“This match is an opportunity to celebrate our ties and the cultural links.”
The GAA has confirmed that the Shinty and hurling International Rules exhibition matches are going to return this year after a four year absence.
The compromised rules between the two sports was a regular event, as Ireland would select its finest hurlers to face off against a Scotland team made up of their best shinty players, but the event hasn’t taken place since 2019.
Each organisation will select a 20-player squad to travel to Newry in the coming weeks. Scotland will be managed by Garry Reid and the Irish team will be managed by former Connacht Hurling Director, Damien Coleman.
The match itself will take place at Páirc Esler in Newry on Saturday October 21 at 3pm, with the Down Intermediate Hurling Final following at 5.00pm.
Larry McCarthy, GAA President, said: “On behalf of the Gaelic Athletic Association I welcome the resumption of our collaboration with our friends, and neighbours and sporting cousins in Alba agus An Cumann Camanachad to stage the Ireland-Scotland Hurling-Shinty international.
“This match is an opportunity to celebrate our ties and the cultural links between our proud peoples – chief among which are the games of hurling and shinty which share a common ancestor.
“Next year, the Gaelic Athletic Association will be 140 years old but, that is a mere trifle in the life span of hurling, which later this decade will mark 3,300 years in our consciousness.
“Rules have changed dramatically in the last 140 years never mind 3,000. But what the games of hurling and shinty continue to champion are extraordinary levels of skill and feats of stamina and strength that people marvel at.
“Nothing celebrates Gaelic Games more than the playing of games and that is why this link between the GAA and the Camanachad Association is so important.”
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