hurling's history

1. history of hurling
history of hurling
Hurling a part of irish history.
Hurling a part of irish history

2. WHAT IS HURLING
An ancient irish sport that has been played for over 2500 years.
It is a game played on a large field with goals on either side, it
Of 30 players 15 on both sides, each player has a hurley and a
Helmet and they play with a ball called a sliotar. Over eighty
thousand people go to watch on the day of the all ireland final
This is the biggest hurling fixture determining the best team in
The world. Hurling is also played by Irish expats in the U.S, England
Even in Asia although does not have the same
interest.
Pitch with positions
Hurley
And sliotar

3. Breakdown of hurling
One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic
football, such as the field and goals, number of players, and much terminology. There is a
similar game for women called camogie. It shares a common Gaelic root with the sport of
shinty which is played predominantly in Scotland.
The object of the game is for players to use a wooden stick called a hurley to hit a small
ball called a sliotar between the opponents' goalposts either over the crossbar for one
point, or under the crossbar into a net guarded by a goalkeeper for one goal, which is
equivalent to three points. The sliotar can be caught in the hand and carried for not more
than four steps, struck in the air, or struck on the ground with the hurley. It can be kicked or
slapped with an open hand (the hand pass) for short-range passing. A player who wants to
carry the ball for more than three steps has to bounce or balance the sliotar on the end of
the stick and the ball can only be handled twice while in his possession.

4. HURLING
Is believed to be a certain type of martial arts training before made
Into a game, in some parts of ireland it was banned due to being too
Violent. It has been said to be as old as 1200bc it has said that
It came before christianity around the time of the brehon laws and
Has been a distinct irish game for almost 3000 years. Hurling is related to the games of shinty that is played
primarily in Scotland, cammag on the Isle ofMan and bandy that was played formerly in England and Wales.
The tale of the Táin Bó Cuailgne (drawing on earlier legends) describes the hero Cúchulainn playing hurling at
Emain Macha. Similar tales are told about Fionn Mac Cumhail and the Fianna, his legendary warrior band. Recorded
references to hurling appear in many places such as the 13th century Statutes of Kilkenny and a 15th century grave
slab survives in Inishowen, County Donegal Hurling was said to be played in ancient times by teams
representing neighbouring villages. Villages would play games involving hundreds of players, whichwould last
several hours or even days.The Eighteenth Century is often referred to as “The Golden Age of Hurling.” This
was when members of the Anglo-Irish people kept teams of players on their estates and challenged each
other’s teams to matches for the amusement of their tenants.One of the first modern attempts to standardise the
game with a formal, written set of rules came with the foundation of the Irish Hurling Union at Trinity College Dublin
in 1879. It aimed “to draw up a code of rules for all clubs in the country and to help that noble game of
hurling in this, its native country”.

5. Quick facts on ancient hurling
history
One of Irelands National sports.
Is dominate in some counties more than others.
Is more than 2500 years old
It is an ameteur sport
It is the fastest game in the world played
on grass
Blue dominate
Counties green
Good at both
gaelic football and
Hurling yellow neither

6. SLOITAR HURLEY AND
HELMET
SLIOTAR
Ball used for the sport hurling it comes in all different sizes
And weight but thats depending on your age but that was'nt
Always the case Early (pre-GAA) sliotars used various materials,
depending on the part of the country including combinations of wood, leather, rope and
animal hair and even hollow bronze.[
In the early years of the GAA, there was no specific standard for the size or weight of sliotars.
The man credited with initial standardisation of the sliotar is Ned Treston
–1949) of Gort , Co. Galway . He was selected to play in a match between South Galway and North
Tipperary in February 1886 in Dublin. Prior the game, there was debate
between the teams as regards the size of the sliotar. Treston made a sliotar at a nearby saddler,
which was used in the game, and went on to be a prototype for the standard
sliotar used from then on.[4 ]
Johnny mcAuliffe (born 1896, Bruff, Co. Limerick) is credited with the modern design. Before his
improvements the ball tended to be inconsistent due to poor manufacturing. It
was also heavier than modern sliotars (over 200g), and due to being made partly with horse-hair,
tended to lose shape during play, and become soggy in wet conditions.
The brown colour also meant that players tended to lose sight of the sliotar against crowded backdrops
such as the crowd in Croke park . t he sliotar can be advanced with the hurley or by hand, though it cannot be
advanced by throwing it. The hurley must be used to roll, job, lift or flick the sliotar into the hand. The sliotar
can be
caught while in the air or bouncing along the ground. The sliotar can be kept in the hand for at most four consecutive
steps or the length of time to take four steps. The sliotar can be balanced on the hurley for an unlimited amount of time
but can only go to a player’s hands twice before he gets rid of it. A player must not grab or hold another player’s hurley.

