A
hurley is a wooden stick used to hit a
sliotarA sliotar or sliothar is a hard solid sphere slightly larger than a tennis ball, consisting of a cork core covered by two pieces of leather stitched together. Sometimes called a "puck" or "hurling ball", it resembles an American baseball with more pronounced stitching...
(leather ball) in the
IrishIreland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
sport of
hurlingHurling is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic origin, administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar. Hurling is the national game of Ireland. The game has prehistoric origins, has been played for at least 3,000 years, and...
. It measures between 70 and 100 cm (28 to 40 inches) long with a flattened, curved end (called the
bas) which provides the striking surface. It is also used in
camogieCamogie is an Irish stick-and-ball team sport played by women; it is almost identical to the game of hurling played by men. Camogie is played by 100,000 women in Ireland and world wide, largely among Irish communities....
, the female equivalent sport.
Name
A hurley is also known as a
hurley stick, as a
camán (the
IrishIrish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
word), or as a
hurl (an abbreviation used in
LeinsterLeinster is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the east of Ireland. It comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Mide, Osraige and Leinster. Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the historic fifths of Leinster and Mide gradually merged, mainly due to the impact of the Pale, which straddled...
and
UlsterUlster is one of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the north of the island. In ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial...
). In the sport of camogie it is often called a
camogie stick.
Overview
Hurleys are made from
ashFraxinus is a genus flowering plants in the olive and lilac family, Oleaceae. It contains 45-65 species of usually medium to large trees, mostly deciduous though a few subtropical species are evergreen. The tree's common English name, ash, goes back to the Old English æsc, while the generic name...
wood, the base of the tree near the root is the only part used and are usually bought from local craftsmen in Ireland (for about 20-50 euro), who still use traditional production methods. However, for some time in the 1970s, hurleys made from plastic were used, mainly produced by
WavinWavin N.V. is a Dutch manufacturer of pipes . Wavin is the leading supplier of plastic pipe systems and solutions in Europe. The company was officially founded on 5 August 1955, its name deriving from WAter and VINyl chloride...
. These proved more likely to cause injury, however, and were phased out. Steel bands are used to reinforce the flattened end of the hurley though these are not permitted in
camogieCamogie is an Irish stick-and-ball team sport played by women; it is almost identical to the game of hurling played by men. Camogie is played by 100,000 women in Ireland and world wide, largely among Irish communities....
due to increased risk of injury. Bands have been put on hurleys since the beginning; the 8th century
Brehon LawsEarly Irish law refers to the statutes that governed everyday life and politics in Early Medieval Ireland. They were partially eclipsed by the Norman invasion of 1169, but underwent a resurgence in the 13th century, and survived into Early Modern Ireland in parallel with English law over the...
permit only a king's son to have a
bronzeBronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
band, while all others must use a
copperCopper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
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.
There are names associated with different parts of the hurley. With respect to the picture above the "bas" is the rounded end of the hurl where the sliotar makes contact as it is being struck. At the same end the "heel" of the hurley is the area to the left of the band and at the hurley's edge (nearest the bottom of the picture above). It is used to give height to a ball struck on the ground. The rounded area to the right of the band is the "toe" of the hurley and is implicated in the roll lift or jab lift techniques which allow a player to gain legal possession of a ball into the hand from the ground. The handle is at the opposite end of the hurley to the boss, with the timber cut to form a small lip at the peak (to prevent the hurley from slipping from the player's hand). The handle is typically wrapped with a self-adhesive synthetic foam grip.
As a gift
The hurley is often given as a gift to or between politicians, for example,
MaryMary Patricia McAleese served as the eighth President of Ireland from 1997 to 2011. She was the second female president and was first elected in 1997 succeeding Mary Robinson, making McAleese the world's first woman to succeed another as president. She was re-elected unopposed for a second term in...
and
Martin McAleeseMartin McAleese is a member of Seanad Éireann and the husband of the former President of Ireland, Mary McAleese.-Early life and education:He played with the Antrim Minors and was captain of the team in 1969. He trained and worked as an accountant and then qualified as a dentist.He practiced as a...
were given two when she was awarded the freedom of
KilkennyKilkenny is a city and is the county town of the eponymous County Kilkenny in Ireland. It is situated on both banks of the River Nore in the province of Leinster, in the south-east of Ireland...
in 2009, and
Barack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
was given one by
Enda KennyEnda Kenny is an Irish Fine Gael politician, and has been the Taoiseach since 2011. He has led Fine Gael since 2002. He served as Minister for Tourism and Trade from 1994 to 1997. He is also a two-term Vice President of the European People's Party.Kenny has been a Teachta Dála for Mayo since...
on his visit to Ireland in 2011. Prince Philip was also gifted one during Queen Elizabeth II's visit to Ireland.
External links