Cambodian GAA team launch campaign to get to Dungiven for 2023 GAA World Games

A fundraising campaign has been launched to bring a team of Cambodian Gaelic footballers over to County Derry for this summer's GAA World Games.

The Derry Centre of Excellence in Dungiven will host the 2023 instalment of the event. It is the first global Gaelic games event to be held since the Covid-19 pandemic.

Cairdre Khmer GAA hopes to represent Asia at the event. It would be one of around 100 teams from across the world coming to compete.

The club hopes to bring two teams, male and female, both exclusively made up of Cambodian players from the Khmer ethnic group.

Speaking to the County Derry Post, Club Chair Ronan Sheehan, said the players are looking forward to challenging themselves in Derry.

“It's massive. A fella asked me there during the week: when did you decide that you were ready to take on Derry? And the truth is we never said we were.

“We got invited to represent Asia in Derry, before that it never even crossed our minds. But now that the momentum is starting to build around it the players are starting to grasp the enormity of it as well,” the Cork native said.

Asian teams have competed in the games before but it has always been a combination of Asian players from across the continent. The competition rules dictate players must be from the area they're representing so ex-pats were not permitted.

This will be the first time a club composed of just its own members will be representing the continent.

“We're honoured that the work we've done is being recognised by the Asian County Board and by the GAA itself for bringing local players up and developing them.

“We're just delighted that we're getting the recognition for the work we put in, in local grassroots sports,” he said.

Despite their excitement for the occasion they are not just looking to take part, they’re coming to compete.

They have a history of success in Asian GAA tournaments, winning both the Asian and South Asian junior categories in 2019 - just two years after they formed.

Ronan says they have since brought their game to another level.

While the players are excited for the trip, Ronan says Derry as a concept still doesn't register with them: It is still just some place on the other side of the world.

“'Derry' means nothing to them in essence but now as we're starting to get into the media and the talk is starting to pick up here in Cambodia – in the media here and with the talk around the town – i t's really starting to dawn on them.

“You can see that in the training sessions as well – the intensity is going up several notches. They're out doing a five kilometre run at the minute – that would have been unheard of last year.

“They're absolutely embracing it and taking it on, you know, which is fantastic to see,” Mr Sheehan said.

The Cork man has been involved in the club since it launched seven years ago. Back then the team was entirely made up of Irish emigrants and he was less involved in the running of the club.

Since then more locals became intrigued and started getting involved in the sport. They grew up playing different sports so the skill set they bring is different to an ex-pat's according to Ronan.

“I've been watching these guys grow for the last five years and been mightily impressed with everything they've managed to achieve so far. And just to see them take this one step further and grow into it even more. It's absolutely magic.

While Ronan says he'll be doing his best to familiarise the team with Derry before the trip, a Derry Girls watch isn't on the cards for the squad.

“Derry Girls is brilliant. Orla is probably my favourite person in the whole entire world. My partner is Khmer and I put that on at home but she can't follow it at all. The accents are just way too strong and they speak way too fast so it just goes straight over her head.

“But don't worry we'll go over all the finer points of Derry culture,” he joked.

Cairde Khmer aims to raise €36,000 to pay for wages, training, playing equipment, jerseys, flights, accommodation, and food for the two teams.

More information can be found here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-get-cairde-khmer-gaa-club-cambodia-to-derry?utm_campaign=p_cp+share-sheet&utm_content=undefined&utm_medium=copy_link_all&utm_source=customer&utm_term=undefined