Meet the GAA wonderkid and viral sensation who is dreaming of reaching top level

Ben Smyth has dazzled social media users with his slick stick skills since his account was created last September

A hurling prodigy who’s taken TikTok by storm is dreaming of donning his county colours in the future. Ben Smyth, a 10 year old Meath lad, has been wowing the online world with his deft hurling skills since he started sharing them last September.

Playing as a half-forward for St Peter’s Dunboyne’s U11s team, Ben’s dad Niall, who also represents the club, says size is no barrier to his son’s scoring prowess.

Chatting with the Irish Mirror, Niall shared: “Ben has always been tipping away with a ball since he could walk.

“I realised he had a knack for hurling when he was really young – when he was able to hit the ball with one hand. He has really good hand-eye coordination.

“He’s always playing hurling and Gaelic football and he’s always out practising. The hurl is never out of his hand.”

Niall revealed that Ben dedicates about two hours daily to honing his skills, on top of twice-weekly training sessions and weekend games. Ben is also a regular at Niall’s own training and matches with the St Peter’s Dunboyne senior squad.

The beaming father described his boy as a “force to be reckoned with” on the field, adding with a chuckle: “I don’t want to give him a big head.”

He went on to say: “He’s smaller than the other guys on the opposition team and his own team, but everybody says his heart is huge. He’s well able and he gets stuck in. He scores plenty.”

Sport is in the Smyth family’s blood. Ben’s great-grandfather, Brian Smyth, led Meath to their inaugural All-Ireland football championship in 1949, and his late grandfather Bernard also played hurling for the county.

Ben’s father Niall shared: “I’m so proud of him. I’ve been hurling all my life, and people probably think ‘Jesus, I’m forcing him’. But we just let him do his own thing, and he loves it.

“I don’t mind what he’s doing as long as he’s happy and enjoying it. The GAA and sports in general are great for kids. I wasn’t as good as Ben at 10 – that’s for sure.”

Discussing their online fame, Niall recounted how Ben got inspired by some hurling videos on TikTok and decided to create his own content.

Niall then set up a TikTok account under the name ben_hurl to showcase his son’s skills, not anticipating the massive response they would receive.

Their clips of Ben practising have become an internet sensation, with two videos surpassing one million views each. The TikTok page, which is curated by Niall, has amassed close to 10,000 followers.

He remarked: “The views went off the charts, we didn’t expect it.”

On the topic of his TikTok fame, Ben commented: “It feels good, but I’m always pushing myself to do better and achieve more. I’d love to play county.”

The young hurler looks up to Kilkenny legend TJ Reid and the promising Tipperary talent Darragh McCarthy as his sporting heroes.

Reflecting on the recent All-Ireland Hurling final that witnessed Cork’s defeat to Tipperary following a calamitous second half, Ben commented: “I think Tipp had a great comeback, Cork thought they had it won, but Tipp came back stronger.”