Where's the Red, White and Blue?

July 4, 2010

The Fourth has gone green, and not just because we’re in the Emerald Isle. Killarney’s streets are packed with fans wearing green jerseys proclaiming allegiance to either Kerry or Limerick. Today is the big match between the two teams. Gaelic football, that is.

Walking into town this morning, I expected it to be a quiet Sunday, but it was the complete opposite. Every pub was already full, with groups of friends and families in their required jerseys loitering outside. Pints filled hands, and windows revealed more supporters eating meals. Music refused to stay within the walls of the pubs, and spread out into the streets for about two blocks. Apparently the Irish don’t really care about America’s independence today (but then again, I don’t know any Irish holidays); I can picture the block parties and fireworks that I would have attended at home and it doesn’t feel right to be missing them.

But throughout the afternoon here, the streets and pubs resembled a giant tailgate, but for the whole city, and not just in one area (campus) like I’m used to. “This is the big game,” one shopkeeper told me. Sunday’s game was the Senior Football Championship Final at Fitzgerald Stadium. According to the Irish Times, “All-Ireland champions Kerry were pushed all the way by a spirited Limerick side” until they won. The score? Kerry 1-17, Limerick 1-14. What? Like American football, it seems that points can be earned in different ways. A point is scored if the ball goes over the crossbar of the goal, either by being kicked or fisted (hitting it with a closed fist). A goal, worth three points, is earned if the ball goes is kicked below the crossbar. The score is then recorded as the goal total – point total.

Gaelic football also draws more fans than any other sport in Ireland, including hurling. The sport — a combination of soccer, rugby and basketball — is believed to date back to medieval times, but modern rules weren’t recorded until the late 1800s. It’s evident that it’s quite a hit here now, as in every gift shop and sporting store, dozens of types of jerseys hang on the walls.