The PJ Nolan Champions Academy

The Early Years 
 
I began my coaching career in my home town of New Ross, Co. Wexford in the Republic Of Ireland in the 1980s and watching the players improve was the main reason I kept working hard on my own coaching. 

It was not long until I was guiding players to win national and provincial Irish junior and senior snooker titles.  
  
 
My brother Michael Nolan was one of the first players I coached and he broke all the records in my home town

·        Michael became the youngest player ever to win our clubs senior championship at the age of 12.

·        Michael also became the youngest player in our club to make a century break (127) at the age of 13.

·        Michael is the only New Ross player to play on Irish Snooker team.

I have never been a top player, but I have won my local town championship and have beaten many top ranked players in (RIBSA) tournaments over the years.

Because I had no major playing record, I feel this made me work even harder on my own coaching style because I had to prove it more to everyone that I was a good coach. However, soon players realized that a coach is a person who motivates, encourages and trains the players to improve and reach their true potential.

Youngest Qualified Coach - 1997

In 1997 Terry Griffiths who was the Coaching Director of  W.P.B.S.A. (World Professional Billiards & Snooker Association )  travelled to Ireland to set up the R.I.B.S.A. (Republic Of Ireland Billiards & Snooker Association ) Coaching Foundation and he qualified me as a coach, becoming the youngest qualified RIBSA Coach. 

Appointed Qatar National Coach - 1998

In 1998 The Qatar Billiards & Snooker Federation, in the gulf, contacted the I.B.S.F. (International Billiards & Snooker Federation) looking for a new national coach. I applied for the position and I became Qatar National Coach in July 1998.  

Training and coaching the Qatar national team for Gulf ,Arab and Asian Snooker Championships gave me fantastic experience in learning how to prepare players to play to their best for major tournaments.

Appointed Irish National Coach - 1999

In 1999 The Republic of Ireland Billiards & Snooker Association gave me a position I couldn’t refuse and become the Republic Of Ireland National Snooker Coach and Director of Coaching in Ireland. I decided to quit Qatar to come back to Ireland to take up this position

From 1999 – 2003 I worked as the full time National Snooker Coach of Ireland and guided the Ireland senior team to win two Home International Senior Titles in 2000 and 2001. 

 I also helped in the development of a string of new Irish up and coming players like David Morris, Vincent Muldoon, David Hogan, Martin McCrudden, and Tom McKeown who have all gone on to win numerous Irish titles.

In 2001, I attended the NCTC  ( National Coaching & Training Center )  Tutor Course on behalf of RIBSA. This course covered all sports and it showed me that a coach is the same in all sports and it all boils down to helping players enjoy and play the sport better and more consistent.  

During the two year's involved with the NCTC, I wrote the RIBSA coaching syllabus and this Introduction Level Course was approved by the NCTC in January 2003. I finally graduated in the NCTC as the first tutor in the sport of snooker in Limerick University in 2002. Now RIBSA run coaching seminars using this RIBSA / NCTC course