The stars of the game are far from household names and the rules are a little hard to grasp, but an unusual sport is exercising pupils at an inner-London school, writes David Marley.
Gaelic football has become the surprise hit at St Paul’s academy in Greenwich, south London, where it was introduced six years ago and is now the main summer sport. It forms part of the GCSE PE curriculum.
Niall McCann, the director of sport, said: “The passion the pupils show when they play is phenomenal.
“There is always a great buzz around the school when the Gaelic football season is on.”
The school teams play weekend games against London clubs and 25 boys will travel to Ireland in May for a tour on the sport’s home soil.
New facilities were due to open in September this year but have been delayed by at least two years because of financial problems.
Photograph: Neil Turner
