Sports

In Achill, Cleveland’s twin city, our club played with Westport GAA. These games marked the first time that hurling or camogie had been played in Achill in decades! The next day was ...

Cleveland’s annual Memorial 7-a-Side Tournament was held at the West Side Irish American Club on May 16th. The Cleveland Ladies defeated the Pittsburgh Banshees in the final to raise the cup for the first time. Meanwhile, the Cleveland men fell to the Pittsburgh Celtics. Other clubs competing included Ladies: Cincinnati and Buffalo, and Men: Buffalo Fenians and Detroit.

—attracted global attention. The League also had a wonderful Irish tinge, making for fantastic viewing and excitement for what lays ahead.

The hurling and camogie teams were on a tour de force in early May, led by Joey and Clodagh Murphy. After the brilliant wedding of clubmates Deirdre Scully and Corey Berry in Galway, the camógs opened the circuit with a match against St. Thomas’s, Clo’s home club. The lads had their initial run-out the following day with Joey’s club, Castlegar. The bus then headed north to Mayo,

Maybe it is some leftover Viking instinct, but the Irish do seem to enjoy the idea of taking a city. That spirit was on full display at what may be the last of sport’s great international friendlies. The cost, the logistics, and the general bother of hauling an Irish county team across the Atlantic have finally caught up with a game run on pride more than money.