7. Hurley
A huley is the stick used to play hurling
By rule all hurleys must
There are names associated with different parts of the hurley. With respect to the
picture above the "bas" is the rounded end of the hurl where the sliotar makes
contact as it is being struck. At the same end the "heel" of the hurley is the area to
the left of the band and at the hurley's edge(nearest the bottom of the picture above).
It is used to give height to a ball struck on the ground. The rounded area to the right of
e band is the "toe" of the hurley and is implicated in the roll lift or jab lift techniques which
allow a player to gain legal possession of a ball into the hand from the ground.
The handle is at the opposite end of the hurley to the boss, with
the timber cut to form a small lip at the peak (to prevent the hurley from
slipping from the player's hand).

8. hurley
hurleys are made from ash wood, the base of the tree near the root is the only part used
and are usually bought from local craftsmen in Ireland (for about 20-50 euro), who still
use traditional production
methods. However, for some time in the 1970s, hurleys made from plastic were used
, mainly produced by Wavin . These proved more likely to cause injury, however, and
were phased out. Steel bands are used to reinforce the flattened end of the hurley though
these are not permitted in camogie due to increased risk of injury. Bands have been put
on hurleys since the beginning; the 8th century Brehon Laws permit only a king's son to
have a bronze band, while all others must use a copper band.
No matter how well crafted the hurley is, a hurler may well expect to use several hurleys
over the course of the hurling season. The hurleys often break if two collide in the course
of a game, or occasionally they break off on the other players (arms, legs, etc.). Two hurleys
colliding is colloquially known as "the clash of the ash." Some hurleys can be repaired
by a method called "splicing". This method involves cutting a bas shaped piece from
another broken hurley and fixing it to the broken bas by way of glue and nails, the two
piece bas is then banded ("hooped") and sanded into shape. Throwing the hurley
(e.g. to block a ball going high over one's head) is illegal, though camogie players may
drop it to make a handpass.

9. GAA
All gaa clubs in Ireland

10. GAA A CULTURAL
REVALUTION IN IRELAND
In the 1870's and 1880's, a new type of nationalism emerged in Ireland that was influenced by cultural rather
than political issues This new movement became known as cultural natioalism.The culture of a nation refers to
its "way of life"and can include language, customs, traditions, food, manners, games, dress, music and dance.
At the time Irishpeople wer struggling with their identity. They spoke English, played English sports and many
areas of everyday life were covered by English traditions. Their movements were tied to politics. cultural
nationalism defined Irishness being different from the English. They needed something to distinguish
themsevleves from the English they began trying to speak their own language but the creation of the gaa was
The most power ful bringing back their games.
On 1 November 1884 the Gaelic Athletic Association was officially
formed at a meeting in Thurles co.Tipperary . There were only seven people at this meeting. Two of them
were John Cusack and Maurice Davitt, who was one of the most famous, respected and successul athletes in
Ireland. The GAA was formed because the Irish played English games and they needed their own sports,
For example hurling handball and gaelic football otherwise another part of life would be portraited in foreign
traditions. The aims were to organise Irish sports according to Irish rules. These had to be drawn up and
the membership was allowed to all classes. It was agreed that Davin should become the GAA's first president
and Cusack was appointed secretary. Archbishop Croke, Parnell and Michael Davitt became patrons.
Throughout 1885 and 1886, the GAA developed very quickly. New clubs were
formed and games and athletic meetings were organised. Similarly to the meetings of the Land League
these were attended by large crowds.The clubs were established on parochial system
, but a town was allowed to have more clubs if there were enough inhabitants. First inter-parish games were
organised and this laid the basis for a national competition. In these clubs the Irish had the opportunity for the
first time to take part in administration, organisation and set their own rules. One of these was the ban of joining
any non-GAA athletic clubs for members. Archbishop Croke opposed this and it was dropped in 1886, as the
inmediate opponent, the Irish Amateur Athletic Association failed. It was formed in February, 1885 by 5 Dublin
based clubs. The GAA county Committees became a major center of the people's life.

