Daly’s Hurleys – The Art of Hurley Making

Paddy Daly R.I.P. of Pallaskenry started making hurleys by hand in the late 1930’s. The traditional craft involved a great deal of laborious effort from the felling of the ash tree to the demanding task of cutting out the hurleys by hand. Even with the help of his eight strong family, Paddy found that he was not able to meet the growing demand for hurleys.

In the early eighties, Paddy’s son DJ decided to build a new factory and install modern equipment to develop the hurley making business, with assistance from Shannon Development under its small industry programme. This enabled the business to turn out 100 hurleys a day through combining the use of modern cutting, shaping and sanding equipment with the traditional skills which he learned from his late father.

Paddy Daly RIP putting the finishing touches to a hurley, circa. 1955

Paddy Daly RIP sharing with his son Gerard and Mike Gleeson the craft of hurley making, circa. 1978

Champion Hurleys now produce fifteen different sizes ranging from 16″ right up to 36″, although most of the work these days is done by machinery we still do all the finishing touches to our hurleys by hand.  An exception is made for goalie hurleys, all of which are entirely made by hand.

DJ also has strong ties with the GAA outside of his involvement in the hurley making business. He played minor, under 21, junior and senior football for Limerick and also captained Askeaton to win the County Senior Football title in 1972. He was also Chairman of his local club, Pallaskenry, for 9 years.

In 2010, the third generation of Daly’s – Pádraig Daly, DJ’s son, launched Daly Champion Hurleys Ltd. Which incorporates the Champion brand of hurleys, sliotars, footballs, hurling grips and a wide range of sporting accessories. We welcome any queries from individuals or clubs, just give us a call at +353 61 393231.