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Gaelic football
Peil Ghaelach

Players in action during the 2009 National League final.
Highest governing body	Gaelic Athletic Association
Nickname(s)	Caid Football Gaelic
First played	1802
Registered players	1887
Clubs	over 2,500
Characteristics
Contact	Yes
Team members	15 on each team
Mixed gender	Single
Categorization	Outdoor
Equipment	Football
Olympic	Not recognised as an Olympic sport

Gaelic football (Irish: Peil Ghaelach; short name Peil or Caid), commonly referred to as football or Gaelic,^[1] is a sport played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch.The objective of the sport is to score points by passing the ball through the other team's goals, a set of two upright posts separated by a crossbar 2.5 metres (8.2 ft) above the ground.

Players advance the football, a spherical leather ball, up the field with a combination of carrying, bouncing, kicking, hand-passing, and soloing (dropping the ball and then toe-kicking the ball upward into the hands). In the game, two types of scores are possible: points and goals. A point is awarded for kicking or hand-passing the ball over the crossbar, signalled by the umpire raising a white flag. A goal is awarded for kicking the ball under the crossbar into the net, signalled by the umpire raising a green flag. Positions in Gaelic football are similar to that in other football codes, and comprise one goalkeeper, six backs, two midfielders, and six forwards, with a variable number of substitutes.

The sport, a form of football derived from traditional Irish ball games, is mainly played in Ireland, although associations exist in other areas such as Great Britain and North America. Gaelic football is one of four sports (collectively referred to as the "Gaelic games") controlled by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), the largest sporting organisation in Ireland. Along with hurling and camogie, Gaelic football is one of the few remaining strictly amateur sports in the world, with players, coaches, and managers prohibited from receiving any form of payment.

Gaelic football is the most popular sport in Ireland in terms of attendance, with the 2011 All-Ireland Senior Championship Final, held at Croke Park, Dublin, drawing an attendance of 82,300 people. Outside of Ireland, football is mainly played amongst members of the Irish diaspora. Gaelic Park in New York City is the largest purpose-built Gaelic sports venue outside of Ireland. Three major football competitions operate throughout the year: the National Football League and the All-Ireland Senior Championship are operated on a county basis, while the All-Ireland Club Championship is contested by individual clubs. The All-Ireland Senior Championship is run as a knock-out competition, with the top two counties meeting in the All-Ireland Football Final, considered the most prestigious event in Gaelic football.

Under the auspices of the GAA, Gaelic football is a male-only sport; however, the related sport of ladies' Gaelic football is governed by the Ladies' Gaelic Football Association. Similarities between Gaelic football and Australian rules football have allowed the development of International rules football, a hybrid sport, and an series of Test matches has been held annually since 1998, with the exception of the cancelled 2007 edition.

Rules[link]

Playing field[link]

Diagram of a Gaelic football pitch

A Gaelic pitch is similar in some respects to a rugby pitch but larger. The grass pitch is rectangular, stretching 130–145 meters long and 80–90 meters wide. There are H-shaped goalposts at each end, formed by two posts, which are usually 7 m high, set 6.5 m apart, and connected 2.5 m above the ground by a crossbar. A net extending behind the goal is attached to the crossbar and lower goal posts. The same pitch is used for hurling; the GAA, which organizes both sports, decided this to facilitate dual usage. Lines are marked at distances of 13 m, 20m and 45 m from each end-line. Shorter pitches and smaller goals are used by youth teams.^[2]

Duration[link]

The majority of adult football and all minor and under-21 matches last for 60 minutes, divided into two halves of 30 minutes, with the exception of senior inter-county games which last for 70 minutes (two halves of 35 minutes). Draws are decided by replays or by playing 20 minutes of extra time (two halves of 10 minutes). The under-12s have a half of 20 minutes or 25 minutes in some cases. Half-time lasts for about 15 minutes.

Teams[link]

Teams consist of fifteen players^[3] (a goalkeeper, two corner backs, a full back, two wing backs,a centre back, two mid fielders, two wing forwards, a centre forward, two corner forwards and a full forward) plus up to fifteen substitutes, of which five may be used. Each player is numbered 1–15, starting with the goalkeeper, who must wear a jersey colour different from that of his or her teammates.

Positions[link]

Ball[link]

The game is played with a round leather football made of 18 stitched leather panels, similar in appearance to a traditional volleyball, with a circumference of 69–74 cm (27–29 in), weighing between 370–425 g (13–15.0 oz) when dry. It may be kicked or hand passed. A hand pass is not a punch but rather a strike of the ball with the side of the closed fist, using the knuckle of the thumb.

