Teams of the Year / All-Star predictions

yahoo_moe

Just wondering what people's opinions of the Sunday Game's teams of the year were? Watching the football last night and I thought it was a pretty poor attempt, even given the usual problems of having lots of good players in one position (e.g. this year, corner-forward) and not very many at all in another (e.g. centre-back).

For anyone who didn't see it, this was what Tony Davis, Kevin McStay and Dara Ó Cinnéide came up with:

Brendan Murphy (Meath)

Marc Ó Sé (Kerry) Graham Canty (Cork) Conor Gormley (Tyrone)

Barry Cahill (Dublin) Tomás Ó Sé (Kerry) Killian Young (Kerry)

Nicholas Murphy (Cork) Ciarán Whelan (Dublin)

Declan O'Sullivan (Kerry) Alan Brogan (Dublin) Donncha O'Connor (Cork)

Colm Cooper (Kerry) Kieran Donaghy (Kerry) Tom Freeman (Monaghan)


Personally, I think you should play the best players in their regular positions (they've earned them) and then fill in after that - I also think their team suffered from trying to shoehorn in Cork players because they reached the final... here's my (flawed) attempt for the football:

Stephen Cluxton (Dublin)

Marc Ó Sé (Kerry) Darren Fay (Meath) Paul Griffin (Dublin)

Tomás Ó Sé (Kerry) Ger Spillane (Cork) Caoimhin King (Meath)

Dara Ó Sé (Kerry) Ciarán Whelan (Dublin)

Declan O'Sullivan (Kerry) Graham Geraghty (Meath) Bernard Brogan (Dublin)

Colm Cooper (Kerry) Rory Woods (Monaghan) Tom Freeman (Monaghan)


I think left-corner back and centre-back were the two problem positions for me to fill and feel that Donncha O'Connor, Paddy Bradley and Kieran Donaghy are all probably unlucky to have had very good years without getting in...

D. Coughlan

Stephen Cluxton ( Dublin)

Marc O Se ( Kerry ) Graham Canty ( Cork) Conor Gormley ( tyrone)

Thomas O Se ( Kerry ) Ger Spillane ( Cork) Aidan O' Mahony ( kerry )

Nicholas Murphy ( Cork) Dara O Se ( Kerry )

Declan O'Sullivan( kerry ) Bernard Brogan( dublin) Donncha O' Conor ( cork)

Colm Cooper ( kerry ) Kieran Donaghy (Kerry) Tom Freeman ( Monaghan)

Probaly should have put one more Dub in their, for the politics of the all- star's, as close as i could get to it.

Oh, i forget Meath as well!

blackbelt

Cluxton

Marc O Se Darren Fay Paul Griffin

Tomas O Se Graham Canty Conor Gormley



Dara O Se Ciaran Whelan

Declan O Sullivan G Geraghty/M Cussen/E O Hara Donncha O Connor


Colm Cooper J Masters/A Brogan/S O Rourke Tomas Freeman




This is my line up.I found the centre half forward line and the centre full forward line hard to decide although option 3 in both cases are the players less likely to be picked for that position but I found their contribution undismissable.I thought O Hara was the key man to bring Sligo a Connaught title and Shane O Rourke was interesting to watch.I'll be very interested to see how he progresses next year.

smashey

I'm biased but I think Karl Lacey will get a nomination at least. He practically played on his own for Donegal in their last few games.

Mr. Incognito

How the Sunday game left out Dara O'Shea I'll never know. It's probably a rouse by Dara O'Cinneade to get him fired up to come back next year. Nicholas Murphy was great against Sligo and Meath but when the crunch came he was anonomyous.

Cluxton

Marc Ó Sé (Kerry) Graham Canty (Cork) Conor Gormley (Tyrone)

Thomas O Se ( Kerry ) Ger Spillane ( Cork) Aidan O' Mahony ( Kerry )

Dara O Se ( Kerry ) Ciarán Whelan (Dublin)

Declan O'Sullivan (Kerry) Graham Geraghty (Meath) E O hara (Sligo)

Colm Cooper ( kerry ) Kieran Donaghy (Kerry) Tom Freeman ( Monaghan)


But as usual we'll probably see about 5 useless Dublin players get in.

