BURLINGTON — In search of a craic this Saturday? Look no further than Skagit River Park in Burlington.

Craic (pronounced “crack”) is an Irish term for a good time. The good times in Burlington will begin at 10:30 a.m. as the Seattle Gaels: Gaelic Football and Hurling Club visits the Skagit Valley to face their border rivals, the Vancouver Harps.

The Gaels boast a mix of Irish-born and American players. The club has men’s and women’s teams.

“It’s a good mix,” said Terry Creighton, chairman of the club. “We tend to do a lot of recruiting. And we get a lot of guys who have retired from playing rugby or American football. They want to keep in shape and this is the perfect sport for that.”

Unfamiliar with hurling or Gaelic football? If you’re not from Ireland, it’s nothing to be ashamed of.

“You just can’t describe the game of hurling in one sentence,” Creighton said. “Believe me, I’ve tried.”

Gaelic football and hurling are Ireland’s national obsessions. The Irish first played a football game called caid during medieval times. Caid became a sanctioned sport in 1527. The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) was formed in 1887 to formalize the rules and build upon Irish traditions associated with the country’s various sports.

The Seattle Gaels: Gaelic Football and Hurling Club is a North American County board member, which means it is sanctioned by the GAA.

The pinnacle of the sport is the inter-county All-Ireland Football Final, which each year attracts about 90,000 fans.

“It’s quite impressive,” said James Walsh, hurling coach for the Gaels. “It’s always a packed stadium and it has been that way since the late 1800s. They used to get something like 110,000 people.”

Hurling is similar to hockey and field hockey. It also requires skills similar to those in lacrosse. It is Europe’s oldest field game.

There are no professional teams in Ireland. Rather, players suit up for the their home counties. They cannot be traded.

Hurling is played with a small ball and a curved wooden stick called a hurley or camán (pronounced “kay-maan.”)

The ball or sliothar (pronounced “slit-er”) is similar in size to a baseball.

“It takes a while to get going,” Walsh said of hurling. “But it’s an easy product to sell. Once people see it, they really get interested in it.

“You start out really fumbling around. But then you can see people break through and make it up to the next level. Then they stay there for awhile before breaking through again. It’s really a progression.”

Players strike the ball when it is on the ground or in the air. It can also be kicked or slapped with an open hand. This technique is used for short, accurate passes.

A solid strike by a veteran hurler can propel the sliothar at speeds upwards of 93 mph and the ball can cover about 300 feet.

Creighton picked up his first hurley four years ago.

“I had never heard of hurling,” he admitted. “I saw a link on the Internet and it said if your were interested to come on out and play. So that’s what I did. As an American playing this sport, you are constantly learning.

“I played baseball growing up, so when it comes to the aspect of hitting and throwing the sliothar, I’m pretty good. Whatever your sport of choice was, you bring those best aspects to the sport of hurling. When it comes to hitting the ball off the ground, I’m not so good at that. Guys who played hockey or lacrosse are good at doing that.”

On the other end of the hurling experience spectrum are Alan Kidney and Walsh. Kidney hails from County Cork in Ireland while Walsh grew up in Kickenny.

Kidney has lived in Washington for five years and Walsh for four.

“Playing over here is a source of amusement for my friends and family back home,” said Kidney, who coaches the Gaels’ Gaelic football team. “It’s nice to be able to get out and play.

“I grew up in a hurling league. I dabble in it now because I am totally focused on coaching football. If you have never seen either sport before, it’s something.”

Walsh’s family is rich in hurling history. His father was a well-known player and for years was Walsh’s coach.

“I grew up hurling,” Walsh said. “I lived in a good county for hurling. I started playing when I was 8 or 9. I probably had a stick in my hand when I was a baby.”

Hurling is played on a field about 150 yards by 100 yards.

“The fields are big,” Walsh said. “It’s as big as two soccer fields. The ball really bounces around.”

The goal posts are the same shape as those used in rugby. The crossbar is lower than a rugby one, but slightly higher than the top of a soccer goal.

Unlike hockey, the ball can be picked up with the hurley and transferred to the hand. It can be carried for as many as four steps.

After four steps, a player can bounce the ball on the hurley and return it to the hand, where he gets another four steps. That, however, cannot be done more than twice.

In order to skirt around that rule, skillful players master the technique of running with the ball while it’s balanced or while bouncing it on the hurley.

“After those four steps,” Creighton explained, “you have to do something. To see guys juggle the ball on the hurley as they are running down the field is impressive. It’s not easy to do.”

In order to score, the ball must be smacked either over or under the crossbar. Hitting the ball over the crossbar is worth one point. Sending it below and past the goalie is worth three points.

A team of 13 is on the field. Positions consist of a goalkeeper, three fullbacks, three halfbacks, two midfielders, three half-forwards and three full-forwards. Teams are allowed three substitutions per game, though players may switch positions at any time.

“The most difficult aspect of hurling is the quickness of it,” Walsh explained. “It’s really quick. It’s a matter of getting to the ball first.

“And what’s really interesting is that you may have this very in-shape, athletic American player marking an old, 20-pounds-overweight Irish guy, and that Irish guy will beat him to the ball every time. It’s all about anticipation.”

Side to side shouldering is allowed. Body checking and tripping is not.

There are several forms of acceptable tackling. The first is the block. This is where one player attempts to smother an opposing player’s strike by trapping the ball between his hurley and the opponent’s swinging hurley. The second is the hook, where a player approaches another player from behind and attempts to catch the opponent’s hurley with his own at the top of the swing. And the third is the side pull, where two players running together for the sliothar collide at the shoulders and swing together in an attempt to win the tackle.

Protective padding is not worn, but helmets are recommended for adults and mandatory for those under 19. Players can use the hurley to slash and jab at the opposition.

“You can swing the hurley from side to side,” Creighton explained, “but you can’t swing it down. Most Americans wear helmets. Irish players, it’s kind of an unwritten rule that you don’t.”
Gaelic football is similar to rugby, but also includes aspects of basketball, soccer and American football.

“I played the game all the way through school,” Kidney said. “It’s a very, very big deal in Ireland. The sport is very straight-forward. It’s kicking and running. You can pass using your hands or feet. Right now, we have more Americans on the football team than we do Irish. But that is pretty representative across the board.”

Gaelic football is played by teams of 13 on a rectangular field with H-shaped goals at each end. The object is to score by kicking or striking the ball with your hand through the goal.

The game is played with a round leather ball similar to a soccer ball. The ball, however, is heavier than a soccer ball. It has horizontal stitching and is similar in appearance to a volleyball.

Players move the ball up the field through carrying, soloing (dropping and then punting the ball upward into the hands), kicking and hand passing to teammates. A hand pass is not a punch but rather a strike with the side of a fist.

Scoring is the same as in hurling.

As far as tackling is concerned, the game has more than soccer but less than rugby.

Creigton said about half the Gaels are really competitive and the other half thrive on the social aspect.

“Some want to go out and win every match,” Creighton said. “Others are more worried about where to get that pint of Guinness. We like to say we work hard both on and off the field.”

The beauty of the Gaels club is that it’s open to all.

“Of course, there is good and bad to playing in America,” Walsh said. “Naturally, you are going to start out at a lower level. That’s fair enough. The good thing is there is no intimidation about playing. Everyone here is eager to learn and teach. It’s really a friendly atmosphere.”

To learn more about the Seattle Gaels: Gaelic Football and Hurling Club go to http://www.seattlegaels.com.

Vince Richardson can be reached at 360-416-2181 or by e-mail at