S2 #47 / Headhunter Higgins on reviving Irish Collar and Elbow wrestling

Spirit Box

Today, we’re honored to have a guest who embodies the true spirit of a warrior. Tom "The HeadHunter" Higgins is a 2x Catch Wrestling World Champion, a Jiu-Jitsu black belt, and a respected coach. He’s not just a competitor he's also inspiring a whole generation of grapplers to take up the virtually lost Irish martial art of Collar and Elbow wrestling.

Tom takes us through the world of Catch Wrestling and Collar and Elbow and talks to how his practice influenced his spirituality including an incredible mystical experiences at Clochafarmore, the place where Cuchulainn is said to have made his last stand.
We get into Irish stick fighting, the history of fraction fights and my time with shooting an essay with Kusthi wrestlers in New Delhi.
Enjoy!
Show notes:
https://www.instagram.com/headhunterhiggins/
https://www.instagram.com/wrestling_wars/
https://www.youtube.com/@Headhunterhiggins
Cúchulainn's Stone https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clochafarmore
The Morrígan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Morrígan
Collar and Elbow https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collar-and-elbow
Tom's Collar and Elbow playlist https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huYz3jyAYac&list=PL-QH2AO3ZwNUcWdqBDa0E1RAaYN6jtO50
Catch wrestling https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catch_wrestling
Bataireacht Irish Stick Fighting https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20221016-bataireacht-the-ancient-irish-martial-art-making-a-comeback
Fraction Fighting https://www.museum.ie/en-IE/Collections-Research/Folklife-Collections/Folklife-Collections-List-(1)
Video on Fraction fighting https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsznbC-Y61k
Donnybrook https://grammarist.com/interesting-words/donnybrook/
My photo essay on Kusthi Wrestlers https://www.darraghmason.com/index/G0000GfXkTgiFkjg

Keep in touch? https://linktr.ee/darraghmason Music by Obliqka https://soundcloud.com/obliqka