Yesterday’s hurling final was thrilling, and Clare deserved their win. The final was shown on BBC2 across the UK, so there were lots of new fans for the sport.
Hurling appears to be a mix of UFC, rugby, hockey, football, baseball, the egg and spoon race all whilst hitting a snooker ball as hard as you can as high into the sky as possible towards goal with what looks like the bones of a tomahawk steak. 10/10. Would recommend #hurling
— bathew mateman (@bathewmateman) July 21, 2024
Locally, Jimmy Nesbitt was part of the BBC team, from the Beltel:
James Nesbitt says he ‘hopes everyone understands that hurling is the heartbeat of a nation’ as he attended the All-Ireland final.
He was at Croke Park to watch Clare win their fifth title with an epic extra-time victory over Cork.The Co Antrim actor was part of the BBC’s celeb punditry team in Dublin, alongside Irish comedians Dara Ó Briain and David O’Doherty, and Derry Girls star Siobhan McSweeney.
Speaking to presenter Connor Phillips ahead of the game, Nesbitt said: “I only came to my first one [hurling match] two years ago.
“I met Neil McManus [player for the Antrim hurling team] and he invited me down to a semi-final between Galway and Limerick a couple of years ago.
“I come from Broughshane from a slightly different background.
“It wasn’t part of my culture, but I just thought, What a sport, what a game’.
“And it struck me that particularly people from my background in the North, have missed out on this, and I really hope now that everyone who is watching at home, and everyone who is watching across the water, really understands that this is the very heartbeat of a nation.
“It’s astonishing and it’s the heartbeat of everyone. I can’t wait.”
If somehow you missed the hurling today, sit back and watch this 7-min package.
82k in Croke Park. Incredible drama.
— Daniel Hussey (@DanielHussey2) July 21, 2024
I help to manage Slugger by taking care of the site as well as running our live events. My background is in business, marketing and IT. My politics tend towards middle-of-the-road pragmatism, I am not a member of any political party. Oddly for a member of the Slugger team, I am not that interested in daily politics, preferring to write about big ideas in society. When not stuck in front of a screen, I am a parkrun Run Director.
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