How to Get Over a Bad Game or a Heavy Loss

A GAA Player's Guide to Evaluating Poor Performances and Moving Forward

By Gary O'Daly | Gaz Gaelic Guide

Look, we've all been there. You come off the pitch and you know. You dont need the manager to tell you. You dont need a teammate to say anything. You just know you had a stinker.

Maybe you dropped a few balls, missed a handful of scores you'd normally knock over in training. Maybe the team got beaten by a team you shouldve beaten. Or maybe it was your county's first championship game and the performance just wasnt there. Whatever it was, the feeling after is the same. That sick, hollow, lying-on-the-bed-staring-at-the-ceiling feeling.

Ive been there more times than Id like to admit. And the honest truth is I still have those days. Last year I had a game where I dropped three balls short in the first half, balls were bouncing off my chest because I just wasnt switched on. We won, which made it easier, but I still knew. I still had that 10 or 15 minute period after the final whistle where I was just disgusted at myself.

But heres the thing. I deal with it a hell of a lot better now than I did at 16 or 17. And that shift in how I process a bad performance has made me a better player. So in this post Im going to break down what actually helps, what I do myself now, and what you can take away from it.

And just before I get into it, Im not a sports psychologist. Im not a mindset coach. Im just a lad from Roscommon who plays GAA, works in the pharma industry, and has spent years making mistakes, learning from them, and trying to help other GAA players do the same. Take what works for you and leave what doesnt.

1. Own It. Dont Bury Your Head

The first thing you have to do is own it.

Not in a self-flagellating, rip yourself to pieces kind of way. But in a simple, honest, adult kind of way. If you played poorly, accept that you played poorly. Dont look for excuses. The pitch was bad. The referee was brutal. Your marker was dirty. Look, maybe some of those things are true. But if you played poorly, those things arent the reason.

When I was younger, I was dropped from the minor panel. And for a long time I told myself it was the managements fault. He doesnt rate me. He has his favourites. And you know what? None of that was the reason. The reason was I wasnt good enough. Simple as that. And I didnt do the work that was required to be good enough. I was blaming everyone else instead of looking in the mirror.

The day I accepted that was the day I started actually improving.

The lads who talk shite about other players rarely doing more than what youre doing.

Owning a bad performance doesnt mean beating yourself up about it. It means looking at it clearly. Yeah, that was on me. I dropped the ball. I took the wrong option. I wasnt in the right headspace. Right. Now what can I do about it?

2. The Next Ball Mentality

This one is massive and its something that took me years to actually put into practice.

When I was a teenager Id miss a free, and Id be gone. Out of the game. I could have scored three points from play in the first half, but the minute I missed a 13-yard free Id drop my head and spend the rest of the match dwelling on it. Miss a tackle. Same thing. Give away a score. Head gone. And that mindset was costing me games, even games where my performance was decent up to that point.

The reset cue Ive developed over the years is simple. Two words. Next ball.

Miss a shot. Roll it out. Next ball.

Give away a score. Shake it off. Next ball.

Bad kick-out decision. Forget it. Next ball.

Now, some lads need something more physical as a reset. Ive heard of players having a word written on tape on their wrist. Some lads pull an elastic band. Goalkeepers strap and unstrap their gloves. Whatever it is for you, the point is the same. You need a cue that tells your brain this moment is done. We are back to zero. The next ball is a new start.

Because heres the reality. A mistake lasts maybe two or three seconds. The game is an hour long. Dont let two seconds dictate the next 57 minutes.

The Reset Rule

Find your cue. Say it, do it, write it on your wrist. Whatever works. But develop something that brings you back to zero after a mistake. The game isnt over because you had one bad moment.

3. Rate Yourself Honestly. Not Just Harshly.

One of the most useful habits I developed was rating my performances out of 10 after every game and training session.

And this is the key part. You have to be honest both ways. Most lads who are conscientious players will only focus on what they did wrong. But thats not an accurate picture. If you went minute zero to minute 60 and you won six kickouts, scored two from play, made three strong runs, and then missed a free with five minutes to go, you dont get a 3 out of 10. Youre looking at something like a 7 or 8. That free miss is worth noting, but its one moment in an hour.

Equally, if you had a real stinker, dont give yourself a 6 out of 10 to protect your ego. Be real. If it was a 4, call it a 4.

The reason this works is that over time it gives you actual data on your own performances. You start to see patterns. Are you consistently having your worst games when you havent slept well? When youve had a heavy gym session in the two days before? When you played a game four days ago as well? Or maybe you notice your best performances follow a certain routine.

That information is pure gold. And you wont have access to it unless you start keeping track.

If you gave yourself an 8 out of 10 three weeks ago and you can remember exactly what you did in the days before that game, go back and replicate that.

4. Journal It. I Know, I Know. Just Hear Me Out.

I know. I can already hear half of ye rolling your eyes. Journaling. Sounds like something theyd tell you to do in a mindfulness app.

But stick with me here.

Im not talking about writing your feelings in a diary. Im talking about a very simple, practical note after a game or training. Five minutes max. A few lines on your phone is enough.

