The Gathering Hurling Festival 2013

34 No PLAYER NAME Home County Home Club Current Club 1 Shane Carroll Cork Charleville Clann na hOman 2 Terry Kehoe Wexford Cloughbawn Arabian Celts 3 Michael Patrick Redmond Wexford St. Annes, Rathnure Dubai Celts 4 Alan Brennan Laois The Harps Dubai Celts 5 Ronan O'Donoghue Cork Douglas GAA Arabian Celts 6 Darragh Eamonn Carlow Carlow Town Dubai Celts 7 Declan Cahill Laois Ballypickas Dubai Celts 8 Willie Lonergan Tipperary Swan Dubai Celts 9 Shane O Donnell Clare Cratloe Clann na hOman 10 Nevin O'Regan Cork Bride Rovers (Rathcormac) Dubai Celts 11 Niall Drea Carlow Erins Own (Bagenalstown) Dubai Celts 12 Eddie Walsh Wexford St. Aidan's, Ferns Dubai Celts 13 Diarmuid Patrick O'Meara Clare Clonlara Dubai Celts 14 Killian Murphy Cork St. Finbarrs Dubai Celts 15 Shane Rackard Wexford Duffry Rovers Dubai Celts 16 Adrian Cliffe Waterford Cappoquin Dubai Celts 17 Colm Hunter Antrim Glen Rovers Dubai Celts 18 Anthony Ryan Waterford De La Salle Dubai Celts 19 Tommy Nolan Dublin Bangor Dubai Celts 20 Andrew Keary Galway Killimor Al Ain GAA 21 Caymon Flynn Wexford St. Anne’s, Rathnure Al Ain GAA 22 Aidan Clarke Down Ballycran Qatar GAA 23 Des Leamy (Selector) Clare Tulla Qatar GAA 24 Liam McAulliffe (Selector) Cork Charleville Clann na hOman 25 Donal McCarthy (Selector) Cork Carrigtwohill Dubai Celts 26 James Kennedy (Selector) Meath Ballinabrackey Arabian Celts Hurling was born in the Middle East back in 1985 when two Teams in Al Kharj, just outside Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, played in an inter-firm game at Almarai. The Boys from the Glens of Antrim played a Munster selection and there was skin and hair flying in the sands of Saudi Arabia. Over the years, further games were played in Saudi between Kentz and Aramco before an official tournament was set up in Bahrain in 1993, which saw the emergence of new clubs Naomh Abdulla Dhahran, and the Arabian Celts (formerly the Bahrain Irish). The tournament has been running ever since, celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. Other clubs emerged in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Oman, with clubs in Kuwait, Al Ain and Sharjah joining later. The Middle East All Stars feature players from clubs from all over the Middle East and feature players like Killian Coleman (Cork Minor, 1998), Aidan Clarke (Down, 2010), Shane Rackard (Hurling MVP at the Asian Gaelic Games in 2012) and Andrew Keary (All-Ireland-winning, Galway minor captain 2005). The team also features Terry Kehoe, who is featured in the Guinness Book of Records for hurling when his club, Cloghbawn in Wexford, set a world record for a hurling match that went on for 24 hours in June 2012. Middle East

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