Cheiftan

It seems strange to me that on this and other forums i contribute to that no mention has been made of any Monaghan defenders for potential honours, bearing in mind the Monaghan full back line held the Kingdom ff line to 1 point from play, Dessie Mone i think it was gave a display on the gooch , whilst Gary Mc Quaid was far and away the best ball playing CHB i have seen all year.

Just a thought.

Mr. Incognito

I guess it boils down to the fact that they lost to Tyrone and Kerry. I'd agree that they gave a great display but one Sunday does not a Summer make. I think the key is consistency over the entire year.

Cheiftan

You are,of course, correct Setanta.One Sunday does not a summer make.
Dessie Mone held the following scoreless, Benny Coulter V Down , twice , Owen Mulligan and Colm Cooper. All I'm sure you would agree forwards of great elan.

The team you posted below includes Conor Gormley at corner back, whilst gormley is a super defender he still conceeded 1-5 to T freeman in the ulster final. D mone did'nt give that much away in open play for the duration of Monaghans run in the championship.

If consistency over the course of the year was the yardstick then we should throw a few Donegal or Mayo lads into the mix , but All stars/ team of the year whatever you want to call it is'nt that at all , its based on championship form.

patmac

I agree Monaghan will probably have at least one all-star, don't rule O'Hara out for a midfield spot as usually the 'underdogs done well' get a nominal spot, like Westmeath and Fwrmanagh in recent years.

Pride Fighter

Vaughan should at least get an all-star nomination. He had a great year and was the best free taker in the country IMO.

bennyc

smashey wrote:

I'm biased but I think Karl Lacey will get a nomination at least. He practically played on his own for Donegal in their last few games.

As much as I would love to think that Donegal would have an all star ( Neill Gallagher best feilder of the ball in the country) Lacey was our best but got an awful roasting from Tommy Freeman in the second half of that match

blackbelt

Yes Mark Vaughan might get an all-star indeed.He came out of the blocks since starting against Meath and his workrate was just excellent.He'd chase a defender or midfield from his position in the forward line while nobody else was trying to pick up his man.This happened in particular in the Laois and Derry matches.
Certainly the free taker of the championship which would also be contested by Colm Cooper.

CJ Ward for Meath was forgotten about after his last minute sideline kick to draw against Dublin.I thought that score/player would have been a feature through the championship but apparently not.He just disappeared again after that.

Kojak

Who should get Footballer of the Year? IMO Declan O'Sullivan deserves it as he literally won them the games in the quarter final against Monaghan and the semi-final against the dubs.

I know that the Gooch played very well this year, especially in the final, but I thought that O'Sullivan played well when the it was needed...

hawker

If Mark Vaughan gets an All Star, I'll do a streak for next years all Ireland final.

S Cluxton

M O'Shea
G Canty
D Henry

TO'Se
M McNamara
AO' Mahony

C Whelan
N Murphy

DO'Sullivan
A Brogan
E O'Hara

C Cooper
K Donaghy
T Freeman

premierstone

Really surprised that nearly every team posted here has Cluxton in it, i would have thought it was a straight choice between Brendan Murphy and O'Keefe myself and Murphy would be my choice.

Im also havin serious trouble in coming up with a second corner back, maybe we could clone Mark o Se and play him in both corners

yahoo_moe

Kojak wrote:

Who should get Footballer of the Year? IMO Declan O'Sullivan deserves it as he literally won them the games in the quarter final against Monaghan and the semi-final against the dubs.

I know that the Gooch played very well this year, especially in the final, but I thought that O'Sullivan played well when the it was needed...

