Community Corner
St. Thomas More Students Learn Irish Hurling
Photo gallery of St. Thomas More students learning the Irish game of hurling.
Students at St. Thomas More School in Salisbury Township continued their lessons in Irish sports during March with some instruction on the game of hurling. Hurling is played with a wooden paddle, called a hurley, and a hard, leather-wrapped ball, known as a sliotar ("slitter").
The game is usually played outdoors on a field that is about 150 yards long and about 90 yards wide. The ball is carried or hit with the hurley, like a baseball, through the goal for a score. The goal is similar to the gaelic football goal, a sort of combination of soccer and and rugby goal. Three points are scored for hitting the ball into the lower net, and one point is scored for hitting the ball over the bar through the uprights. It's a bit of a cross between baseball, field hockey and lacrosse. The indoor version, played by the St. Thomas More students, uses rubber hurleys, a softer ball and is played more with the ball on the ground instead of in the air.