Liverpool is a city renowned for its love of football, as well as other sports such as boxing and athletics.
The city has produced a number of sporting greats over the years – Steven Gerrard, Tony Bellew and Katarina Johnson-Thompson to name a few.
Now, due to its large Irish population in the region, the popularity of Gaelic Football is on the rise across Merseyside.
Merseysportlive took a closer look into Ireland’s most famous sport, but just how much of a rise has it made across the water?
We decided to go down to the streets of Liverpool, to ask the people if they knew anything about the Irish sport.
It was clear that a number of people we interviewed weren’t too sure about the sport, including Sarah, 22, from Childwall who said: “I’ve never even heard of it, I’m guessing it’s similar to football.”
Jacob, 20, from New Brighton, was also unaware of the sport, saying: “No I don’t really have a clue what it is, due to its name I’m thinking it might be Irish?”.
However Ellen, 20, a student from Manchester currently living in Liverpool WAS aware of the sport, saying: “Yeah I used to play it. It’s an Irish sport and I think it’s like a mixture of Rugby and Basketball.”
Richard, 18, from Bootle was also vaguely aware of the sport, saying: “Isn’t it like Rugby and Football put together.”
Although it is clear not everyone living in Liverpool knows much about Gaelic Football, it is no doubt on the rise within Merseyside as well as the rest of England.
We took a deeper look into everything Scousers need to know about the sport.
Is Gaelic being played in Merseyside?
There are already two Gaelic Clubs within Merseyside, John Mitchels GAA and Liverpool Wolfetones GAA.
John Mitchels Liverpool is one of the most successful GAA clubs in the whole of the UK and are the only mens club from outside Ireland to contest in an All-Ireland Football Final, doing so in 2009 & 2015.
As well as a Gaelic team, the Wolfetones also boast a Hurling and Camogie team, which are another two popular Irish Sports.
How do I get involved?
John Mitchels have provided details on their Twitter with instructions on how to contact them if interested in the sport.
You can also get in touch with the Wolfetones through their club website which provides a contact details form that can be filled out and sent to the club.
Furthermore, if you are a student in the city you can also apply for your university Gaelic team. Liverpool John Moores University’s Gaelic team recently became British champions so they are no strangers to the sport.
Are there any pitches in the area?
You can find accessible Gaelic pitches at the Greenbank Sports Academy and at the Wavertree Sports Park in Liverpool.
(Image from Nams82 under CC licence)
