This page discusses scoring in the Gaelic games of hurling, Gaelic football, camogie, ladies' Gaelic football, international rules football and shinty-hurling.
Note that although rounders and Gaelic handball are considered "Gaelic games", they are not listed under this page.
In hurling, Gaelic football, camogie, ladies' Gaelic football and shinty-hurling, the goalposts are placed 6.5 m (21 ft) apart and are at least 7 m (23 ft) tall, [1] with a crossbar at a height of 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in). Playing the ball (a sliotar or Gaelic ball, depending on the game) between the posts and below the crossbar scores a goal (Irish : cúl), while playing the ball between the posts and above the crossbar scores a point (cúilín). A goal is worth 3 points. The umpire signifies a goal by waving a green flag, and a point by waving a white flag. Signal flags have been used since the 1900s; one game in the United States in 1907 used a US flag to signify points, and an Irish flag (presumably the tricolour) for a goal. [2] The tradition of green flag for goal and white flag for point appears to date from the 1920s. [3] [4] [5]
In international rules football there are further posts 6.5 m (21 ft) either side of the goalposts. Playing the ball between the goalposts and these side posts scores a behind. Playing the ball between the centre posts and below the crossbar scores a goal, while playing the ball between the posts and above the crossbar scores an over. A goal is worth 6 points, an over 3, and a behind 1.
The Irish term for goal is cúl, cognate with Latin cūlus, "rear." "Point" is cúilín, a diminutive form.
The first Gaelic football and hurling rules were published by the fledgling Gaelic Athletic Association in 1885. These specified goalposts similar to soccer goals: for football 15 ft (4.6 m) wide and a crossbar 8 ft (2.4 m) high, while for hurling they were 20 ft (6.1 m) wide and a crossbar 10 ft (3.0 m) high. Goals were the only score possible; this led to a high number of scoreless draws. [6]
In 1886, two poles were placed 21 ft (6.4 m) either side of the goals. [7] A goal was scored when the ball was played into the goal; a point was scored when the ball was played above the crossbar, or wide of the goals between the two outer posts. When the ball was played wide of the outer posts, no score was recorded, unless it was played by a defender, in which case a forfeit point was awarded. [8] [9]
Whichever team scored more goals won the game; if teams were tied on goals, points were counted, and forfeit points were worth 1⁄5 of a point. The score was written in the format goals–points (forfeit points), e.g. Tipperary's score of 1-1 (1) in the 1887 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final. Forfeit points rarely made any difference, although one game in 1887 ended North Tipperary 0-0 (1), Holycross 0-0 (0). [10]
| Period | Goal | Point | Forfeit point |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1885 | 1 | n/a | |
| 1886–87 | ∞ | 1 | 1⁄5 |
| 1888–91 | n/a | ||
| 1892–95 | 5 | ||
| 1896–present | 3 | ||
In 1888 the forfeit point was abolished, replaced by a 70 yd (64 m) puck in hurling and a 50 yd (46 m) kick in football. Hurling and Gaelic football goals were made the same size: 21 ft (6.4 m) by 8 ft (2.4 m). [11] When the game converted to the metric system these were adjusted slightly to 65 and 45 metres respectively.
In 1892 the goal was changed to be worth five points.
In 1896 the goal was reduced to three points, and has held that value ever since.
In 1910 the side posts were removed, and the H-shaped goalposts introduced. Now, a point had to go over the crossbar. [12]
Since 2012 a sideline cut has been worth two points in Camogie.
Since 2020 a '45 has been worth two points in ladies' Gaelic Football if it goes straight over without a deflection, otherwise it is worth one point. [13]
In the 2005 National Hurling League two points were awarded for a point scored from a sideline cut in hurling, in recognition of the difficulty of this skill (typically only about one-fifth of such efforts are successful). [14] [15]
The idea of increasing the value of the goal to 4 points has come up repeatedly in recent years. [16] [17]
An oft-repeated aphorism, especially with regard to Gaelic football, is "points win games" or "take your points and the goals will come." [18] [19] This has become especially true in recent decades: in the mid-1970s, games in the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship averaged 3.5 goals, but in the 2000s this had fallen to 1 goal per game. Martin Breheny observed "Improved fitness levels, more mobile defenders, and better defensive techniques have combined to seal off attackers' approach routes, making the goal an endangered species." Raising the value to 4 or even 5 points has been suggested. [20]
In hurling, goals per game has decreased from a peak of 4.18 per game in 1983, in part because of a rule change that banned handpassed goals. [21] [22]
A particular notation has been developed over the years by journalists and statisticians to record scoring in Gaelic games.
A team's score is given in the form goals-points, separated by either a hyphen ( - ) or en dash ( – ), for example Cork 1-14 Kerry 2-10. The total points score may be given in brackets afterward for clarity: Cork 1-14 (17) Kerry 2-10 (16), but goals are never converted into points. Unlike other sports, where the home team's name is given before the away team, in Gaelic games the winning team's name is almost always given first.
Scores are spoken aloud thus:
In international rules football, the score is given in the format goals.overs.points (total), for example the 2014 International Rules Series ended Australia 0.17.5 (56), Ireland 2.9.7 (46).