The ball, made by Irish company O'Neills, being used for a Gaelic football match.

Technical fouls[link]

The following are considered technical fouls ("fouling the ball"):

• Bouncing the ball twice in a row (It may be soloed continuously)
• Changing hands: Throwing the ball from your right-hand to left or vice-versa (legal in the ladies' game)
• Going four steps without releasing, bouncing or soloing the ball (soloing involves kicking the ball into one's own hands)^[4]
• Hand passing a goal (the ball may be punched into the goal from up in the air, however)
• Picking the ball directly off the ground (it must be scooped up into the hands by the foot), however in ladies' Gaelic football the ball may be picked up directly
• Square ball is an often controversial rule: If, at the moment the ball enters the small square, there is already an attacking player inside the small rectangle, then a free out is awarded*
• Throwing the ball (it may be "hand-passed" by striking with the fist)

Scoring[link]

A player from a Canada GAA club shoots for goal

If the ball goes over the crossbar, a point is scored and a white flag is raised by an umpire. A point can be scored by either kicking the ball over the crossbar, or by fisting it over in which case the hand must be closed whilst striking the ball. If the ball goes below the crossbar, a goal, worth three points, is scored, and a green flag is raised by an umpire. A goal can only be scored by kicking the ball into the net, not by fist passing the ball into the net. However, a player can strike the ball into the net with a closed fist if the ball was played to him by another player or came in contact with the post/crossbar/ground prior to connection. The goal is guarded by a goalkeeper. Scores are recorded in the format Goal Total-Point Total. To determine the score-line goals must be converted to points and added to the other points. For example, in a match with a final score of Team A 0–21 Team B 4–8, Team A is the winner with 21 points, as Team B scored only 20 points (4 times 3, plus 8).

Tackling[link]

The level of tackling allowed is more robust than in association football, but less than rugby.

Shoulder to shoulder contact and slapping the ball out of an opponent's hand are permitted, but the following are all fouls:

• Blocking a shot with the foot
• Pulling an opponent's jersey
• Pushing an opponent
• Sliding tackles
• Striking an opponent
• Touching the goalkeeper when he/she is inside the small rectangle
• Tripping
• Using both hands to tackle
• Wrestling the ball from an opponent's hands

Restarting play[link]

• A match begins with the referee throwing the ball up between the four mid fielders.
• After an attacker has put the ball wide of the goals, scored a point or a goal, the goalkeeper may take a kick out from the ground at the 13m line. All players must be beyond the 20m line.
• After a defender has put the ball wide of the goals, an attacker may take a "45" from the ground on the 45m line, level with where the ball went wide.
• After a player has put the ball over the sideline, the other team may take a sideline kick at the point where the ball left the pitch. It may be kicked from the ground or the hands. The player who is taking the sideline kick must not pass the boundary line while taking.
• After a player has committed a foul, the other team may take a free kick (usually shortened to "free" in reports/commentaries) at the point where the foul was committed. It may be kicked from the ground or the hands.
• If a player has been fouled while passing the ball, the free may be taken from the point where the ball landed.
• After a defender has committed a foul inside the large rectangle, the other team may take a penalty kick from the ground from the center of the 11m line. Only the goalkeeper may guard the goals.
• If many players are struggling for the ball and it is not clear who was fouled first, the referee may choose to throw the ball up between two opposing players.

Officials[link]

A football match is overseen by eight officials:

• The referee
• Two linesmen
• Sideline official/Standby linesman (inter-county games only)
• Four umpires (two at each end)

The referee is responsible for starting and stopping play, recording the score, awarding frees and booking and sending off players.

Linesmen are responsible for indicating the direction of line balls to the referee.

The fourth official is responsible for overseeing substitutions, and also indicating the amount of stoppage time (signaled to him by the referee) and the players substituted using an electronic board.

The umpires are responsible for judging the scoring. They indicate to the referee whether a shot was: wide (spread both arms), a 45 m kick (raise one arm), a point (wave white flag), square ball (cross arms) or a goal (wave green flag). A disallowed score is indicated by crossing the green and white flags.

Contrary to popular belief within the association, all officials are not obliged to indicate "any misdemeanours" to the referee, but are in fact only permitted to inform the referee of violent conduct they have witnessed which has occurred without the referee's knowledge. A linesman/umpire is not permitted to inform the referee of technical fouls such as a "double bounce" or an illegal pick up of the ball. Such decisions can only be made at the discretion of the referee.