Wouldn't disagree too much if O'Sullivan got it but I'd probably give it to Marc Ó Sé myself, just think he's been superb all year... as for Vaughan, he'd a decent year but not spectacular. Generally good free-taking (although missed a couple of shockers as well) and decent effort around the pitch but didn't provide enough of a scoring threat from play to get into my team - esp. when there are so many others ahead of him that could potentially take places in the full-forward line (Gooch, Donaghy, Donncha O'Connor, Freeman, Woods, Geraghty, Alan Brogan, etc.)

As for Cluxton, I think his shot-stopping was excellent and his kick-outs were provided Dublin with real attacking momentum in the Derry/Kerry matches... I saw neither of these to the same standard from any other keeper and I think a lot of people are overlooking him purely on the basis of kicking that ball away against Kerry in such a high-profile way which I think is unfair. Granted, it wasn't his best moment but it's not like he overlooked a load of obvious passes to try something outrageous - there was no movement ahead of him cos the Dublin forward line were having one of their go-slow moments...

also, can't believe ANYONE would have Nicholas Murphy over Darragh Ó Sé

Nalced_irl

I think Vaughan will miss the Allstar this year tbh, he had a great year but i dont think he did enough to claim the star. He deserves a nomination definately but i dont think he can take the allstar itself. Hawker, cant complain about much on your sheet. Looks good to me. Premier, i suppose there were alot of quality goalkeepers this year and Cluxton did save Dublin on many occasions. I would think from the players you mentioned most would show a little bias and go with their own countys keeper and imo wouldnt be wrong to do so as there is very little between them in reality. Will be interesting to see who gets the number 1 shirt in the allstars actually.

K-9

It's getting to the stage that Paddy Bradley has to win the AI himself to get an All Star.

Zzippy

My selection:

Stephen Cluxton (Dublin)

Marc Ó Sé (Kerry) Graham Canty (Cork) Dessie Mone (Monaghan)

Tomás Ó Sé (Kerry) Aidan O'Mahony (Kerry) Barry Cahill (Dublin)

Dara Ó Sé (Kerry) Ciarán Whelan (Dublin)

Declan O'Sullivan (Kerry) Alan Brogan (Dublin) Paul Galvin (Kerry)
Colm Cooper (Kerry) Paddy Bradley (Derry) Tomas Freeman (Monaghan)

Subs: Brendan Murphy (Meath), Ger Spillane (Cork), David Henry (Dublin), Darren Fay (Meath), Nicholas Murphy (Cork), Eamonn O'Hara (Sligo), Kieran Donaghy (Kerry), Stephen Bray (Meath)

Kingdom

Can't believe people are considering Eamon O'Hara for an All-Star! All he did in Croker against Cork was a lot of posing so really he's to get an All-Star for his connaught final performance? Come off it.
My team would be (and I've revised this from the one I posted on the Kerry GAA Website

Cluxton

Marc O'Shea
Kevin McCloy
Dessie Mone

Aidan O'Mahony
Tomas O'Se
Killian Young

Nicholas Murphy
Ciaran Whelan

Declan O'Sullivan
Alan Brogan
Donncha O'Connor

The Gooch
Star
Tomas Freeman

gustavo

From a Sligo point of view I dont think Eamonn warrants a nomination this year but certainly Ross Donovan and possibly Johnny Davey do

K-9

gustavo wrote:

From a Sligo point of view I dont think Eamonn warrants a nomination this year but certainly Ross Donovan and possibly Johnny Davey do

Nominations! Yeah, I can see 2/3 Sligo nominations. Geographical considerations come into play. Used to be, there'd always be a player or two from the Provincial champions and League champions, and then the AI finalists.

Still can't see why Donaghy deserves it ahead of Bradley. Bradley was the best player on the pitch in the QF.How much did Bradley score against Monaghan 2 years ago? Bradley is based on this (quite) season and the last few years, same as Declan Browne and Mattie Forde before him. This may be his best chance of an All Star! He's a class act, same as McDonald, Cooper, Forde, Browne etc.

