SPORTS

History

The game of hurling goes back to the roots of Gaelic Scotland and the even earlier heritage of the Celtic race. Its demands of skill, speed, stamina and courage make camanachd, the sport of the curved stick, the perfect exercise of a warrior people. The qualities of body and mind it developed, clearly contributed to the just fame of the Highlander in battle, not only those long ago but up until the last two World Wars. During the period of these two universal conflicts, organized shiny was discontinued and many of the playing generations then were lost to campaigns far distant from the pitches where they had followed this deeply-loved recreation of their ancestors.

Within the rivalries of the game, clan against clan, parish against parish and brae against strath, there developed a social comradeship in the world of camanachd and this continues to the present day.

In common with other sports, shiny moved out of a long previous history of unwritten rules and widely differing local variations in the last quarter of the nineteenth century.

In 1879 the Glasgow Celtic Society instituted a cup competition and established rules of play. About the same time the celebrated Captain Chisholm of Glass burn drew up 'The Constitution, Rules and Regulations of the Strathglass Shiny Club" which were published in 1880.

On 13 February 1887, a famous game was played at Inverness between Strathglass and Glenurquhart when the field measured over 300 yards long by 200 yards wide, with twenty two players a side. Even with two adjoining glens, in this case, the variations in their codes of play needed discussion to get common rules agreed. By 1888, when the return match took place, revised Strathglass rules were produced and these came to be the accepted one among clubs in the north while those in the south playing area of Scotland followed the Celtic Society rules. In April 1893, another memorable game was played at the Dell in Kingussie between the home club and Glasgow Cowal, the latter winning by one hail to nil. The teams were fourteen a side and the occasion clearly showed the need for one authority to control the playing of shiny. On 10 October of the same year, there was a great meeting of enthusiasts in Kingussie and the Camanachd Association was formed with the then Lord Lovat as President and, for a long period, he remained a very influential leader in the game.

Hurling

The other Gaelic sport of ancient origin is Hurling. It's also cited in many tales of Irish mythology (it's thought that Chuchulain was very great player). It is similar to Hockey but it is not played on ice and it's much faster and violent.Goals and scores are similar to the one of Gaelic Football but the ball (sliotar) have the same size of the one of baseball. The ball can be held with the mace or in hand and passed hitting it with the hand's palm.

Gaelic football

Gaelic Football can be described as a mixture of soccer and rugby, although it predates both of those games. It is a field game which has developed as a distinct game similar to the progression of Australian Rules. Indeed it is thought that Australian Rules evolved from Gaelic Football through the many thousands who were either deported or emigrated to Australia from the middle of the twentieth century. Gaelic Football is played on a pitch approximately 137m long and 82m wide.

Leagues

Over 30 Third Level Colleges in Ireland (including PLCs, ITs and Universities) compete in several Provincial and  All Ireland competitions during the months of October - April each year. There is also a steady growth of Colleges in the UK participating in organised College competitions the highlight of which is the British Championships.

All Ireland Championships - These are run on an open draw basis with the chance of any two Colleges around the Country meeting in the irst round.  At present there are two divisions DIV 1 - O'CONNOR CUP and DIV 2 - LYNCH CUP.  The current British Champions are allowed entry at the semi final stage of the LYNCH Cup. The semi finals and finals of both competitions are held over one weekend usually during April.

All Ireland Leagues - These are run on a Provincial basis with the top Colleges in each Province qualifying for the Semi final stages of the competition.  At present there are three divisions DIV 1 - HELEN O'ROURKE CUP, DIV 2 -  MARY JO CURRAN CUP and DIV 3 CUP.  The finals are usually held during the month of February.

Provincial Championships - These are competitions which are run in each Province independently.  At present there are three Provincial championships: The DOWD CUP for Ulster Colleges, the HARNEY CUP for Leinster Colleges and the MADIGAN Cup for Munster Colleges.  The HARNEY CUP is traditionally held over the last weekend in January while the DOWD CUP is usually held over a weekend in February.

Freshers All Ireland 7-A-Side Blitz - This is a one day competition that is open to First year students only (ie Freshers).   It usually attracts about 20 - 24 Colleges.  The Blitz is held early in the College year around November and is a great day for all the first years to get together. The competition is run off in groups with the top teams in each group qualifying for the CUP and the second placed teams qualifying for the SHIELD. In recent years the third placed teams have also competed for the PLATE.

College Inter Provincials
The top players from each Province are selected to represent their respective Combined College Provincial Team. 
In this competition the four Combined Provincial teams compete against each other to try and win the CONNACHT CUP. The two provinces who do not make the Cup final play off for the LEINSTER SHEILD. The competition is held on one Sunday usually during February. A main feature of the competition is the selection of the ALL IRELAND COMBINED TEAM from the days competition. The ALL IRELAND TEAM usually plays a competitive match later during the year.

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