'A great welcome' - Presbyterian minister behind hybrid rules event

Antrim GAA chairperson Seamus McMullan and Rev David Moore, [right] who is one of the organisers of the hyrbid sport

Hybrid games between codes are not particularly unusual but the driving force behind Saturday's 'compromise rules' matches at Corrigan Park in west Belfast is perhaps not what you would expect.

Presbyterian Church in Ireland [PCI] minister, Rev David Moore, is one of the prime movers behind 'Between the Sticks', an event which will showcase the sports of hurling, shinty and camogie as part of Feile Phobail and Antrim GAA's 140th anniversary celebrations.

Scottish-Irish rivalry will be the order of the day as a men's shinty team from Stirling and a women's team from the Isle of Skye take on select hurling and camogie teams from Antrim.

Both of the teams travelling from Scotland are being brought to Belfast by Rev Moore, who is part of PCI's special ministry in the west of the city, known as An Tionolann/The Gathering.

Ireland played Scotland in a Shinty International match at Cusack Park in County Clare in 2024

The initiative is part of the church's outreach programme to re-engage with the people of west Belfast.

"I started working in west Belfast in 2022 on behalf of the Presbyterian Church really trying to re-engage with the area," explained Rev Moore in an interview with BBC Sport NI.

"There used to be five Presbyterian churches here but they are all closed. We wanted to be back here again, connecting with the community.

"We've tried a number of community connect events and this is probably one of the biggest ones that we're trying because the GAA community is one of the biggest ones in the whole of west Belfast."

The Presbyterian minister said Saturday's event is being staged in the context of "a great welcome" from the local community.

"We could not complain about how warmly we've been welcomed. The doors have been thrown open to us and the encouragement to be here.

"We feel a part of this community now, and this is one aspect of sharing that.

"I was enthusiastically encouraged by Collie Donnelly [former Antrim hurler and former County chairperson] and we're looking forward to having a great connection between shinty and hurling, different codes but essentially the same cultural background."

'A day of fun and celebration'

The matches, which are free to attend, will be played under shinty-hurling-camogie composite rules, with 14 players-a-side and aspects of each sport involved, meaning that each team is equally disadvantaged.

Each half will last for 35 minutes, with teams using their own sticks, one half played with a sliotar, the other with a shinty ball.

Like the scoring system, the goal to be used is taken from hurling.

The first Shinty-Hurling match between Irish and Scottish Gaelic teams took place in 1896 in London.

Annual international fixtures have taken place in both countries over the years with 2024's international between Ireland and Scotland resulting in a victory for Ireland.

Ballycastle and Antrim camogie player Maeve Kelly commented: "It'll be a day of fantastic fun and celebration. It'll be amazing to see the skills of all the sports coming together."

Terence McNaughton, former Antrim hurling player and manager, added: "It's a brilliant game to be involved in and a great game to watch, a great spectacle.

"I've been lucky enough to be involved with the Ireland team the last couple of years and I've really enjoyed it."