In newspaper and other written accounts of games, the score of each individual player is given in abbreviated format. First the total is given, and then it is broken down by dead ball scores.
So if a report says James Kelly 2-5 (1-1f, 1-0pen, 0-2 '45'), it means that he scored 2 goals and 5 points, of which a goal and a point were from frees, a goal from a penalty, two points from 45-metre kicks, and the other two points were from open play. If no goals are scored, the 0- will be omitted, e.g. Michael O'Shea 0-9 (5f, 1 '65', 1 sideline). If all scores were of one type, the brackets may be omitted, reading: Síle Harrington 0-5f (indicating five points, all of which were frees) or J. J. Maguire 1-0pen (one goal, a penalty) or sometimes Sarah Moore 0-4(fs). [23]
Gaelic football, commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. A form of football, it is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kicking or punching the ball into the other team's goal or between two upright posts above the goal and over a crossbar 2.5 metres above the ground.
Hurling is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goals, the number of players and much terminology. The same game played by women is called camogie, which shares a common Gaelic root.
Camogie is an Irish stick-and-ball team sport played by women. Camogie is played by 100,000 women in Ireland and worldwide, largely among Irish communities.
In sport, a goal may refer to either an instance of scoring, or to the physical structure or area where an attacking team must send the ball or puck in order to score points. The structure of a goal varies from sport to sport, and one is placed at or near each end of the playing field for each team to defend. For many sports, each goal structure usually consists of two vertical posts, called goal posts, supporting a horizontal crossbar. A goal line marked on the playing surface between the goal posts demarcates the goal area. Thus, the objective is to send the ball or puck between the goal posts, under or over the crossbar, and across the goal line. Other sports may have other types of structures or areas where the ball or puck must pass through, such as the basketball hoop. Sports which feature goal scoring are also commonly known as invasion games.
The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to penalty shots in that a single player takes one shot on goal from a specified spot, the only defender being the goalkeeper. If the result is still tied, the shootout usually continues on a "goal-for-goal" basis, with the teams taking shots alternately, and the one that scores a goal unmatched by the other team is declared the winner. This may continue until every player has taken a shot, after which players may take extra shots, until the tie is broken, and is also known as "sudden death".
International rules football is a team sport consisting of a hybrid of football codes, which was developed to facilitate international representative matches between Australian rules football players and Gaelic football players.
Gaelic games are a set of sports played worldwide, though they are particularly popular in Ireland, where they originated. They include Gaelic football, hurling, Gaelic handball and rounders. Football and hurling, the most popular of the sports, are both organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). Women's versions of hurling and football are also played: camogie, organised by the Camogie Association of Ireland, and ladies' Gaelic football, organised by the Ladies' Gaelic Football Association. While women's versions are not organised by the GAA, they are closely associated with it but are still separate organisations.
The Cavan County Board or Cavan GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) in Ireland, and is responsible for the administration of Gaelic games in County Cavan.
The Clare County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) or Clare GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Clare. Clare plays its home games at Cusack Park in Ennis.
The Kilkenny County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Kilkenny. The county board has its head office and main grounds at Nowlan Park and is also responsible for Kilkenny county teams in all codes at all levels. The Kilkenny branch of the Gaelic Athletic Association was founded in 1887.
The Offaly County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) or Offaly GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Offaly. Separate county boards are also responsible for the Offaly county teams.
The Down County Board or Down GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) in Ireland, and is responsible for the administration of Gaelic games in County Down,.
The Mayo County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) or Mayo GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Mayo and the Mayo county teams.
The Monaghan County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) or Monaghan GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Monaghan and the Monaghan county football and hurling teams. Separate county boards are responsible for the promotion & development of handball, camogie and ladies' football within the county, as well as having responsibility for their representative county players/teams. The current team sponsor of Monaghan GAA is Investec.
The following is an alphabetical list of terms and jargon used in relation to Gaelic games. See also list of Irish county nicknames, and these are very interesting.
Composite rules shinty–hurling – sometimes known simply as shinty–hurling – is a hybrid sport of shinty and hurling which was developed to facilitate international matches between the two sports.
Australian rules football and Gaelic football are codes of football, from Australia and Ireland respectively, which have similar styles and features of play. Notably both are dominated by kicking from the hand and hand passing as well as rules requiring the ball is bounced by a player running in possession, both have a differentiated scoring system, with higher and lower points values for different scoring shots, both have no offside rule, and both allow more physical contact and players on the field than other football codes - 15 in gaelic football, 18 in Australian Rules.
The 1982 All Ireland Camogie Championship was won by Cork, beating Dublin by a single point in the final.
The 1964 inaugural All-Ireland Senior Club Camogie Championship for the leading clubs in the women's team field sport of camogie was won by Celtic, who defeated Deirdre in the final, played at Croke Park. The attendance at the final included Séamus Ó Braonáin, who had refereed the very first camogie matches in 1904 and his wife, Brigid Dillon who played in the practice match in the Phoenix Park and the first camogie match in Navan. An anonymous donor provided an unusual silver cup, known as the ‘Jubilee Cup’, which Celtic Camogie Club were allowed to keep.
A comparison of Gaelic football and rugby union is possible because of certain similarities between the codes, as well as the numerous dissimilarities.
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