My Top Sporting Moments of 2013

1. Clare winning the Senior All Ireland Hurling Final

2. Adam Scott winning the Masters

3. Europe winning the Solheim Cup on US soil for the first time

   

 4. Domhnall O’ Donovan’s match saving point in the All Ireland Hurling Final for Clare

5. The Grand Slam winning Irish Women’s Rugby Team

6. British & Irish Lions

7. AP McCoy’s 4000^th Career Win

8. Rob Heffernan winning at the World Championship’s

9. Phil Mickelson winning the British Open

10. Dublin Senior Footballers winning the National League, Leinster and All Ireland Championships

Domhnall’s really milking it!

He made his first appearance on our television screens for the Late Late Toy Show.  Viewers of the show described it as one of the heart-warming Toy Show moments in years. Ireland’s leading goal scorer Robbie Keane hobbled onto the set of the Late Late Show on crutches to surprise Domhnall. While Domhnall was chatting to host Ryan Tubridy about computer games and Ireland’s chance for Euro 2016, Robbie made the surprise appearance. Domhnall was temporarily speechless but regained his composure to ask Robbie some decent questions about his career and his future as a footballer. Young Domhnall stole the Late Late Toy Show with his genuine, touching reaction to meeting his footballing idol.

Domhnall made another appearance on the Late Late Show a week after the Toy Show with his parents with another surprise in store for Domhnall. Ryan gave him the Irish Away kit and the opportunity to be the team mascot for Ireland’s next international match which is a friendly game at home to Serbia next March.

So what’s next for young Domhnall?!

I’m guessing a call up to play alongside Robbie and the rest of the Ireland team!

Westjet Airlines Marketing Campaign for Christmas

Westjet Airlines have really nailed down Christmas Marketing for the company this year. Thanks to the help of their employees and the power of technology. The Canadian airline created a virtual Santa to ask passengers what they wanted for Christmas before they left for their intended destination, when the passengers arrived at their destination the gifts they asked for were there waiting for them. The company wanted to surprise their passengers with meaningful, personalised gifts when they least expected them. This is a pretty cool PR stunt from Westjet Airlines.

This wasn’t Westjet’s first effort in spreading airport Christmas celebrations. Last year, the airline created a Christmas themed flash mob. The video received almost half a million views leading the airline to donate flights to a family in need through their community investment program.

A visit to the ‘Home of Golf’

 

Getting the opportunity to play the Old Course at St. Andrews is every golfers dream as it’s so famous among golfers and it has a lot of history associated with it. Today, St. Andrews is recognised across the globe as the ‘Home of Golf’ and it certainly feels like it. There are seven golf courses located around the town of St. Andrews, the Old Course, New Course, Castle Course, Eden Course, Jubliee Course, Strathtyrum Course and the Balgove Course.  If you’re a golfer and you haven’t played in St. Andrews you’ll have to make the trip.

This year I was delighted to get the opportunity to play the Old Course and the Eden Course for the R&A Scholars Tournament in April and in June I played the New Course and the Old Course for the St. Rule Trophy. As part of the R&A Scholars Tournament, competitors were treated to a tour of the R&A clubhouse located beside the 1^st tee and 18^th green of the Old Course. It was great opportunity to develop my knowledge of the game and the history of St. Andrews with the chance of the tour of the clubhouse. One of the many unique things about the Old Course is that there are double greens all over the links, white flags indicate the outward nine and red signal the inward. So you have to make sure you’re hitting your approach shots to the right pin otherwise you could have a few too many sixty footers in your round.  On both my visits this year I was lucky with the weather because I certainly wouldn’t look forward to playing the back nine of the Old Course in gusty conditions but I wouldn’t mind the challenge of it.

 

 

 

The 11^th hole is one of the toughest Par 3’s I’ve played in golf, it measures 170 yards and it’s very difficult to hold the green which slopes from back to front. Anything right will end up on the 7^th green which is shared with the 11^th green and it will require a tricky uphill putt to the pin. Then you make the turn for the challenging back nine. The front nine presents more birdie opportunities than the back, which seems to be playing into the wind whenever I have played it. Then you make your way through the back nine and onto the 17^th, famously named the Road Hole a Par 4 for Men and Par 5 for Ladies. For the tee shot you’re required to hit over the former railway sheds, which are now part of the Old Course Hotel. The approach shot to the green should finish at the front right corner of the green, while avoiding the road on the right and not forgetting the Road Hole bunker to the left of the green. And finally comes the 18^th which shares its fairway with the 1^st hole. The line off the tee is the clock on the R&A Clubhouse, it’s a short hole and it normally only requires a wedge for your second. The walk from the tee to the fairway involves the walk over the famous Swilcan Bridge, one of the best known and most photographed landmarks on any golf course around the world. Around the 1^st tee and the 18^th green there is a great atmosphere, with golfers and tourists watching the golf and soaking it all up. Around the town of St. Andrews there is a great atmosphere between golfers and tourists from around the world and students who attend the local University.

I’m looking forward to heading back to St. Andrews in 2014 🙂

 

Nike’s Competitive Advantage

Ok this new ad from Nike may not exceed the entertainment the public received from the ‘No Cup is Safe’ ad which featured Rory and Tiger Woods earlier this year, but its still entertaining, with a surprise appearance from Ronaldo near the end.

When Nike sponsor high profile athletes like Rory McIlroy, Wayne Rooney and sports teams all over the world, they are developing the brands reputation over their close rivals in the market.  Nike has become one of the most recognised global symbols. Strong branding is just one of Nike’s competitive advantages, they have a culture of innovation, plenty of international opportunities for revenue expansion and significant pricing power with higher gross margins.

Nike have introduced a new experience for consumers, where they can go on to the Nike website and personalise and design a pair of shoes on NikeID to their own preference. The customer becomes the designer. The experience is unique, simple and engaging for the consumer. Obviously Nike are charging a higher price for the product as it is differentiated from other products resulting in higher revenues for the company and significantly increasing the gap between them and their rivals.