Sir, – I am a regular reader of The Irish Times and have been for decades; obviously I enjoy it. On Friday (Sports, June 28th) I particularly enjoyed a full page article by Jackie Tyrrell. It was about the game of hurling in Tipperary, a noted hurling county. I make no apology for being a fan of hurling; I believe it is a wonderful game and deserving of much greater recognition internationally. Unfortunately it does not get the support it deserves, even in Ireland.
I was born and reared in Co Wexford, growing up at a time of some great Wexford hurling families such as the Rackards, Kehoes, Floods and a brilliant goalkeeper Art Foley. I played minor (under-18) for a while back in the early 1950s; but for economic reasons I had to move to London. In those days hurling was almost unknown in London, very unorganised and with no medical backup. So I moved to another game which they called football; we called it soccer. I still went to Croke Park for major events such as all-Ireland finals.
I think Jackie Tyrell’s piece is a brilliant article and portrays the game wonderfully. I have no intention of picking out any particular part of it, the whole piece is excellent. I would recommend it to your readers, whether or not they are “fans”. Full marks, Jackie, I hope we will get more like this. – Yours, etc,
WILLIAM MURPHY,
Malahide,
Co Dublin.