Having sure hands is a must. As a forward, you will have to catch high 50/50 sliotars dropping in from the midfielders and half forwards. You’ll have to pick up, on the first try, everything rolling in front of net, or kicked out of a scrum.
Possession is not limited to physically holding onto the ball - you must also have a plan, before gaining possession of where, specifically, you want the play to go. Controlling movement is another form of possession.
Striking
Striking is an obvious part of any position and a skill all must learn if they truly want to call themselves hurlers. Full Forwards must cultivate this skill beyond the norm. Considering the close proximity to the “thug” fullbacks, full forwards need to be able to strike the ball with minimal space.
Tim Dombrowski agrees with Nick “Tater” Ruetz’s assessment, “The ability to flick the ball from a tight place to give yourself a little space is huge. Quick wrists help when the defender is crashing down on you or you're being hounded by 2-3 backs while on route to goal to be able to get off a quick strike and avoid the hook or block.”
Dombrowski takes it a step further encouraging full forwards to think about all the possible weapons at their disposal, “Hitting weak side and using your feet (see Shannon Mueller) also increases [your] repertoire in limited space.”
The key point here is that once you have gained possession, you must be able to quickly take your shot. The openings you will have are constantly shifting and small, so you must plan ahead.
Communication
Remember that hurling is a team sport. As awesome as “Jake”, “Tater” and Tim are, they will also tell you that they cannot work their magic alone; they need their teammates. Communication is the glue that holds a team together, and for positional purposes it is invaluable for those that have little time to make a play.