GAELIC SPORTS WORLD Issue 38 – November 16, 2015 | Page 9

They were starting from
scratch in a city whose sporting culture was mainly American football and baseball in the
professional realm. There were
several soccer and rugby clubs
well established, along with an
Australian Rules Football Club,
so the sporting landscape was
very competitive.
CHALLENGES
Unveiling a completely new
pastime, with no regular mainstream media exposure, was not
going to be easy.

Photo courtesy of Nashville GAC.

“Like any new venture, we faced a lot of obstacles,” explained John Watson.

tial seed money. Most of the funds come through dues, which
we try to keep low so we don’t discourage people from playing.

“Structural things like getting equipment and space to practice were challenges, but the biggest challenge was getting
people involved and interested in playing. That initial group
of 5 reached out through our various networks and invited
everyone we knew to come out and give hurling a try,” he
said.

“We had three sponsors for our recent Fall 2015 City League,
and I’m hopeful that we can continue to get sponsorship money to help keep cost down for members,” the co-founder explained.

“Beyond procuring equipment and space, the biggest challenge is getting people interested in trying a sport they’ve never heard of. By playing in high profile public parks, by talking
with friends about the game, and by showing videos, we are
able to get people interested in coming out. Once someone
touches a hurley, they get hooked. That’s what happened to
me.”

Early on the young club got a boost when they received a
handful of hurleys from an anonymous donor, and together
with players from MTSU were able to field a team in the
summer of 2013 at a tournament in St. Louis.

Other tests for the club were of a monetary nature and
trying to get local sponsorship.
“Financial support is also a big challenge. We had a successful crowd-funding campaign that provided us with some ini-

BREAKS

They received more good fortune when the club got coverage in the local newspaper The Tennessean and helped to
raise profile in the city. Nashville GAC has since participated in a couple of events, notably the Music City Irish
Fest, which was held last March for the first time and later
attended the Middle Tennessee Highland Games this past
summer.

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