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Hurley (stick)

 
Hurley (stick)

 
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Hurley (stick)
 
 
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A hurley, also known as a camán (the Irish
Irish language

Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic languages of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people....
 word), and lesser known as hurl, a hurley stick, shtick (jocular eye dialect
Eye dialect

In English language literature, eye dialect is the literary technique of using non-standard spelling to approximate a pronunciation that is actually no different from the standard pronunciation but has the effect of dialectal, foreign, or uneducated speech....
), or in parts of Ulster as a setanta, is a wooden stick measuring between 70 and 100 cm (26 to 40 inches) long with a flattened, curved end (called the bas), used to hit a sliotar
Sliotar

A sliotar , pronounced , is a hard solid sphere slightly larger than a tennis ball, consisting of a cork core covered by two pieces of leather stitched together....
 (leather ball) in the Irish
Ireland

Ireland is the List of islands by area in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world. It lies to the north-west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands and islet....
 sport of hurling
Hurling

Hurling is an outdoor team sport of ancient Gaelic Culture origin, administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar....
.






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Hurling Ball and Hurley
A hurley, also known as a camán (the Irish
Irish language

Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic languages of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people....
 word), and lesser known as hurl, a hurley stick, shtick (jocular eye dialect
Eye dialect

In English language literature, eye dialect is the literary technique of using non-standard spelling to approximate a pronunciation that is actually no different from the standard pronunciation but has the effect of dialectal, foreign, or uneducated speech....
), or in parts of Ulster as a setanta, is a wooden stick measuring between 70 and 100 cm (26 to 40 inches) long with a flattened, curved end (called the bas), used to hit a sliotar
Sliotar

A sliotar , pronounced , is a hard solid sphere slightly larger than a tennis ball, consisting of a cork core covered by two pieces of leather stitched together....
 (leather ball) in the Irish
Ireland

Ireland is the List of islands by area in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world. It lies to the north-west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands and islet....
 sport of hurling
Hurling

Hurling is an outdoor team sport of ancient Gaelic Culture origin, administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar....
. It is also used in camogie
Camogie

Camogie is a Modern Celts team sport. Played with a stick and ball, it is the women's variant of hurling, and is organised by the Camogie Association of Ireland....
, the female equivalent, and there often called a camogie stick.

Hurleys are made from ash
Ash tree

Fraxinus is a genus of usually medium to large trees, mostly deciduous though a few subtropical species are evergreen. The leaf are opposite , and mostly pinnately-compound, simple in a few species....
 wood, and are usually bought from local craftsmen in Ireland(for about 15-20euro) , who still use traditional production methods. However, for some time in the 1970s, hurleys made from plastic were used, mainly produced by Wavin
Wavin

Wavin N.V. is a Netherlands manufacturer of pipe . The company was founded on 5 August 1955.Due to the common use of Wavin products, the name has become genericized trademark in some parts of Ireland to refer to any manufacturer of orange-coloured drainpipes....
. These proved more likely to cause injury however, and were phased out. Steel bands are used to re-inforce the flattened end of the hurley though these are not permitted in camogie
Camogie

Camogie is a Modern Celts team sport. Played with a stick and ball, it is the women's variant of hurling, and is organised by the Camogie Association of Ireland....
 due to increased risk of injury. Bands have been put on hurleys since the beginning; the 8th century Brehon Laws
Brehon Laws

Early Irish law refers to the statutes that governed everyday life and politics in Ireland during the Gaelic Ireland. They were partially eclipsed by the Norman invasion of Ireland of 1169, but underwent a resurgence in the 13th century, and survived in parallel to English law over the majority of the island until the 17th century....
 permit only a king's son to have a bronze
Bronze

Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive, but sometimes with other chemical element such as phosphorus, manganese, aluminium, or silicon....
 band, while all others must use a copper
Copper

Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29.It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity....
 band.

No matter how well crafted the hurley is, a hurler may well expect to use several hurleys over the course of the hurling season. The hurleys often break if two collide in the course of a game, or occasionally they break off on the other players (arms, legs, etc.). Two hurleys colliding is colloquially known as "the clash of the ash." Some hurleys can be repaired by a method called "splicing". This method involves cutting a bas shaped piece from another broken hurley and fixing it to the broken bas by way of glue and nails, the two piece bas is then banded ("hooped") and sanded into shape. Throwing the hurley (e.g. to block a ball going high over one's head) is illegal, though camogie players may drop it to make a handpass.

See also


  • Bataireacht
    Bataireacht

    Bataireacht is the term used in Irish martial arts traditionally applied to various forms of Ireland stick fighting. Today the word bataireacht is being used among both Irish and English language speakers to distinguish between traditional and non-traditional stick-fighting styles....
  • Shillelagh
    Shillelagh (club)

    A shillelagh , commonly "shi-LAY-lee" or "shi-LAY-la", ) is a wooden walking stick and Club , typically made from a stout knotty stick with a large knob at the top, that is associated with Ireland and Irish folklore....