History[link]

Gaelic football was first codified in 1887, although it has links to older varieties of football played in Ireland and known collectively as caid. Consequently, the name caid is used by some people to refer to present day Gaelic football.

The first record of any form of football being played in Ireland comes from 1308, when John McCrocan, a spectator at a football game at Newcastle, County Dublin was charged with accidentally stabbing a player named William Bernard.^[5]

The Statute of Galway of 1527 allowed the playing of "foot balle" and archery but banned "'hokie' — the hurling of a little ball with sticks or staves" as well as other sports.

By the 17th century, the situation had changed considerably. The games had grown in popularity and were widely played.^{[citation needed]} This was due to the patronage of the gentry.^{[citation needed]} Now instead of opposing the games it was the gentry and the ruling class who were serving as patrons of the games. Games were organised between landlords with each team comprising 20 or more tenants. Wagers were commonplace with purses of up to 100 guineas (Prior, 1997).

The earliest record of a recognized precursor to the modern game date from a match in County Meath in 1670, in which catching and kicking the ball was permitted.^[6]

However even "foot-ball" was banned^{[citation needed]} by the severe Sunday Observance Act of 1695, which imposed a fine of one shilling (a substantial amount at the time) for those caught playing sports. It proved difficult, if not impossible, for the authorities to enforce the Act and the earliest recorded inter-county match in Ireland was one between Louth and Meath, at Slane, in 1712.

A six-a-side version was played in Dublin in the early 18th century, and 100 years later there were accounts of games played between County sides (Prior, 1997).

By the early 19th century, various football games, referred to collectively as caid, were popular in Kerry, especially the Dingle Peninsula. Father W. Ferris described two forms of caid: the "field game" in which the object was to put the ball through arch-like goals, formed from the boughs of two trees, and; the epic "cross-country game" which lasted the whole of a Sunday (after mass) and was won by taking the ball across a parish boundary. "Wrestling", "holding" opposing players, and carrying the ball were all allowed.

During the 1860s and 1870s, Rugby football started to become popular in Ireland. Trinity College, Dublin was an early stronghold of Rugby, and the rules of the (English) Football Association were codified in 1863 and distributed widely. By this time, according to Gaelic football historian Jack Mahon, even in the Irish countryside, caid had begun to give way to a "rough-and-tumble game" which even allowed tripping. Association football started to take hold, especially in Ulster, in the 1880s.

Limerick was the stronghold of the native game around this time, and the Commercials Club, founded by employees of Cannock’s Drappery Store, was one of the first to impose a set of rules which was adapted by other clubs in the city. Of all the Irish pastimes the GAA set out to preserve and promote, it is fair to say that Gaelic football was in the worst shape at the time of the association’s foundation (GAA Museum, 2001).^[6]

Irish forms of football were not formally arranged into an organised playing code by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) until 1887. The GAA sought to promote traditional Irish sports, such as hurling and to reject "foreign" (particularly English) imports. The first Gaelic football rules, showing the influence of hurling and a desire to differentiate from association football — for example in their lack of an offside rule — were drawn up by Maurice Davin and published in the United Ireland magazine on February 7, 1887. The rules of the aforementioned Commercials Club became the basis for these official (Gaelic Football) rules who, unsurprisingly, won the inaugural All-Ireland Senior Football Final (representing County Limerick)^[7]

On Bloody Sunday in 1920, during the Anglo-Irish War, a football match at Croke Park was attacked by British forces. 14 people were killed and 65 were injured. Among the dead was Tipperary footballer Michael Hogan, for whom the Hogan Stand at Croke Park (completed in 1924) was named.

Ladies' Gaelic football has become increasingly popular with women since the 1970s^{[citation needed]}.

The relationship between Gaelic football and Australian rules football and the question of whether they have shared origins is a matter of historical controversy. Games are held between an Irish representative team and an Australian team, under compromise rules known as International rules football.

The current President of the GAA is Christy Cooney of Youghal, County Cork.^[8]

Team of the Century and Team of the Millennium[link]

The Team of the Century was nominated in 1984 by Sunday Independent readers and selected by a panel of experts including journalists and former players.^[9] It was chosen as part of the Gaelic Athletic Association's centenary year celebrations. The goal was to single out the best ever 15 players who had played the game in their respective positions. Naturally many of the selections were hotly debated by fans around the country.

