Coaches an under-14 team that had no coach
Ade Bello played and coached GAA-style contact sports in Lagos for eight years before arriving in Cork in 2023. He had no GAA experience — Gaelic football is not played in Nigeria — but he understood player development, team dynamics, and how to work with adolescents.
At a local GAA club, he noticed the under-14 boys' team had no coach. The season was six weeks away. He stayed after training one evening and asked the club secretary if he could help.
The club secretary said yes. The parents were less certain. Within two months, the uncertainty had reversed: Ade's team won their first three games of the season and his communication with parents — weekly updates, individual progress notes for each player — set a standard the senior team would eventually adopt.
The under-14s finished third in the county that year. Four of his players have since been selected for county development squads. Ade has since received a formal coaching licence through the GAA's coaching development pathway.
He now coaches two age groups. He has introduced a warm-up routine drawn from Nigerian athletic training traditions that the club's senior coach has adopted for all age groups.