About Gaelic Games

 

One of Ireland 's two native sports – the other is hurling, played with sticks - Gaelic football is typically played on a field slightly larger than a soccer pitch, between two teams of 15 players –the game is also often played among teams of seven. Combining the speed of soccer and the toughness of rugby, the sport predates both. The first record of the sport appeared in the Statutes of Galway in 1527, and the earliest reported match took place at Slane, County Meath , in 1712. The game in its full form is played by two teams of fifteen on a pitch about 137 metres long and 87 metres wide.

A high fielding game of two 30-minute halves, goals and points are scored by kicking the ball between the posts below and above the crossbar, respectively. Players must carry the ball with hands as well as feet. In the past two years Gaelic football’s popularity has grown rapidly across Asia and the game is now played competitively in most major cities across the continent. Irish expatriates in Hong Kong recently launched a weekly Gaelic Football league.

盖尔球运动简介

盖尔球和爱尔兰式曲棍球是爱尔兰两大本土运动项目。盖尔球的运动场地比足球稍大，每队15人，也可以是7人。盖尔球兼具足球的速度性和橄榄球的激烈性，它的起源比二者都早。关于这项运动的最早记录在1527年的Galway，有记载的最早赛事在1712年Meath县的Slane。正规比赛中，参赛的两队均由15名球员组成，比赛场地长137米、宽87米。

比赛分为上下半场，各30分钟。运球的过程中可以使用手和脚。如果球在对方球门两个门柱之间高于横梁飞出底线，记一分（point）；如果球在对方球门两个门柱之间，低于横梁飞出底线，记一分（goal）。过去两年里，盖尔球在亚洲地区广为传播并且大受欢迎，在许多大城市举行了比赛。近期，爱尔兰人在香港举办每周一次的盖尔球比赛。