John West Féile this Weekend!

This weekend approximately 40,000 people will descend on the Cork and Kerry region as the John West Féile of hurling and camogie kicks off.

More than 256 teams, with thousands of players and coaches involved, sees 80 hurling and 48 camogie 'home' sides, matched with travelling teams from all over the country, make their way to Cork or Kerry for the weekend.

Players will be hosted by families from the home sides and games will commence on Friday afternoon, with the finals on Sunday, at both cup and shield level.

A busy weekend will start on Friday with 256 games alone taking place that evening.

Add in another 128 early on Saturday morning before you get to quarter and semi-final stage and it shows the level of organising it takes. Saturday afternoon will see the quarter-finals taking place with the semi-finals and finals, in cup and shield, taking place on Sunday. The competition is sponsored by John West Ireland and without their help it would be virtually impossible to run these tournaments.

This is the fourth year that John West will sponsor the underage tournament and they are delighted to announce the extension of this sponsorship till 2022. Throughout its sponsorship of the Féile, John West has focused on encouraging children to participate in Gaelic Games while emphasising the importance natural protein plays in fuelling a young athlete.

John West General Manager Peter Rooney said: “We are delighted to be here in Cork and to extend our partnership with Féile until 2022. The Féile is a unique series of events which hold a special place in our hearts.

“The competition highlight the importance of sport in children’s lives, which is something John West is truly passionate about, and it also allows us to educate on the importance of natural protein in children’s diets.” On behalf of the organising committee, chairman John Purcell wished all taking part the best of luck and he also thanked all those who have given up their time to both organise it and to travel with the teams to Cork or Kerry. County Chairperson Tracey Kennedy added her good wishes, saying "We extend a very warm welcome to all our visiting players, mentors family members and frriends, and a huge thank-you to all our own host clubs and everyone involved in organising this fantastic event. Ádh mór libh go léir!"

For fixture details and other information, see https://www.gaa.ie/my-gaa/getting-involved/feile-na-ngael