11. GAA
The GAA did commence as a cultural movement, but was linked to political nationalism from the very start. His
patrons were all linked to the IRB; Parnell, Davitt as founder of the Land League, John O'Leary, a former Fenian
and Archbishop Croke, a firm nationalist. The GAA did not hide his sympathy for nationalist politics and it had two
reasons; they did not want unionists to join tried to attract the IRB's interest. In November 1886, the GAA's second
convention elected a new Genereal Council. All of the members, apart from Davin, were members of the IRB. Over
the next year they banned RIC members from the GAA. Another key decision was to automatically appoint every
Central Council member to a member of every County Committee. These political disputes nearly undid the
success of the GAA.
Davin resigned in protest in May 1887 and there was also much opposition to the IRB takeover from the Home
Rulers and the Catholic Church. At the GAA's third convention 200 delegates walked out and the IRB had to agree
to compromise. On the next meeting Davin was re-appointed and the IRB's influence was reduced.
Although the original idea could be defended against politics another problem weakened the GAA. Parnell's private
life, and the scandal on the divorce. The Catholic Church condemned Parnell's behaviour and the Home Rule
Party split as well. So did the GAA's patrons, but the GAA, controlled by the IRB came out in support of Parnell, a
minority viewpoint. The GAA formed a guard of honour at Parnell's funeral in 1891. The public saw the movement
as a Parnellite organisation and remained in minority during the 1890's. At the annual meeting in 1892, only six
counties with 200 clubs were represented. Some coutnties did not even have any clubs. The GAA did survive, and
a revival of the association began in the 1900's. The GAA now focused on sports and stayed clear of politics. By
1914 the GAA was an enormous success. In 1913, ca 35,000 spectators attended the All-Ireland final and the
works on the national stadium, Croke Park began.
The success of the GAA was helped by the Gaelic League. The Gaelic League was set up on 31 July, 1893, by 7
members. Their main aim was to stop the decline of Gailge as a spoken language. Since the early 19th century
due to the Great Famine, emigration, the lack of education, the media and popular attitudes less and less spoke it.
There were no classes in national schools for Irish, no Irish newspapers and the official language was English only.
Many tried to deal with the problem, but the League suceeded. They proposed a bi-lingual society and the
development of a modern Irish literature, too. The League grew slowly, and this only changed due to the nationalist
feelings during the commemoration of the 1798 Rebellion. The League failed, where the GAA could survive; in
1915 the IRB took over. Douglas Hyde resigned in protest, but the League became part of the violent nationalism

12. The Gaelic League was innovative in many ways. It was the first major organisation to admit men
and women as equals. One of them was Lady Augusta Gregory. Lady gregory came from a
prominent, unionist background and opposed Home Rule. However, she later came ot accept it. She
was interested in Irish folklore and through her wealth and influence Lady Gregory was able to
patronise Yeats and others. Yeats was born to a middle class , protestant family. He became
interested in Irish folklore and was drawn towards nationalism. In 1888 Yeats helped to found the
Pan-Celtic Society, their aim was to promote writing solely of Irish interest. He was founder of the
Abbey Theatre as well.
Even though both the GAA and the Gaelic League were founded as on-political movements, they
were influenced by the IRB. Their biggest legacy was that they provided something to the people
which was their own and uniquely Irish. The people by joining these movements had the opportunity
to organise and administreate. These skilled men later became the Irish politicans and ministers.

13. GAA
The founding of the Gaelic Athletic Association was founded in 1884 turned around a
trend of terminal decline by organising the game around a common set of written
rules. The 20th century saw greater organisation in Hurling and Gaelic Football. The
all-Ireland Hurling championship came into existence along with the provincial
championships. Cork, Kilkenny and Tipperary dominated hurling in the 20th century
with each of these counties winning more than 20 All-Ireland titles each.
Wexford, Waterford, Clare, Limerick, Offaly, Dublin, and Galway were also strong
hurling counties during the 20th century. As hurling entered the new millennium, it
has remained Ireland’s second most popular sport. An extended qualifier system
resulted in a longer All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, but Cork and Kilkenny
have come to dominate the championship and some argue that the .All-Ireland has
become less competitive. Pay-for-play remains controversial and the Gaelic Players
Association continues to grow in strength. The inauguration of the Christy Ring Cup
and Nicky Rackard Cup gave new championships and an opportunity to play in
Croke Park to the weaker county teams. Further dissemination of the championship
structure was completed in 2009 with the addition of the Lory Meagher Cup to make
it a 4 tier championship

14. Bloody sunday
One of the most controversial event s to take place in the history of the GAA was the shooting of 2
civilians during a
The Dublin Gaelic football team was scheduled to play the Tipperary team later the same day in
Croke Park, the Gaelic Athletic Association's major football ground. Despite the general unease in
Dublin as news broke of the killings, a war-weary populace continued with life. Approximately 5,00
spectators went to Croke Park for the Gaelic football match between Dublin and Tipperary, which
began thirty minutes late, at 3:15 p.m. The spectators were startled by a volley of shots fired from
inside the turnstile entrances. Armed and uniformed men were seen entering the field, and
immediately after the firing broke out scenes of the wildest confusion took place. The spectators
made a rush for the far side of Croke Park and shots were fired over their heads and into the
crowd.[14The police kept shooting for about ninety seconds: their commander, Major Mills, later
admitted that his men were "excited and out of hand."[15] Some police fired into the fleeing crowd
from the pitch, while others, outside the Park, opened fire from the Canal Bridge at spectators who
climbed over the Canal End Wall trying to escape.

