Beach, barbeques and a few beers as Seoul Gaels’ championship kicks off

We gathered outside McDonalds, in Seoul Station, many of us bleary-eyed from the morning’s early rise. It was 6.50am and rather predictably some of our finely tuned athletes were already delving into McMuffin breakfasts to set them up for the long day ahead.

I, meanwhile, was scoffing down an egg sandwich from the local convenience store, for my breakfast. There was a group of about thirty of us, and after a quick head count to confirm that everyone was there, it was time to head to the platform.

We were meeting some of our other players down in Busan. Our train to Busan was leaving in ten minutes. A three hour journey awaited but we were all buzzing with excitement. It was the first round of the Korean league. Championship day had arrived.

Busan is Korea’s second largest city with a population of approximately 3.6 million people. It is based on the South East coast and is a popular seaside spot among Korean and international tourists during the summer months. We were taking four teams down there – two men’s and two women’s teams, the same number as Laochra Busan GAA while the other club, Daegu na Fianna, would have one men’s team and one women’s team competing. In both men’s and ladies’ competitions there were five teams in a group meaning each team would have four fourteen minute games throughout the day.

Throw in for the first game was at 10.20am with Seoul’s first involvement coming forty minutes later. We arrived at Busan station just before ten o’ clock, some of us panicking that the ladies B team would miss their opening game. Despite this, we all, just, made it to the venue, Busan International Foreign School, on time.

It was a warm, sunny day with the mountains in the distance providing the perfect backdrop for an afternoon of Gaelic Football. Rather than bask in the sunshine most of us took cover under the small stand, where we stocked up on fruit, nuts, rice, pasta and protein drinks in between games. The Korean league is run by volunteers, and today was no different, each club having to provide referees and umpires for games throughout the afternoon.

Games were scheduled for every twenty minutes so each team had one game almost every hour. On the pitch we did well. Our Men’s A team secured four wins from four games to sit at the top of the group after the first round, as did our Ladies team, while our Men’s B teams won two games and Ladies’ B team won once. On a personal level, it was a satisfactory day, scoring a couple of goals and even a few points along the way.

Once the afternoon of football came to a close around four o’ clock we were able enjoy some post-game beers, hamburgers and hotdogs at the pitchside barbecue before making our way to our hostel nearby Haeundae Beach. A large group of us got a bus from outside the school, hauling gear bags, footballs and jerseys along with us. The first thing we did was open all the windows so we, and the other unfortunate passengers, could breathe more easily. I smelled like I’d been rolling in dirt for the past few hours and most of the others weren’t much better. We got off a short while later with the Korean pensioners on the bus more than happy to see the back of us.

The hostel we were staying at was basic but homely. It had a self-served kitchen and four or eight bunk beds to a room. After a much needed shower we all met in the lobby before heading out to a Korean meat restaurant for dinner and drinks. In these types of restaurants, everyone shares the numerous side-dishes and the meat that is being cooked on the grill in the middle of the table. It is a hugely social thing, helped by the bottles of Makoli (Rice wine) and ‘Soju’ (Korean liquor) which are inexpensive but hugely effective. The dinner ended with a rousing speech from our Chairman before we left to go and meet the other teams at a bar along the beachfront.

In Korea, the Irish Association of Korea (IAK) play a big role in organizing and spreading the word about Irish events on the peninsula. This weekend, they had also travelled down to Busan to provide Irish music for the event Saturday night. The sound of the bodhrán, accordion and thin whistle added to the whole atmosphere. We also had a great time catching up with faces from around the country that we hadn’t seen in months. On Sunday, there were some more tunes and impromptu sing along sessions while some of the girls even got a chance to cool down by going on a boat trip out around the coast. As our departure time neared on Sunday evening no one wanted to leave but it was time to move our tired bodies back to Seoul. Another great weekend for the parish had come to an end.