Quick q

el_barto

Hey lads, basically i'm interested in taking up hurling and i've never played the game before. I'm 22 and i used to play football (4 yrs ago now but got bored of it) and i enjoy having a puck around. Anyways i mentioned this to other people and basically they told me forget about it, that no one could take the game up at such a late stage.
I don't have any thoughts of grandeur or anything but is it really so bad i couldn't even play for a club ?

Waylander

Hey el Barto, it is a very difficult game to pick up late on like this. The reason for that is when you are young and picking the game up everyone is at the same level, and they can all be coached together. The problem for you would be you would be going into a team of people who have been playing for years and who would not be getting the kind of coaching you would require. Hurling is not that dangerous a game if everyone knows how to play, but if someone does not, and pulls out at the wrong time, or puts part of his body where is has no rights to be, or does not protect himself properly this WILL lead to serious injury.

However, if you find a team that has a coach that is willing to work that bit harder to get you up to speed, or if you find a newish team, where the players ae developing together it is possible. Your best bet would be to head down to your local club and ask some of the senior team managers about the possibility over the weekend. I know that is not really what you wanted to hear , sorry about that.

el_barto

Hey thanks for the reply. I understand that this would be a big issue in a county like Kilkenny, Tipp, cork etc but i'm living in a county not known for its hurling prowess (extreme understatement) so i thought that fact might help me along. I'm talking about Sligo btw.

I'm not completely clueless as to the game as i'm an avid fan and i can manage to hit the sliotar more then 10 yards but i have never played.

If its really as grim as your saying then i think i'd be wasting my time even trying.

Waylander

To be honest the county would not really matter for this. If you are interested I would suggest you drop into your local club. They would be in a far better position then me to say whether it is feasible or not. I am not saying it is impossible, but you will need to get a bit lucky to find the right coach.

hawker

el_barto wrote:

Hey lads, basically i'm interested in taking up hurling and i've never played the game before. I'm 22 and i used to play football (4 yrs ago now but got bored of it) and i enjoy having a puck around. Anyways i mentioned this to other people and basically they told me forget about it, that no one could take the game up at such a late stage.
I don't have any thoughts of grandeur or anything but is it really so bad i couldn't even play for a club ?

Whether this piece of information is any use to you or not I don't know. But Sean Og O Halpin didn't play hurling till he was 12/13 and he's now one of the best hurlers in the country.

Go for it. If it doesn't work out so be it. At least you can say you tried.

Hitman Actual

el_barto, we have a player in our club who just started two years ago when he was 21. He's coming on really well skill-wise, but his lack of experience does tell in games, e.g. he's usually not sure what his best option is when he does win the ball, but that's something that more experience will sort out. It's also a worry that he might not be able to protect himself properly, but in saying that he hasn't picked up any injuries at all.

I definately think it can be done, but I'd say you'll have to train some extra nights on your own as well... find someplace with a really high wall, and work on your striking, etc. Best of luck with it!

el_barto

Go raibh maith agaibh lads, i think i'll give it me best shot and see how it goes. I would be slightly worried about injuries as i do need all my fingers intact for work but i'm not a small guy and i don't mind getting an olde knock. Any advice as to working on the skills ? Granted i haven't really tried but trying to puck from the left feels so akward. Plus i have trouble hitting it on the run :-/

Waylander

Try to get the basic skills down first. Picking the ball up on the run, striking on the run, short and long distance accuracy. Also practice your ground hurling if you can. When I started playing, which was not today or yesterday, so methods have probably come on a bit since then, our manager never let us pick the ball up for the first half of our practice game. Get used to pulling on a moving sliotar on the ground. If you have someone you can get to go out for a puck around with you start doing this. Then pick the ball up and graduallly move further away from each other trying to improve your accuracy in passing, and also catching the ball. Strongly suggest you get into the habit of protecting your upreached hand with your hurl behind it. You only need to learn that one the hard way once.

Mightbe worth checking the gaa website as I think they have some training tips on that. Hope it goes well for you.

jacksie

missed the crucial years