The Team of the Millennium was a team chosen in 1999 by a panel of GAA past presidents and journalists. The goal was to single out the best ever 15 players who had played the game in their respective positions, since the foundation of the GAA in 1884 up to the Millennium year, 2000. Naturally many of the selections were hotly debated by fans around the country.

Leagues and team structure[link]

All Gaelic sports are amateur; easing the strictness with which this is interpreted is advocated by the Gaelic Players Association. The basic unit of each game is organised at the club level, which is usually arranged on a parish basis, with various local clubs playing to win the County Championship at various levels:

Children participating in a game of Gaelic football

A club may have more than one team, for example one competing at Senior level and a 'seconds' team in a lower division.

At the national level, the GAA in Ireland is organised in 32 GAA counties most of which are identical in name and extent to the 32 administrative counties on which local government throughout the island was based until the late 20th century.^[10] The term 'county' is also used for some overseas GAA areas such as London and New York. There are also clubs in other parts of the USA, Britain, Asia, Australasia, continental Europe and Canada.

Though Ireland was partitioned between two states in 1920, Gaelic sports (like most cultural organisations and all religions) continue to be organised on an All-Ireland basis.

A county panel - a team of 15 players, plus a similar number of substitutes - is formed from the best players playing at club level.

Nearly all counties play against each other in a knock-out tournament known as the All Ireland Championship. These modified knock-out games start as provincial championships for the four Irish provinces of Ulster, Munster, Leinster and Connacht.

In the past, the team winning each provincial championship would play one of the others, at a stage known as the All-Ireland semi-finals, with the winning team from each game playing each other in the All-Ireland Final.

A recent re-organisation now provides a 'back door' method of qualifying, with knocked out teams getting another chance to win back into the competition. This means that one team may defeat another team in an early stage of the championship, yet be defeated and knocked out of the tournament by the same team at a later stage.

County teams also compete in the National Football League, held every spring and grouping counties in for Divisions according to their relative strength. The League is not as prestigious as the All-Ireland, but in recent years attendances have grown, as has interest from the public and from players. This is due in part to the adoption in 2002 of the February-April timetable, in place of the former November start, and the provision of Division 2 final stages. Live matches are shown on the Irish-language TV station TG4 and on Setanta Ireland, with highlights shown on RTÉ2.

All-Ireland Final[link]

82,000 people at the All-Ireland Football Final in Croke Park, 2004.

The final game of the inter-county series is the All-Ireland Final which takes place on the third Sunday of September at Croke Park.

Over the four Sundays of September, All-Ireland Finals in men's football, women's football, hurling and camogie take place in Croke Park, the national stadium of the GAA, with the men's decider regularly attracting crowds of over 80,000. Guests who attend include the President of Ireland, the Taoiseach and leading dignitaries.

Two levels of the game are played at each All-Ireland, the Senior team and the Minor team (consisting of younger players, under the age of 18, who have played their own Minor All-Ireland competition).

The winning senior county football team receives the Sam Maguire cup. The most successful county in the history of football is Kerry, with 36 All-Ireland wins, followed by Dublin, with 23 wins.

See also[link]

• All-Ireland Senior Football Championship
• All-Ireland Sevens Football
• Ladies' Gaelic football
• List of footballers (Gaelic football)
• List of Gaelic football clubs
• Sport in Ireland

References[link]

• Jack Mahon, 2001, A History of Gaelic Football Dublin: Gill & Macmillan. (ISBN 0-7171-3279-X)

Footnotes[link]

External links[link]

• Rules
• Official GAA website
• An Fear Rua – The GAA Unplugged
• youtube

Kenneth "Kenny" Wheelock Mayne (born September 1, 1959) is a sports journalist and comedian for ESPN. He currently appears as host of "Kenny Mayne's Wider World of Sports on ESPN.com and as a weekly contributor to "Sunday NFL Countdown" with his weekly "Mayne Event" segment.

Sports career[link]

A native of Kent, Washington, Mayne is a former honorable mention junior college All-American quarterback in 1978 at Wenatchee Valley College in Wenatchee, WA. Kenny graduated from University of Nevada, Las Vegas in 1982, with a degree in Broadcasting, where he was the back-up quarterback and ahead of future NFL star Randall Cunningham on the depth chart.^{[citation needed]} While at UNLV, Mayne played football for two years and later signed as a free agent with the Seattle Seahawks.

