It seems Galway chief Kevin Walsh has drafted in the services of a trainer who played a part in the All-Blacks' powerful World Cup winning journey.
Greg Muller, a native of New Zealand, has been tasked with the duty of working the Galway players into shape ahead of the 2016 campaign in which the Tribesmen are anxious to intercept Mayo's fifth consecutive Connacht title.
Muller is likely to draw upon his experiences of working with the New Zealand Elite Forces as well as the coaching strengths he has cultivated from working with New Zealand, the Auckland Blues and Connacht Rugby, in his efforts to inspire Galway.
Speaking to the Irish Examiner, Muller spoke positively about putting strong structures in place to allow the Galway team to achieve their goals.
'Once we get these things in place, we could get through and win Connacht titles and really start contesting at All-Ireland level in the next one or two years but in reality, it’s probably more of a three to five-year plan. They need to hold people in place to allow those fruits to ripen, and that’s a huge challenge,' he said.
Reflecting on what he learned from his time with the Elite Forces, Muller went on to say:
'The words ‘elite’ and ‘world class’ are used a lot these days but in reality there are very few that operate at that level. What I learned in the military is they function with optimum precision, planning and commitment. They don’t accept people putting in mediocre efforts. When I started with the Blues, I brought that mindset into their systems. And when I came to Galway I did likewise.
And it seems the Kiwi has already begun familiarising himself with the ways of GAA after observing some of the action from the 2015 season.
'We have made a lot of changes with Galway. I learned a lot last season just seeing how a GAA team like Galway works. Out of season, we put in a lot of work putting new systems in place, and to see the fruits of that, it could take three or four years.'
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