School Hurling: Stick Striking with a Soft Ball

Hurling is a Gaelic game with over two thousand years of history in Ireland that combines striking with a stick, catching with the hand and carrying the ball balanced on the blade. It's adapted with school hockey sticks, a foam ball and no-contact rules to work on striking technique and team play.

How to play

1. Introduce hurling as a traditional amateur sport in Ireland and show its three key skills: the low strike, catching with the hand and carrying the ball balanced on the stick (3 min).
2. In pairs: low passes with the stick from 8 m, catch with the hand and drop the ball to strike it again (6 min).
3. Individual course: carry the ball balanced on the stick through cones and back without dropping it (4 min).
4. 6v6 games on two fields with team handball goals and two upright poles above each crossbar: under the bar, 3 points; over the bar between the poles, 1 point (14 min, switching opponents halfway).
5. Wrap-up: each team reviews which kind of score it went for most and whether that was the right choice given the defensive pressure (3 min).

Rules

• The stick never comes up above the waist, whether striking or defending.
• No contact: no touching an opponent or their stick; steal by intercepting the ball.
• With the ball in hand, take at most four steps; then pass, strike or carry it on the stick.
• No striking the ball if a player is within 6 feet in its path.

Variations

Adaptations

• Wheelchair user: plays with a short stick, and no one may challenge them for five seconds while they carry the ball on the stick.
• Hearing impairment: the student referee uses visual signals and a flag for fouls.
• Coordination difficulties: may always strike with the ball resting on the ground after receiving it.

Learning goals

• Improve striking with an implement and catching with the hand.
• Choose how to finish based on defensive pressure.
• Learn about a traditional Gaelic game and compare it with field hockey.

Equipment for a class of 25

• hockey sticks: 28
• foam balls: 8
• goals: 4
• poles: 8
• cones: 16
• pinnies: 14

Teacher tip

Foam balls 3 to 3.5 inches across keep things safe and are easy to catch. If any students play hockey, use them as helpers to demonstrate the strike.

More main activities for High School