Dubhthamlacht

Brendan Murphy
Marc o'Shea
Kevin McCloy
Barry Cahill
Gary McQuaid
Tomas O'Se
Caohim King
Nicholas Murphy
Dara O'Se
Declan O'Sullivan
Alan Brogan
Donnacha O'Connor
Gooch
Paddy Bradley
Tom Freeman

I simply think Kieran Donagahy but for the fact he was gifted 2 goals in the final had a disappointing season. paddy Bradley blew hot and cold during the campaign but i think the all star selectors will take pity on him. Similarly Paul Galvin was subsititued against dublin and Monaghan and i think one decent final performance shouldn't warrant him an all-star.

Declan O'sullivan is a shoe in for player of the year. And the comment regards monaghan defence, well Gary McQuaid bar Tomas O'Se i seen this year was by far the most impressive half back. He's exactly the player Bryan Cullen should be.

bdiddy

I think Cluxton was excellent and was one of the main reasons Dublin did so well, his kick outs were top of the range. The Canty/Fay decision is fair tough and it's hard to leave out Vaughan but the full forward line is very strong this year. I'm also trying to think of the politics (see E. O'Hara). Whelan was good in fits and starts in every game. The bigger the game though, the shorter the good period good. We must also remember that Donaghy was terrible in the league and early in the year.

Anyway...
Cluxton
O'Sé
Canty
Cahill
O'Sé
Spillane
O' Mahony
Murphy
O'Sé
A Brogan
O'Hara
O'Sullivan
Cooper
Bradley
Freeman

Footballer of the year...either Cooper or Mark O'Sé. Hopefully Cooper.

Mr. Incognito

Donaghy was terrible in the league

Could that be because he missed most of the league with a dislocated shoulder perhaps?

Galwayguy99

Galwayguy99 wrote:

Subs: Stephen Bray (Meath)

25 posts in the thread and all he gets is one mention, and it's on the subs bench? I think that's disgraceful, he was one of the players of the championship. And I'm a Dub.

smashey

smashey wrote:

I'm biased but I think Karl Lacey will get a nomination at least.

The first prediction I got right here this year.

gustavo

gustavo wrote:

From a Sligo point of view I dont think Eamonn warrants a nomination this year but certainly Ross Donovan and possibly Johnny Davey do

me too:D

kc66

Deleted User wrote:

25 posts in the thread and all he gets is one mention, and it's on the subs bench? I think that's disgraceful, he was one of the players of the championship. And I'm a Dub.

Agree totally. Bray got a lot of great points from play and had an excellent year all-round. Deserves an all-star.

An Citeog

kc66 wrote:

Agree totally. Bray got a lot of great points from play and had an excellent year all-round. Deserves an all-star.

I agree aswell. Bray was instrumental in Meath's march to the semis. Although I usually like to see players put in their own positions, I'd rather see Bray in the full-forward line than Donaghy. Donaghy didn't just have a bad league campaign, he had a bad championship aswell. The only time he played well was in the final. By well here I mean to allstar standard.

Mr. Incognito

Here are the nominations.

The Vodafone GAA All Stars Football nominees for 2007:

Goalkeepers: Stephen Cluxton (Dublin); Brendan Murphy (Meath); Diarmuid Murphy (Kerry).

Full-backs: Marc Ó Sé (Kerry); Kevin McCloy (Derry); Graham Canty (Cork); Darren Fay (Meath); David Henry (Dublin); Conor Gormley (Tyrone); Ross Donovan (Sligo); Dessie Mone (Monaghan); Karl Lacey (Donegal).

Half-backs: Tomas Ó Sé (Kerry); Aidan O'Mahony (Kerry); Killian Young (Kerry); Barry Cahill (Dublin); Michael McNamara (Sligo); Noel O'Leary (Cork); Gary McQuaid (Monaghan); Damien Freeman (Monaghan); Caoimhin King (Meath).

