US TELEVISION VIEWERS will tonight be shown a television documentary about a group of American soldiers who became so captivated by hurling during one stopover in Shannon Airport that they set up their own club at home.
Officers from the New Hampshire division of the US National Guard saw a match during a stopover in the Co Clare airport while returning home from duty in Iraq in 2005, and found themselves so entranced by the match that they brought the sport home with them.
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Having successfully set up their own club – which is now thriving, thanks to the involvement of fellow soldiers who had not even seen the game before – the Barley House Wolves, as they are known, joined the New Hampshire Junior C hurling league and have since played in the North American championships.
Such was their enthusiasm that the club were approached by the Pentagon Channel (yes, there apparently is such a thing) which commissioned an 30-minute documentary about them, to be aired tonight.
Two Fields, One Team will tell their story, and could potentially be watched by up to 30 million people – meaning that tonight’s documentary could potentially be the largest ever television audience for a gaelic games programme. Update: The archived version of the show can be found here, or is embedded below.
In the meantime, the Wolves continue their preparations for the new season, hampered by the deployment of nine of their 30-strong squad back overseas.
At last, some hurling!... in Belmont, New Hampshire
US TELEVISION VIEWERS will tonight be shown a television documentary about a group of American soldiers who became so captivated by hurling during one stopover in Shannon Airport that they set up their own club at home.
Officers from the New Hampshire division of the US National Guard saw a match during a stopover in the Co Clare airport while returning home from duty in Iraq in 2005, and found themselves so entranced by the match that they brought the sport home with them.
Having successfully set up their own club – which is now thriving, thanks to the involvement of fellow soldiers who had not even seen the game before – the Barley House Wolves, as they are known, joined the New Hampshire Junior C hurling league and have since played in the North American championships.
Such was their enthusiasm that the club were approached by the Pentagon Channel (yes, there apparently is such a thing) which commissioned an 30-minute documentary about them, to be aired tonight.
Two Fields, One Team will tell their story, and could potentially be watched by up to 30 million people – meaning that tonight’s documentary could potentially be the largest ever television audience for a gaelic games programme. Update: The archived version of the show can be found here, or is embedded below.
In the meantime, the Wolves continue their preparations for the new season, hampered by the deployment of nine of their 30-strong squad back overseas.
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