Guinness Hurling Cubed kicks off this week with the first event of the summer taking place in Salthill Park in Galway, from Thursday 26th through to Saturday 28th June. Guinness®, an official sponsor of the 2008 GAA Hurling All-Ireland senior Championship, will bring hurling off the pitch and into specially built 3D perspex cubes this summer. Galway has been selected as the first city to host a Guinness Hurling Cubed event, in Salthill Park, from Thursday 26th through to Saturday 28th June. This will be followed by similar events in Cork, Limerick, Kilkenny, Waterford and Dublin, over the course of the summer months. Guinness Hurling Cubed will see teams of three players compete for either three minutes, or until three goals are scored in a blitz format. Played with 21" hurleys and a soft touch sliotar, the game is a fast paced and exciting derivative of the real thing, which was developed by Guinness, with expert guidance from former Cork Manager Donal O'Grady. To take part in Guiness Hurling Cubed, simply log onto www.guinness.com and register your team today. All those taking part must be over 18 years of age. Numbers are limited for each event and spaces are quickly filling up. Hurleys, sliothars, helmets and shinpads will be provided by Guinness. Those who want to get involved and play just need to bring down their ID, normal sports gear, shorts, t-shirt and trainers. People are also welcome to come down and support their friends and watch the action as entry for teams and spectators is free. Guinness Hurling Cubed was launched last month in Hopstore 13 at St. James's Gate. Demonstrating the games multi-sport appeal were Reading and Irish International, Stephen Hunt, Arsenal and Irish International goalkeeper, Emma Byrne, Leinster and Irish Rugby International, Gordon D'Arcy, and Gaelic Footballers, Conal Keaney, and Juliet Murphy. Hurling sharp-shooters Dan Shanahan, Sean Oìg hAilpin and Henry Shefflin were also present. Galway hurler, Ollie Canning, said he can't wait to check out Guinness Hurling Cubed. "I've heard a lot of positives about Guinness Hurling Cubed. It seems like it's really going to take off this summer and it will really broaden the appeal of the game. So many people have the view that unless you were born with a hurley in your hand, you can't play hurling and there are lots of people out there who may have played hurling in school, or who never played, but would like to see what it's like." Former Galway hurler, Joe Rabbitte and current Galway footballer, Nicholas Joyce agreed with Canning. "With soccer, you have the option of 5-side or indoor soccer for fun, it's easy to get involved or organise yourself. This could really do the same thing for hurling", said Rabbitte. Speaking at the launch in May, Stephen Hunt said, "I had no idea what to expect before I played the game, but it's brilliant. It's fast paced, exciting and fun to play - and it's easy enough to play even if you are not a hurler. I grew up in Waterford, so of course I've always had a love for the game. Myself and the Irish lads at the club will often have a puck around after training. But it's hard to get involved with the game if you can't play at a certain level with a club ,Äì so it's great to see Guinness introducing the game to a whole new audience." The Galway Guinness Hurling Cubed competition will run over three nights, with the final taking place in Salthill Park on Saturday night. The winning team from Galway will then go forward to the National Finals in Dublin on the eve of the GAA All-Ireland Hurling final. The winners of the national final will win A VIP weekend to the GAA All-Ireland Hurling final. Each team member will get two tickets to the final, as well as Eu1,000 each. For all details on Guinness Hurling Cubed and how to register your team to take part in Galway, log onto www.guinness.com Tweet

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