Gaelic Football - GAA

Irish Sports

Both Gaelic Football and Hurling are managed by the GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association), and are extremely popular in Ireland. The finals of both competitions take place in September at Croke Park (the headquarters of the GAA) in Dublin in front of 82,000 spectators.

Gaelic Football

Gaelic Football is the favorite sport of the Irish. It can be defined as a mixture of rugby and football, although it is older than either of them. Indeed, the earliest writings on Gaelic Football back to the early sixteenth century and the first official match dates from 1712.

The ball used is round, slightly smaller than a soccer ball. In a game of football, a player can carry the ball for a distance of 4 steps and it can be kicked or hand-passed with the hand or fist. After every 4 steps the ball must be either bounced or 'solo-ed', this means dropping the ball onto the foot and kicking it back into the hand. A player may not bounce the ball twice in a row.

To pass, the player can use the hand or foot. But the ball must not be discarded (as a pass from rugby), but struck with the fist or the palm of the hand. The cuff-type volleyball is prohibited, as does pick up the ball on the ground with their hands. He will use his foot, lifting the ball to juggle and put it in his hands.

To defend you can not pull the ball but kick it. In addition, if the contacts shoulder against shoulder are allowed, tackles and other rugby tackles are strictly prohibited.

Common Points between Football and Hurling

These two sports have some common points, and we will give details:

The Field: The two sports are envolving in a field about 137 meters long and 82 meters wide. With on each side the field goals, such as rugby (H), but with a net underneath like classic football. In addition, lines are drawn on the groud at a distance of 13 m, 20 m and 45 m from the baseline of the field.
The Number of Players and Their Positions: Each team has 15 players on the field, and to simplify, there is a goalkeeper, 6 defenders, 2 midfielders and 6 forwards. Each team may carry a maximum of 5 changes per game.
Length of game: Two half-time of 35 minutes (70 minutes) for matches in Senior National Championship, or two half-time of 30 minutes (60 minutes) for others.
Referee: there are up to eight arbitrators. A referee, two linesmen, four assessors (two from each goal). In All Ireland Senior Championship there is a second official referee and a substitue linesman.
Points: There are two ways to score points: in sending the ball between the posts and above the crossbar, you score a point. By sending the same ball below the crossbar, you score a goal worth 3 points. The scores are recorded as follows:
- Team A (goals, points) / (goals, points) Team B Example: A 0-11 / 1-7 B, equivalent to A 0 + 11 = 11 and B (1 * 3) + 7 = 10, then Team A wins.

To Conclude

Fast, furious, exciting, physical, impressive, both sports require great skill and are must-see during your trip to Ireland! In addition, for a price of entry to Croke Park quite reasonable, you can attend up to two games in the day, and so see the 4th largest stadium in Europe.