GAELIC SPORTS WORLD Issue 15 - December 5, 2014 | Page 10

SOUTH AFRICA

Members of the South Africa Gaels. (Photo courtesy of SA Gaels)

The South Africa Gaels at Croke Park in March with Gaelic football’s main prize, the Sam
Maguire Cup. (Photo courtesy of SA Gaels)

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After relocation to South Africa, the
focus moved away from Zimbabwe.
Work took Paul to South Africa and
looking to get a club off the ground
there he teamed up with Tyrone native Hannah Oguz, also looking to
play Gaelic football, and together
they formed the South Africa Gaels
the same year. Oguz, whose mother
is Irish but her father is Turkish, is a
sports scientist at the University of
Pretoria, and had also played Gaelic
football outside Ireland in Sydney,
Australia. Permission was sought
and granted for the new club/organization to train at the college playing fields and now the SA Gaels had
ticked off one of the most important
elements in starting a GAA club
abroad - finding a place in which to
play.
A dedicated core group of local
players was formed and the following
March 2011, the South Africa Gaels
made their first trip to the Dubai Gulf
Gaelic Games and brought men’s and
ladies teams. The squads competed
well as the men’s team won the Plate
in the Social event while the Ladies
team got to the semi-final of the Ladies B Cup. But focus for the Gaels is
not about winning, it’s about growing numbers. At present players are
pulled from the Pretoria and Johannesburg regions.