ABOUT THE CLUB

The Portland Gaelic Athletic Association was formed in 2022, uniting the Portland Hurling Club and Portland Gaelic Football Club under one umbrella. We exist to promote and host Gaelic athletic events in the greater Portland area, in addition to providing an outlet for athletes of all ages to learn and play the two sports under the banner of the USGAA.

In community with other Irish cultural organizations (like Maine Irish Heritage Center and Maine Gaelic Sports Alliance) we love to grow the Irish culture in Maine and create a unique blend of Irish and Maine culture under one roof.

We are both an athletic club, representing Maine in national play at the Junior C level and a social club, allowing for anyone to join as a member that has any interest in promoting, preserving, and transforming Gaelic Sports and Irish culture in the Portland area.

ABOUT THE SPORTS

Hurling

A quick search on Google will tell you that hurling is "an Irish game resembling field hockey, played with a shorter stick with a broader oval blade. It is the national game of Ireland and may date back to the 2nd millennium BC."

Also known as the fastest game on grass, Hurling combines elements of speed, agility, striking, and checking to form the game.

If you're not Irish, it helps to have played hockey, lacrosse, tennis among others.

Gaelic Football

Commonly thought to be the child of rugby and soccer, the first legal reference to football in Ireland was in 1308, when John McCrocan, a spectator at a football game at Novum Castrum de Leuan (the New Castle of the Lyons or Newcastle) was charged with accidentally stabbing a player named William Bernard. A field near Newcastle, South Dublin is still known as the football field.

While the fans are much less violent in the modern day, the passion of the sport is still equally contagious.

If you're not Irish, it helps to have played Rugby, Soccer, American Football, among others.