What to write:

• What did I do well today? Be specific. Not just 'played okay'. Name the moments.

• What went wrong? Be honest and be specific. Not 'I was shite'. What actually happened?

• Why did it go wrong? Was it a technical thing? Decision-making? Tiredness? Head wasnt right?

• What can I work on before the next game or training session?

• How do I rate this performance out of 10, and why?

Thats it. Five questions. You dont have to write an essay.

The reason this is so valuable is it forces you to move from emotion to analysis. After a bad performance, your brain is in emotional mode. You feel like everything went wrong. The journal process slows that down and makes you actually look at what happened. A lot of the time, when you write it out, the performance wasnt as bad as you thought.

And on the flip side, if you had a brilliant game and gave yourself a 9 out of 10, writing down the specifics of what you did and how you felt beforehand means you can look back on that whenever your confidence takes a dip. You can remind yourself. I did this. I played like that. I can do it again.

5. Look at the Controllables

After a bad performance, one of the most useful questions you can ask yourself is: what could I have controlled better going into that game?

Nutrition. Sleep. Training load. Mental preparation. Warmup.

Were you running on five hours of sleep? Did you have a takeaway the day before the match? Did you go out the Friday night before a Sunday game? Did you skip your warmup because you were late? These things matter more than most GAA players give them credit for.

Im not saying every bad performance is because you ate a chipper the night before. Some days you just dont have it. But if you notice a pattern where your worst games follow certain habits, thats direct feedback. And feedback is only useful if you act on it.

The controllables framework also keeps you from blaming things you cant change. Yes, the pitch was brutal. Yes, it was lashing rain. Yes, the referee gave three dodgy frees in the first half. You cant control any of that. So focus on what you can.

Ask Yourself Before Every Game

Sleep. Check. Nutrition in the 48 hours beforehand. Check. Training load managed. Check. Mental prep done. Check. If you can tick those boxes, you gave yourself the best possible chance.

6. Team Losses Hit Different

Everything above applies to individual performances. But team losses, especially big ones in championship, are a different animal.

The temptation after a heavy loss is to either rip everyone to pieces or go into denial mode and act like it wasnt that bad. Neither helps.

What does help is being honest as a group, or at least honest with yourself as an individual within that group. What went wrong? Was it the kickout? The movement in the forwards? The defensive shape? The first 10 minutes?

Dont just say everyone played shite and move on. That fixes nothing. And dont bury your head in the sand because you dread facing the lads at training on Tuesday. Go to training. Show up. The players who show up after a heavy loss are the ones who get better. The players who avoid it dont.

And whatever you do, own your own piece of it. Not everyone elses. Yours. You can only control what you do. If you played poorly in a loss, you already know what you need to work on. If you played well in a loss, dont let that get lost in the noise of the team result. You can hold both things at the same time.

No one ever punches down. The person slagging the player for doing extra work is never doing more than that player themselves.

7. Give It 24 Hours

This is the most practical piece of advice I can give you. Give it 24 hours before you really analyse anything.

Right after a bad game, your brain is emotional. Youre frustrated, maybe embarrassed, maybe angry. That is not the state to be doing a deep analysis of your performance from. Youll be too harsh. Or youll be defensive. Either way youre not thinking clearly.

So let yourself feel whatever you feel after a bad game. If you need to be pissed off for an hour, be pissed off. If you need to sit in the car and stew for a bit, sit in the car. But after that, let it go for the night.

Then the next day, when youre calm, sit down with your journal, go through the questions, rate the performance, and make a plan. That is when the useful thinking happens.

The 24-Hour Rule

Dont make any big decisions or harsh judgements about yourself the night of a bad game. Sleep on it. Come back to it tomorrow when your brain is in a better place. Then look at it clearly and make a plan.

To Wrap It Up

Getting over a bad performance or a heavy loss is a skill. It genuinely is. And like any skill, it gets better with practice.

The lads who are still playing their best football in their late 20s and early 30s are not the ones who never have bad games. Theyre the ones who have bad games and come back the next week better for it. They own their mistakes, they analyse what went wrong, they work on it, and they move forward.

Heres the quick summary:

1. Own your performance. No excuses.

2. Find your reset cue. Use it. Next ball.

3. Rate yourself out of 10. Be honest both ways.

4. Journal it. Five questions. Five minutes.

5. Look at the controllables and fix what you can.

6. For team losses, analyse the game not just the result.

7. Give it 24 hours before you really dig into it.

If you take even one of those and start applying it, youre going to be in a better place mentally going into your next game.

Thats all Ive got on this one. If you found it useful, share it with a teammate. And if theres a topic you want me to cover, drop me a DM on Instagram or TikTok at @gazgaelicguide.

Have a good one. Gaz.

About the Author

Gary O'Daly is a qualified personal trainer, certified nutritionist, and biomedical scientist. He plays for St. Ronans GAA Club in Roscommon and runs Gaz Gaelic Guide, a GAA-focused fitness and performance brand helping club players train smarter, eat better, and perform at their best.

gazgaelicguide.com   |   @gazgaelicguide