We're used to seeing foreign publications writing gooey, romantic odes to hurling and the hard men who play it. Here's one with a twist from the Telegraph yesterday.
Alan Tyres suggested that English sport could learn a bit from the composite game of shinty/hurling. Scotland and Ireland met this weekend in Bught Park in Inverness and Tyres insists he did not see any better sport on TV over the last few days. He briefly drew a portrait of both sports for England's benefit.
With due respect to your All Blacks and your Manchester Derbies, the best sport on TV this weekend was the action from Bught Park, Inverness. Genius was at work....
The action is lightning quick, argy‑bargy is strongly encouraged, and exceptionally sore looking injuries are not only common, but shrugged off as if being hit in the kneecap with a club swung by 15-stone Irishman is no big deal.
Ireland's record in the composite shinty/hurling game is not as dominant as the playing numbers in each code would have you believe, though this is principally down to Ireland packing their teams full of Christy Ring players (and Tommy Walsh).
Only in recent years have Ireland enjoyed a stranglehold in the series, winning six in a row since 2009. And their grip on the series could be loosened this time around.
Scotland won 3-15 to 2-8 on Saturday, leaving Ireland with a job to do in Croke Park in the second leg.
Kevin Bartlett, one of the heroes of Lovat's Camanachd Cup win, scored freely in Saturday's encounter.
