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Shrove
Tuesday is a special day in St Columb.
The
night before the big hurling day the area usually resembles a ghost
town. All the shop windows have shutters across them and the streets
are deserted, but there is a also a sense of excitement in the air.
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| The
windows are boarded up for the day |
In
the mid-afternoon of Tuesday 4th March 2003 the famous words were
shouted to the large crowd.
"Town
and country do your best. But in this parish I must rest."
These
historical words launch the hurling in St Columb.
With
plenty of enthusiasm (and a bit of pushing and shoving too) the
hurling is underway.
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| Scott
(left) is one of the youngest ever winners |
Crowds
of hundreds engaged in the ancient game on Tuesday 4th March. How
long the hurling lasts for can vary from year to year. In the past
the game has been known to end in a matter of minutes but more often
than not it can go on for a few hours.
The
ball passes between teams and then eventually someone will triumph.
After
a long day of hurling another tradition is the 'Drinking The Silver
Ball'.
In
the evening the ball is dipped into a mug of the winners drink.
Many of those who took part in the afternoon's event try to get
a sip of the drink, maybe in the hope of bringing them luck for
the hurling re-match which takes place in St Columb in a few days
time!
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| The
battle continues through the streets |
Already
preparations are underway for the official re-match which will occur
in the area on Saturday 15th March.
If
the winner decides to keep the hurling ball from Tuesday's event
the rush begins to make a new ball. This is produced locally.
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| Shaping
the new ball from silver |
Colin
Roscorla is the local craftsman who makes the ball. "It's a good
seven days of work", he says.
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| Colin
Roscorla, silverball craftsman for ten years |
It is
a traditional method of construction, using a core made of applewood
from his own orchard.
This year
the silver arrived on Thursday, and the ball will be ready in good
time for the next hurl on Saturday 15th March.
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| Shrove
Tuesday winner, Sean Johns |
Sean Johns
is the man paying for the new silver. After a very tough game on Shrove
Tuesday, he carried off the ball for Town, running more than a mile
to the parish boundary, and thwarting the attempts of the Countrymen
to win it. Sean is 35 and it is his third win to date.
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| Richard
Rundle recalls his win in 1962 |
Sean has
chosen Richard Rundle for the honour of throwing up the ball on March
15th. He too has carried off the ball three times, with particularly
strong memories of 1963 when the ball was "lost". It mysteriously
travelled by lorry to the Midlands and back!
Take
part in the hurling game on Saturday 15th, beginning at 4.15pm,and
listen to Cornwall Connected on Sunday 16th to hear more about the
ball and the stories surrounding it.
The
youngest hero of the hour ever was Scot Bennett at last year's hurling.
Scot
was 11-years-old when he became the youngest hurler to win the event.
The
event is full of community spirit. One man from St Columb reached
the age of 70, believing that he had no chance of winning the hurling
in the future. So his family presented him with a silver hurling
ball to mark his 70th birthday.
Hurling
also takes place in St Ives
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