15. Bloody sunday
At the other end of the Park, the soldiers on Clonliffe Road were startled first by the sound of the fusillade, then by
the sight of panicked people fleeing the grounds. As the spectators streamed out, an armoured car on St James
Avenue fired its machine guns over the heads of the crowd, trying to halt them.
By the time Major Mills got his men back under control, the police had fired 114 rounds of rifle ammunition, and an
unknown amount of revolver ammunition as well, not counting 50 rounds fired from the machine guns in the
armoured car outside the Park.[16] Seven people had been shot to death, and five more had been fatally wounded;
another two people had been trampled to death by the crowd. The dead included Jeannie Boyle, who had gone to
the match with her fiancé and was due to be married five days later, and two boys aged 10 and 11. Two football
players, Michael Hogan and Jim Egan, had been shot; Hogan was killed, but Egan survived, along with dozens of
other wounded and injured. The police raiding party suffered no casualties.
Once the firing had been stopped, the security forces searched the remaining men in the crowd before letting them
go. The military raiding party recovered one revolver: a local householder testified that a fleeing spectator had
thrown it away in his garden. Once the grounds were cleared, the Park was searched for arms, but, according to
Major Mills, none were found.[17]
The actions of the police were officially unauthorised and were greeted with public horror by the Dublin Castle-based
British authorities. In an effort to cover up the nature of the behaviour by Crown forces, a press release was issued
which claimed:
A number of men came to Dublin on Saturday under the guise of asking to attend a football match between
Tipperary and Dublin. But their real intention was to take part in the series of murderous outrages which took place
in Dublin that morning. Learning on Saturday that a number of these gunmen were present in Croke Park, the crown
forces went to raid the field. It was the original intention that an officer would go to the centre of the field and
speaking from a megaphone, invite the assassins to come forward. But on their approach, armed pickets gave
warning. Shots were fired to warn the wanted men, who caused a stampede and escaped in the confusion.

16. Meanwhile, outside the Park, unseen by the crowd, British security forces were approaching and preparing to
raid the match. A convoy of troops drove in from the northwest, along Clonliffe Road, while a convoy of police
and Auxiliaries approached the Park from the south or Canal end. Their orders were to surround the
grounds, guard the exits, and search every man in the Park. The authorities later stated that their intention was
to announce by megaphone that all males leaving the stadium would be searched and that anyone leaving by
other means would be shot. But for some reason, shots were fired as soon as the police convoy reached the
stadium, at 3:25 p.m.

17. Gaa stadiums
Stadium Capacity Location County
1 Croke Park 82,300 Dublin
2 Semple Stadium 55,000 Thurles Tipperary GAA
3 Gaelic Grounds 50,000 Limerick Limerick GAA
4 Páirc Uí Chaoimh 43,500 Cork Cork GAA
5 Fitzgerald Stadium 43,000 Killarney Kerry GAA
6 McHale Park 42,000 Castlebar Mayo GAA
7 St. Tiernach's Park 36,000 Clones Monaghan GAA
8 Pearse Stadium 34,000 Galway Galway GAA
9 Casement Park 32,500 Belfast Antrim GAA
10 Breffni Park 32,000 Cavan Cavan GAA
11 Dr. Hyde Park 30,000 Roscommon Roscommon GAA
12 Cusack Park 28,000 Ennis Clare GAA
13 O'Moore Park 27,000 Portlaoise Laois GAA
=14 Páirc Tailteann 25,000 Navan Meath GAA
=14 Healy Park 25,000 Omagh Tyrone GAA
16 Nowlan Park 24,000 Kilkenny Kilkenny GAA
17 PáircanCheiltig 22,000 Derry Derry GAA
18 Dr. Cullen Park 21,000 Carlow Carlow GAA
=19 O'Connor Park20,000 Tullamore Offaly GAA
=19 Wexford Park 20,000 Wexford Wexford GAA
=19 Páirc Esler 20,000 Newry Down GAA
=19 Brewster Park (Enniskillen) 20,000 Enniskillen Fermanagh GAA
=19 Markievicz Park 20,000 SligoSligo GAA
=24 Athletic Grounds 18,000 Armagh Armagh GAA
=24 Páirc Uí Rinn 18,000 Cork Cork GAA
26 MacCumhail Park 17,500 Ballybofey Donegal GAA

18. Recent hurling
Croke park opened its doors in 2007 to foreign sports rugby
And hurling for the first time, due to the closeure of landsdowne
Road.
All Gaa pitches are closed to foreign sports and only the sports of the
Gaa are allowed to take place there.
Kilkenny made history in winning

19. ONE OF MY FAVOURITE GAMES
BY JOHN FOLEY