GAA Games

Between the lecture-like sessions where Arcadia staff presented us with the necessary info to understand and feel comfortable in Ireland, they tried to introduce us to the Irish culture. On Monday, we were bussed to an Irish sports club and were taught the basics of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) games; Irish football, hurling, and handball. The session began with a video montage and explanation of how the games are played and some terminology. The point of the day was to learn enough about the games to understand a match and maybe pick up a few skills. Therefore, I don't know all of the technical terms and rules, so some of what I remember may be slightly different than how the games are really played, but I tried to remember as much as I could.

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Gaelic football is similar to American soccer, but you can use your hands to carry, bounce, and spike the ball. However, you can't pick the ball up from the ground, you have to "chip" the ball into your hands. If you're carrying the ball and running down the pitch (field), you have to either bounce or kick the ball every 3 or 4 steps. We were told that in matches, it's more like 4ish steps because they are Irish. As someone who has never been good at American soccer, I was hoping that being able to use my hands would make this sport a little easier, but I was so wrong. Chipping the ball from the ground to my hands proved difficult, and kicking the ball over what is essentially an American football goal post to score a point was near impossible.

Gaelic football and hurling are played on the same pitch, share many similar rules, and contact is allowed in both sports. The official pitch is longer than a football field and there is the goal post with a net underneath it. If the ball goes through the goal post, it's one point and if the ball goes past the keeper into the net, it's 3 points.

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Hurling was my favorite of the three sports. Each player has a hard, wooden stick made of ash that looks like really large field hockey stick. The ball, slightly smaller than a baseball, is caught in your hands. Like in Gaelic football, you can't pick the ball up with your hands, but you can cover it, pull it back towards you with your stick, scoop it over the top of the stick and then into your waiting hand. The coaches made this move look so easy, but I definitely struggled with it! We also practiced hitting the ball in the air to a partner who would catch it and then hit it back to us as well as passing the ball on the ground, sort of like field hockey.

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Lastly, we played handball. My group ran out of time before we could play any games, but we learned the basic rules. Handball is sort of like racquetball without a racquet. The actual ball used in the sport is about the size of a golf ball and is pretty hard. However, we used larger, softer balls so no one got hurt. We practiced serving the ball and hitting it to a partner. Unlike hurling, when the ball is hit to you, you don't catch it, you keep the ball in play by hitting it again. In handball, like in tennis, if it bounces once, it's still good, but if it bounces twice, the ball is dead.

Because these three sports are so pervasive in Ireland, it was a really fun way to engage in the culture. The Irish are very loyal to the clubs that they play for and don't trade between clubs like professional athletes in America. The athletes are also unpaid and play purely for the love of the sport. Matches are intense, fast-paced, and exciting, and I can't wait to see one!