A 70-STRONG PARTY LEFT Dublin Airport for Singapore this morning for this year’s PwC All-Star hurling tour.
They’ll be hosted by the local Singapore Gaelic Lions Club and the Asian County Board of the GAA during the week-long trip.
The tour features four back-to-back All-Star winners: Galway’s All-Ireland winning captain David Burke, his team-mate Daithí Burke, Tipperary’s Padraic Maher and Jamie Barron of Waterford.
The travelling party will be involved in a number of exhibition and coaching events with local children, with the highlight being an exhibition match on Saturday at 5pm local time between 2016 and 2017 All-Star hurling selections.
With 30-degree heat expected, the game will be played in the tight confines of the iconic Padang field in the Downtown Core of the Central Business Area in Singapore, so reduced-sized teams with rolling substitutions will be used over four quarters.
Joe Trolan, Chairman of the Asian County Board, said: “The ACB is delighted to welcome the 2016 and 2017 PwC All Stars to Asia and to its most vibrant city of Singapore.
“The Gaelic Lions with 250-plus members is the largest club in Asia and the standard bearer in the region for all good things from a GAA club perspective — thriving membership, all four games played, with multi-national members including 80-plus kids taking part and 300-plus local Singaporean school kids having just finished a Gaelic football program organised by the Lions.
“They are a beacon in the region for people moving to Singapore where every person finds a home away from home and we are delighted that they are hosting the PwC All Stars this weekend.”
2016 All-Star selection: Eoin Murphy (Kilkenny), Cathal Barrett (Tipperary), James Barry (Tipperary), Daithí Burke (Galway), Pádraig Walsh (Kilkenny), Ronan Maher (Tipperary), Pádraic Maher (Tipperary), Jamie Barron (Waterford), Walter Walsh (Kilkenny), Austin Gleeson (Waterford), Patrick Maher (Tipperary), Richie Hogan (Kilkenny), Seamus Callanan (Tipperary), John McGrath (Tipperary).
2017 All-Star selection: Colm Callanan (Galway), Pádraic Mannion (Galway), Matthew O’Hanlon (Wexford), Noel Connors (Waterford), Tadhg de Búrca (Waterford), Gearóid McInerney (Galway), David Burke (Galway), Brendan Maher (Tipperary), Lee Chin (Wexford), Pauric Mahony (Waterford), Conor Whelan (Galway), Conor Cooney (Galway), Noel McGrath (Tipperary).
