The Irish Experiment: From the GAA to the AFL

Description

Whether it’s committing to a tackle, being a dad or writing a memoir, if Zach Tuohy goes in, he goes ‘all in’

During his childhood in County Laois, Zach Tuohy’s first love was Gaelic football. But when an Australian football club came knocking with a professional contract, the then-seventeen-year-old leapt at the opportunity to travel across the world and come to grips with an oval ball.

Despite a rocky start navigating a Carlton Football Club in disarray and becoming a father at twenty-three, Zach went on to become one of the greatest success stories of the ‘Irish Experiment’. A move to the Geelong Cats made him a star rebounding defender and cult favourite player, and in 2022 he reached the pinnacle of his adopted code, winning a Premiership medal. In 2023, Zach set a new record for the number of AFL games played by an Irish player, passing the effort of the great Jim Stynes.

With characteristic devil-may care attitude and determination, Zach writes candidly about his time as a minor league Gaelic football player, and his experiences in Australia, recounting the good, the bad and the downright hilarious. He has plenty to say about the relationships between the indigenous codes of GAA and the AFL, and what needs to change secure the future of Irish and Australian footballers alike.