternatively, attend the session your child has attended previously on the first training session back.
U13s and U15s
This term we plan to offer swim improvement sessions in BRA School Pool on Tuesday evenings at 7.30 to 8.30. These sessions will be led by a Swim Ireland qualified swimming coach and the primary focus will be on developing swimming ability and fitness. The sessions are open to children who can swim at least 25m front crawl. We would particularly encourage junior players in the U13 and U15 groups to attend.
There is no additional charge, provided that you pay on a monthly basis. When we have confirmed the pool booking we will let you know the start date.
U17s and U19s
U17s and U19s are invited to train at senior sessions in Lisnsharragh Pool on Tuesdays at 9pm to 10pm and the Grove Pool on Wednesdays at 8.00pm to 9.30pm. The junior players will take part in senior training but will perform drills and matches as a group, so far as possible; their coach will be in attendance.
Matches
National leagues and cups are organised by year of birth depending on when the match is played or competition begins. Ulster competitions tend to follow the relevant year of birth for Irish Cups taking place each season.
For example, in the 2021 / 2022 season the U13 Cup takes place in June 2022 and is open to players born 2009 or later (i.e. players who are aged 13 or under at the time). Given this, Ulster will arrange matches for players born 2009 throughout the 2021 / 2022 season.
The below are indicative dates for competitions / matches. When these games have been confirmed we will contact the relevant squads.
WhatsApp groups
Parents will be invited to join WhatsApp groups for the group in which their children train and compete. if you have not been invited, please contact us and let us know.
Volunteering opportunities
We have a number of positions that are traditionally occupied by parents of juniors. No prior experience (or understanding of the game) is necessary. Time commitments are minimal and training will be provided, where required.
Club children’s officer
Team managers
Covid officers / parents rota
If you would like to get involved please let us know.
Club gear
We will be organising a club order towards the end of September. Order forms will be distributed and clothing will be available to try (for size) on 23 and 30 September at the Falls Leisure Centre between 7.30 and 8.00.
Training - Summer 2021
Details of training over the summer period including a two week break in mid-July.
Seniors and juniors will take a two week break in July. Normally we break for longer (term time for juniors) but given the lack of time in the pool this year we are continuing sessions over the summer.
Juniors
The final session before the break is Thursday 8 July (Falls). First session back is Thursday 29 July (Falls).
Seniors
The final session before the break is Tuesday 6 July (Lisnasharragh). The first session back is Tuesday 27 July (Lisnasharragh).
When training resumes, the coaches will hold a meeting with all senior players to determine availability for the coming season. This is open to any player who has or would like to play senior water polo.
Update to members - May 2020
Cú Chulainn AGM; Return to Water Roadmap; National Water Polo Conference; 2019/20 season
Cú Chulainn Annual General Meeting
The 2020 Cú Chulainn Annual General Meeting will be held on Tuesday 9 June at 7.00pm.
The AGM will be conducted via zoom. All members will receive an invite via email with the relevant documentation attached on Tuesday 19 May.
If you do not receive an email invite, please contact a club officer or contact the secretary directly.
Return to Water Roadmap
Swim Ireland have published a ‘Return to Water Roadmap’. This document takes account of the ‘roadmaps’ published by the governments in Ireland.
The Swim Ireland Roadmap aims to support clubs and members to return to the water in a safe and timely manner and includes details of what may happen for each aquatic discipline at each phase. It will be supported by framework documents, which will provide greater detail and clarity, when possible.
The club will use the Swim Ireland Roadmap and any relevant framework documents as planning tools, but we are mindful that Swim Ireland describe the document as a “first draft” and draw attention to the “fluid and continuously evolving situation”. Significantly, while the Swim Ireland Roadmap provides dates, no dates have been provided in the roadmap published by the NI Executive.
We will update members with any changes to the Swim Ireland Roadmap when they occur.
National Water Polo Conference
The National Water Polo Conference took place on Saturday 16 May via webinar. The National Water Polo Committee proposed a range of motions relating to league structure, tournament rules, player eligibility, discipline, and complaints. 2 delegates participated on behalf of Cú Chulainn and voted on each of motions.
All the motions secured the required number of votes and were passed. A summary of the motions relating to leagues and cup competitions is below. We will share a link to the updated rulebook when it is published.
League Competitions
A new League structure is proposed for all levels which restructures the men’s leagues as two Divisions with 8 teams/clubs in Division 1, with each team naming 11 players. The named 11 players can only play in Division 1.
The remaining entries will form Division 2 in two groups. There will be 2 rounds with the top 3 in each group plus the u17 national squad playing off round 2 Tier 1 and the remainder play off Tier 2. National squad players will play for their respective clubs in matches against the national squad team.
Division 2 players may play Division 1 games but if they play 5 or more games in one season then they are classed as Division 1 players and can no longer compete in Division 2.
There will be NO under 19 leagues.
There will be an underage league 16/17, year of birth in line with international commitments.
Under 17 players who play Division 1 in men or women cannot play in the underage leagues but can play in underage cups.
The NWPC may establish an U14 league in line with international age group YOB.
Cup Competitions
The draw for the Irish Senior Cup Competitions is addressed to eliminate seeding of previous year league top four teams into designated groups but retains seeding in two draw pots with pot 1 being the pre-qualified top 4 league teams and pot 2 the qualifier teams.
New under 13 single gender cups are introduced in June, using a size 4 ball. The mixed under 13 cup remains and will be a Development Cup using a size 3 ball.
Completion of the 2019/20 National Leagues and Irish Cups
At the end of March, Swim Ireland and the National Water Polo Committee announced the closure of the 2019/2020 season until September 2020. The announcement was part of a broader statement that sees all aquatic activities suspended until the end of August 2020.
Arrangements are being put in place to complete the outstanding matches and tournaments at the beginning of the 2020/2021 season. These plans remain in place at present but are subject to the restrictions that inform the Swim Ireland Roadmap document.
Autumn blitzes
Information on autumn blitzes including dates and times.
Ulster Water Polo will be running the next round of junior Blitzes in the Grove Wellbeing centre, Shore road Belfast
The dates for the Autumn Junior blitzes are as follows
U9 mixed Born 2010 or later -8th Nov 7:30 - 9:00
U11 mixed Born 2008 or later -15th Nov 7:30 - 9:30
U13 mixed Born 2006 or later- 22nd Nov 7:30 - 9:30
U15 girls Born 2004 or later - 6th Dec 7:30 - 9:30
U15 boys Born 2004 or later- 13th Dec 7:30 - 9:30
When we have details of match times, we’ll post them here and on the relevant WhatsApp groups.
If you have any questions, contact us.
Cú Chulainn Bridgestone Tournament 2018
Details of the Cú Chulainn Annual Bridgestone Tournament taking place on 28 - 30 September in Belfast.
The Cú Chulainn Annual Bridgestone Tournament will be held on the weekend of 28th – 30th September 2018 in Belfast.
Match schedules
The entries have been received and the schedules are now available!
Mini and Maxi
The U10 Mini (2008) & U12 Maxi (2006) tournaments will be held on the Friday evening (28th) in the Grove Wellbeing Centre from 7-10pm.
U-15 Boys and Girls
The U15 (2003) tournament will be held on Saturday 29th (Grove) & Sunday 30th (Falls).
Updates and results
We’re aiming to share the results of the games on Twitter and Facebook so make sure to give us a follow or like and share your pics on the day!