He has been the manager for the American League team in the Legends and Celebrity All Star Softball Game since its inception in 2001. In 2010, he chose not to appear in the game.

KSTW[link]

After beginning his television career with a brief stint as a reporter for KLVX-TV in Las Vegas, Nevada, Mayne spent seven years (1982-9) at KSTW-TV in Seattle, Washington. Eventually he became a weekend sports anchor and weekday news reporter.^[1] Mayne resigned from KSTW in 1989.

ESPN[link]

ESPN hired Mayne in 1994 after Mayne had sent ESPN a note inquiring whether the network would hire him. The note simply asked to check a box, including one option which read, "We'll hire you when there's an ESPN5."^[2]

Mayne started at ESPN in 1994 as a SportSmash anchor on ESPN2, and soon moved over to the main network. He became well known for his dry sense of humor and his unique home run calls.

For a time, he served as co-anchor of the 11PM SportsCenter with Dan Patrick after Keith Olbermann left ESPN. He left SportsCenter two years later, moving to an assortment of late night ESPN shows which were usually re-aired throughout the next morning. Included in his repertoire was the game show 2 Minute Drill. Mayne is now most often seen as the host for ABC and ESPN's horse racing events, as well as providing offbeat feature stories on Sunday NFL Countdown in a weekly segment called "The Mayne Event."

On January 17, 2007, ESPN signed Mayne to a one year contract to do features and cover horse racing, as well as return to SportsCenter for about 50 shows in 2007.[2]

Beginning October 2, 2008, Mayne starred in ESPN's first scripted web series, Mayne Street, playing a fictionalized version of himself.^[3]

In 2011 ESPN launched, "Kenny Mayne's Wider World of Sports" ^[4] a series of videos on ESPN.com highlighting Mayne's trips around the world. In the first season the show visited six countries (England, Ireland, Brazil, South Africa, Thailand, and New Zealand) with Mayne participating in events like the King's Cup Elephant Polo tournament in Thailand, the world's longest par-3 hole (Extreme 19) in South Africa, and a road bowling match in Ireland. A television version of "Kenny Mayne's Wider World of Sports", featuring highlights from the internet series, aired on ESPN/ABC in December 2011.

Season 2 of "Wider World of Sports" is currently in production with Mayne and company set to visit the Netherlands, Nicaragua, Mongolia, Italy, Switzerland, and Scotland.

Other ventures[link]

In January 2006, Mayne participated in the second season of ABC's Dancing with the Stars with partner Andrea Hale, but after a disastrous cha-cha, Mayne was the first contestant to be eliminated. In an interview with Brian Falvey in the Spring of 2007, Mayne joked that he left the 2006 Rose Bowl at halftime in order to get up early the next day to practice for "Dancing with the Stars." Subsequent seasons have seen Mayne return to the show for "DanceCenter," a parody of SportsCenter alongside former contestant Jerry Rice and judge Len Goodman. DanceCenter appears on the results show night of the week in which either five or six contestants remain.

Mayne was also in the 1998 film BASEketball which featured the creators of South Park Trey Parker and Matt Stone. He was alongside Dan Patrick and appeared on SportsCenter to cover the latest BASEketball playoff competition.[3] In 1999, he played himself on The Drew Carey Show in the episode titled "Tracy Bowl".[4]

Before agreeing to the deal with ESPN, Mayne had talks with Comedy Central about doing a sports-themed The Daily Show-style program and was a finalist to be the host of the syndicated version of Deal or No Deal. He confirmed both discussions.[5]

Mayne has recently appeared in commercials for Progressive auto insurance, and Top Flite golf balls.

In November 2006, Mayne hosted the pilot episode of the CBS Primetime game show Power of 10 which would later be hosted by Drew Carey. Power of 10 producer Michael Davies was impressed with his performance on 2 Minute Drill, and wanted him to host one of his other game shows. After Mayne hosted the pilot, he decided to decline this hosting opportunity and it was given to Drew Carey.

In 2008 Mayne penned his first book, An Incomplete And Inaccurate History Of Sport,^[5] a collection of offbeat musings on sports and pop culture.

In 2010 he appeared in the animated film Kung Fu Magoo as himself.

References[link]

External links[link]

• "Kenny Mayne's Wider World of Sports
• Kenny Mayne bio ESPN MediaZone
• Kenny Mayne
• Kenny Mayne at the Internet Movie Database
• Extensive audio interview with Mayne on public radio program The Sound of Young America