Midfield: Ciaran Whelan (Dublin); Darragh Ó Sé (Kerry); Nicholas Murphy (Cork); Fergal Doherty (Derry); Sean Cavanagh (Tyrone); Paddy Keenan (Louth).

Half-forwards: Declan O'Sullivan (Kerry); Paul Galvin (Kerry); Alan Brogan (Dublin); Bernard Brogan (Dublin); Anthony Moyles (Meath); Stephen Bray (Meath); Raymond Mulgrew (Tyrone); John Doyle (Kildare); Nicky Joyce (Galway).

Full-forwards: Colm Cooper (Kerry); Kieran Donaghy (Kerry); Thomas Freeman (Monaghan); Paddy Bradley (Derry); Donncha O'Connor (Cork); James Masters (Cork); Michael Cussen (Cork); Graham Geraghty (Meath); Mark Vaughan (Dublin).

blackbelt

Interestingly enough,is there no category for manager of the year?

My nominations are

1.Paul "Pillar" Caffrey (Dublin)
2.Billy Morgan (Cork)
3.Seamus Mceneaney (Monaghan)
4.Pat O Shea (Kerry)
5.Colm Coyle (Meath)
6.Mickey Harte (Tyrone)

On the basis of Pat O Shea taking up where previous managers like O Connor took off,with the Kerry team winning Sam again,I wouldn't credit him too much but he also took Dr Crokes (Killarney) to the AI Club Championship Final so that supports the case for a nomination.

Paul Caffrey sustaining progress while other big teams declining is a browny point.3 Leinsters in a row and two semi finals is quite a resume.

Billy Morgan getting Cork to the final speaks for itself.

McEneaney gets Monaghan to the quarter final and nearly downs Kerry in the quarter.He is doing something right if his team can dominate Kerry for 66 minutes of a game.

Colm Coyle takes Meath out of the doldrums and Meath find themselves in a semi-final while in previous years they were getting knocked out in the 1st round qualifiers.Their win over Tyrone was not scripted and the Meath team dominated a lot of the headlines.Definite contenders for Leinster next year.

Mickey Harte takes Tyrone to the quarter finals after winning Ulster which is deemed to be the hardest province.After having an injury crisis,they just about lose out to Meath.Not a complete disaster given the circumstances.Surviving relegation from division 1 is also an achievement.

Kingdom

blackbelt wrote:

Interestingly enough,is there no category for manager of the year?

My nominations are

1.Paul "Pillar" Caffrey (Dublin)
2.Billy Morgan (Cork)
3.Seamus Mceneaney (Monaghan)
4.Pat O Shea (Kerry)
5.Colm Coyle (Meath)
6.Mickey Harte (Tyrone)

On the basis of Pat O Shea taking up where previous managers like O Connor took off,with the Kerry team winning Sam again,I wouldn't credit him too much but he also took Dr Crokes (Killarney) to the AI Club Championship Final so that supports the case for a nomination.

Paul Caffrey sustaining progress while other big teams declining is a browny point.3 Leinsters in a row and two semi finals is quite a resume.

Billy Morgan getting Cork to the final speaks for itself.

McEneaney gets Monaghan to the quarter final and nearly downs Kerry in the quarter.He is doing something right if his team can dominate Kerry for 66 minutes of a game.

Colm Coyle takes Meath out of the doldrums and Meath find themselves in a semi-final while in previous years they were getting knocked out in the 1st round qualifiers.Their win over Tyrone was not scripted and the Meath team dominated a lot of the headlines.Definite contenders for Leinster next year.

Mickey Harte takes Tyrone to the quarter finals after winning Ulster which is deemed to be the hardest province.After having an injury crisis,they just about lose out to Meath.Not a complete disaster given the circumstances.Surviving relegation from division 1 is also an achievement.

