GAA Football and Hurling Players


Provincial Crests
The Skills of Hurling

Hurling Skills
Choose a Skill

Hurling Skills

There are many different skills involved in the game of Hurling. One renowned hurling coach outlined over 170 skills in the game!

The skills can be broadly broken down into those that involve Gaining Possession, Maintaining Possession, Releasing Possession and Contesting Possession. Many of these skills can be performed on the ground, without the need to get the ball into the hand and out of the hand.

  • Gaining Possession

Involves gaining possession and control of the sliotar. Thus, skills such as catching, and lifting are included along with skills involved in getting control of the sliotar using the Hurley.

  • Maintaining Possession

Once the sliotar is under the control of the player, there are a number of skills which help the player in possession to maintain possession. These skills encompass ground skills, handling skills and evasion skills.

  • Releasing Possession

Involves striking the sliotar, with either the hand or the Hurley. Many of these skills can be performed with a stationary sliotar or a moving sliotar, while the player is stationary or while the player is moving.

  • Contesting Possession

Involves many of the skills used to tackle an opponent in possession, or to contest for possession when neither player is in possession of the sliotar.

It should be noted that this method of "grouping" skills is only a suggestion that may help coaches to ensure that as many skills as possible are developed, and there are a number of different ways of matching the skills together.

Developing Technical Skills

How to coach technical skills 

For each skill there are a number of key points to performing the skill. If the coach is unable to spot an error in a players performance, they should refer to the key points for that skill.

To develop each skill, a number of different Technical Practices are outlined, progressing from Basic to Intermediate and Advanced to ensure that as a player progresses the activities that are set out progress also.

Along with the Technical Practices, activities to Develop the Skill are outlined - incorporating Fun Games and Grid Games.

Click on each skill to progress to the specific page for that skill. The activities are presented in order of difficulty - from Basic to Intermediate and Advanced practices, and Fun Games.

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Choose a Skill

Gaining Possession Maintaining Possession Releasing Possession Contesting Possession
The Ground BlockThe DribbleStriking a Stationary BallThe Frontal Air Block
Controlling a Moving BallThe Solo RunGround Strike on the RunThe Hook
Blocking a ball over headEvasion/Roll OffDoubling BackShoulder to Shoulder Clash
The Chest CatchThe Feint/Side StepStriking from the HandShoulder to Shoulder Charge
The Jab Lift The Overhead StrikeThe Frontal Ground Block
The Roll Lift The HandpassThe Ground Flick
The Overhead Catch  Batting a Ball Overhead
   Checking

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