Local Irish acts headline Irish festival entertainment at the New York Hurling Classic at Citi Field on November 16. 

McManus Irish Dance & Jiggy Tots and The Prodigals are set to kick off the best Irish celebration this side of St Patrick’s Day in Citi Field, New York, this Saturday, November 16. 

This weekend, the popular Irish sport of hurling is coming to Citi Field for the “New York Hurling Classic,” a four-team, three-game tournament, and to accompany the hurling action, a lively Irish festival will take place leading up to the first game of the tournament, complete with Irish music, dancing and more.

The Irish Festival will take place from 11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. and will be highlighted by unique performances at the Citi Field Fan Fest Area, including performances by the NYPD Pipes & Drums of the Emerald Society, a show by McManus Irish Dance & Jiggy Tots and a live concert by The Prodigals, an Irish punk band that has performed at Madison Square Garden.

Read more: WIN: VIP tickets to the greatest hurling event in America

You can buy tickets for the event here or if you're feeling lucky, why not enter our competition below for a chance to receive a pair of VIP tickets to the classic or a pair of general admission tickets. We have two pairs of VIP tickets and 15 pairs of general admission tickets up for grabs. Winner will have to make their own way to Citifield, so, unfortunately, this competition is open to the US only. 

The competition closes this Thursday at 12 pm EST. Winners will be notified by email and their tickets will be available for collection from will call at Citi Field. Winners will be picked at random. 

**THIS COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED.**

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Additional all-ages entertainment throughout the Irish Festival will include: the Irish Arts Center, which will be teaching Irish language basics; the Shannon Gaels GAA, a New York City-based youth hurling organization; the New York Irish Center, an Irish community center in Long Island City; Send in the Clowns, which will provide face painting; and Irish Network NYC, a professional and social networking hub for the Irish community in New York City. 

There will also be an opportunity for fans to test their hurling skills hitting a sliotar with an Irish hurley with the winner receiving a pair of tickets to a 2020 New York Mets game.

And IrishCentral will also be present so make sure to come down and say hello. 

Hurling, widely believed to be the world’s oldest field game, combines agility, strength, and intensity, earning it the reputation as the “fastest game on grass” among its loyal and passionate followers. Limerick will defend the Players Champions Cup, having won the 2018 Fenway Hurling Classic, with Wexford, Tipperary, and Kilkenny also competing.

The New York Hurling Classic is being produced by Fenway Sports Management and Metropolitan Hospitality, in partnership with the Gaelic Players Association (GPA), the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) and Aer Lingus.

Schedule of Performances:

  • 11:30 – 11:50 a.m.: McManus Irish Dance & Jiggy Tots at Citi Field Fan Fest Area
  • 11:50 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.: The Prodigals at Citi Field Fan Fest Area
  • The NYPD Pipes & Drums of the Emerald Society will be featured throughout the ballpark

Gates will open at 11:00 a.m. with the three-game tournament beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET. For more information about the New York Hurling Classic and to purchase tickets, please visit www.mets.com/hurling.