This morning after arriving in Dublin we went to Experience Gaelic Games to learn and play some Hurling, Gaelic Football, and Handball. In our time in Ireland we’ve come across Hurling frequently. On day 3 when we were on the lawn at Muckross House we saw a family with these odd stick/bat things hitting a ball around. The Hurley Stick is a pretty common thing. On day 8 when we were hiking with Pat Sweeney he pointed out the County Clare flags that were flying in support of their team taking on Limerick the next day. County Clare was the underdog, and sadly they did not prevail. Sorry Pat!

But Hurling is just one of the Gaelic games. Gaelic Football is another popular one. And while we didn’t see anyone playing Handball that is the third. Things we learned at todays session:

  • Hurling is the most popular, with Gaelic Football growing fast right now.
  • I loved that all Hurling players “play where they are born”. So you don’t trade players. You play for your club and if you move to the top you play for your county.
  • There is no sponsorships. Ticket sales and fundraisers support everything.
  • The players just play, they aren’t paid to play.

Wild stuff when you see a Hurling match in action. All of these games are odd amalgamations. We had a lot of fun playing Hurling. Gaelic Football was a bit too easy to think of like Soccer, even though it isn’t at all like Soccer. It was a really fun time learning these sports.

Four people wearing green Azzurri hurling helmets hold hurleys on a grass pitch under a cloudy sky Young person wearing a green Azzurri helmet and purple long-sleeve shirt holding a hurley stick upright on a grass pitch Young person wearing a green Azzurri hurling helmet and Liverpool FC AXA jersey holding a hurley stick on a GAA pitch Four people roaring at camera while holding GAA footballs on a grass pitch in Dublin, wearing yellow vests