hurling.

On Thursday afternoon last week there was a very big hurling match between my school, the University of Limerick (UL) and the Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT).  The game was strangely played at 2:00 in the afternoon on one of UL's many fields, and despite the time of the game there were hundreds of students and adults in attendance.

Based on my observations, the game of hurling is a combination of hockey, soccer, softball, and rugby.  It's a high speed, high contact game in which the players attempt to score goals (for 3 points) or gain points (1 point).  The equipment used in the game includes hurleys (the wooden stick you can see in the pictures) and a ball similar to a softball.  The helmets that you see the players wearing have only been an enforced part of the uniforms for the past 3 years! The players run with the ball, pass, and tackle in hopes of getting to the end of the pitch to score and it can be quite violent!

It was great fun to watch, even though the game ended in a draw, and I am excited to see more of the sport.  My friend Sydney's roommates play on UL's 1st year team and helped us to pick up some of the rules.  I hope to go watch them play soon!

PS... the natural glow lighting up the game is actually the sun! we got three days of sun last week and I felt completely spoiled!