PwC Hurling All-Stars depart on tour to Singapore

Some of the biggest and best names in hurling have been assembled for the PwC All-Star hurling tour to Singapore.

The 70-strong party jetted out from Dublin this morning (Wednesday) for a week-long trip to Asia where they will be hosted by the local Singapore Gaelic Lions Club and the Asian County Board of the GAA.

The tour will be headed up by Galway’s All-Ireland winning captain David Burke who, along with Waterford’s Jamie Barron, Galway’s Daithí Burke and Tipperary’s Padraic Maher are back to back All-Stars from 2016 and 2017.

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 afternoon 5pm local time between 2016 and 2017 All-Star hurling selections.

There are players from Kilkenny, Tipperary, Galway, Waterford and Wexford in the travelling party with the feature event on Saturday being staged in The Padang in the heart of Singapore and designed to catch the attention of locals.

The Padang (Malay for 'field') is an iconic open playing field located within the Downtown Core of the Central Business Area in Singapore. The Padang is surrounded by several important landmarks, which include Saint Andrew's Cathedral, City Hall and the Supreme Court Building. The Hurling match will be played on the Connaught Road side of the Padang at the Singapore Recreation Club. The club was established in 1883 and plays host to soccer, rugby, tennis, and cricket matches as well as facilities that cater for 5,500 members.

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+ 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+ kids taking part and 300+ 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."

Given the tighter confines of the Padang playing field, Saturday’s exhibition match will feature smaller sized teams with rolling substitutions, played over four quarters due to the 30C heat. The game will be refereed by All-Ireland hurling final referee Fergal Horgan, with football final referee Joe McQuillan also part of the travelling party.

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), Séamus 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).