Semple Stadium is a sporting mecca in the hurling heartlands

Among followers of Gaelic Games, particularly hurling, Semple Stadium, Thurles is their Mecca.

Situated as it is, in the heart of Tipperary, the centre of the hurling world, surrounded by such hurling strongholds as Kilkenny, Limerick, Cork, Waterford, Clare and Galway, this is the venue for the game’s greatest contests.

Semple Stadium has, through the decades, carved for itself a special niche in the hearts of hurling followers. Called after the legendary Tipperary captain Tom Semple and having a capacity of 53,000, a visit here provides a unique and unequalled experience.

A big attraction for the supporter at Semple Stadium is your proximity to the real hurling action. You can hear the ash clashing, feel the whizz of the sliotar. You can see the expression on the players’ faces and almost see the whites of their eyes.

You can experience the raw courage of the hurler, the intensity of the clash, the crunch of the colliding bodies, the lightning speed, the uncanny skills, the partisan roars of the supporters and all that combines in the glorious mayhem of hurling.

Semple Stadium is the favoured venue for hurlers down all the decades. The playing surface is always pitch perfect. That is thanks to the dedication of skilled grounds-men, who realise that the playing surface is the real treasure of the stadium.

The hurler can approach the ball in full confidence that it will bounce true, the wide spaces will allow him to display his skills before a knowing crowd, as there is nowhere for the player to hide at Semple Stadium. Reputations are enhanced or shattered on a summer Sunday.

The hurler is on the greatest stage, set in the heartland of hurling before knowing eyes and this is his place to shine.

It was here generations of hurling lovers saw the greats of their time display their wares and the present day player knows, as he leaves the thundering tunnel and enters the arena, he is treading in the footprints of the legends of the game.

A visitor to the venue will hear the story of the stadium, from its purchase in 1910 right through to the present day, the heady days of the thirties and forties, the bicycle finals of the war years, the tales of Mackey and Ring, the GAA centenary final of 1984.

Hear the story of Tom Semple. Visit the Dr. Kinane and Ó Riain stands and take time to view the many commemorative plaques remembering Bloody Sunday, Archbishop Thomas Croke, Féile na nGael and Maurice Davin.

Hear the story of Féile, the greatest rock festival in Europe in the early nineties.

It attracted a generation of Ireland’s youth to Semple Stadium, giving them lifelong, indelible memories as they rocked to Meatloaf, Elvis Costello, Van Morrison, Bryan Adams and many others.

See where John Fenton scored that long-range goal in ’87 and where Nicky planted the ‘Maradona’ goal later that year. See with your own eyes where Paul Flynn’s ‘dipper’ free went in as it eluded Donal Óg and ‘The Rock’ in the 2004 Munster final and gave the Déise a Munster title.

Some mention Maurice Fitzgerald’s late point against Dublin in 2001 or T.J.’s late goal that wrecked St. Thomas’s dream in January ’22. This place is chock full of memories.

A visit will revive those great heady days supporting club or county. It is here that our ancient craft of hurling can be seen in all its glory. Semple Stadium is our Colosseum. It is our Circus Maximus, our Field of Legends.

It is one of those special places where one can experience the very heartbeat and touch the soul of the Irish. Get along for a visit as soon as possible.