You're jokin right? Sligo win their first Connaught title since Hitler was in power and their manager isn't in the top 6? And Mickey Harte is?
Seamus McEnaney, Billy Morgan or Pat O'Shea for manager of the year.

blackbelt

Maybe I was a bit selective but I wanted to keep the selection down to 6.Furthermore,Sligo had a successful campaign but I think with the state that Connaught football is in,Sligo or Roscommon were bound to seize the opportunity and take the Connaught title.Fortunately for Sligo it was them.

Sligo had one good game against a declining Galway side.Then they went out without a whimper.While justifiably there is two Sligo nominations for all stars,I don't think the management would be in the top 6 of quarter finalists when you take into account the achievements or circumstances of the other managers and their teams.

For me,the manager of the year goes to Seamus McEneaney.

blackbelt

Forgot to justify my nomination of Mickey Harte.I think the gap of competitiveness between Ulster football and Connaught football is big.I believe Ulster is the hardest province to get out of or more importantly win the province.Mickey Harte has kept Tyrone in Division 1 and won an Ulster Title.If Tyrone weren't plagued with injuries,they would have gone further in my opinion.

Kingdom

blackbelt wrote:

Forgot to justify my nomination of Mickey Harte.I think the gap of competitiveness between Ulster football and Connaught football is big.I believe Ulster is the hardest province to get out of or more importantly win the province.Mickey Harte has kept Tyrone in Division 1 and won an Ulster Title.If Tyrone weren't plagued with injuries,they would have gone further in my opinion.

Disagree, they've the best selection of players second (if not equal) to Kerry. they've put some amount of time and effort into developing young players these past few years.

And might I add, we weren't without our own disruptions this year.
Mike Mac
The Pony(Moyno to ye lads)
Brendan Guiney
Tommy Griffin.
They would have been 4 nailed on starters this year.

Plus I disagree about the Sligo all-stars. I don't believe any of them deserved a nomination. I think the sum of the parts were better than the individuals, and thats why I believe any managerial shortlist should have the Sligo manager. Connaught was gash this year, on that we agree. So was Leinster though. Regardless a weak group of county players don't just decide to step up to the mark, baring in mind they were in a province with the previous years runners up, and Galway and Roscommon who have had good underage success in the recent past.

My managerial nominations

Pat O'Shea
Morgan
McEnaney
Tommy Brehony
And at a push the Louth Manager McEnaney

blackbelt

I disagree,the standard of football has declined big time in Connaught.While I believe Mayo will be back next year,Galway are a side that have declined rapidly over the last 2 years.Losing to Westmeath was a shock for Galway fans and the neutral.Mayo seem to have a one year on-off trend.

Leinster might be seen as non-competitive by outsiders but when you take into account the counties that can win the title,it suggests otherwise.Dublin,Meath and Laois are all top contenders while Wexford,Westmeath and now possibly Louth can make it to a semi final.In Wexfords case,the semi-final is their monkey on their back.I believe Leinster is the second most competitive province.Munster and Connaught are usually a two horse race.

It seemed inevitable that Mayo and Galway would have an off year but the phenonemon of this year was that both teams were awful.When Sligo won Connaught,I was still not convinced they had a real chance and as predicted,they went out to Cork without too much of a fight.

A successful year for Sligo but I don't think they'd be nominated for a manager all-star.I was impressed by Seamus McEnaney from Monaghan.He showed great emotion after the Kerry game and brought Monaghan on a lot without winning too much.Sometimes to be "over with the fans" you can actually lose and gain tremendous respect.Having Kerry in serious trouble for 66 mins in the quarter final,it showed that he opened the door for the rest of the country on how a team might go about beating Kerry.

I believe he is the manager of the year.

K-9

blackbelt wrote:

Mickey Harte has kept Tyrone in Division 1 and won an Ulster Title.If Tyrone weren't plagued with injuries,they would have gone further in my opinion.

Did a good job alright. Top 6? If O'Neill or Mulligan was in any sort of form they'd have beaten Meath. The amount of Ball they wasted in the Second half was a crime. Still Meath deserved it on the day, but I'd have fancied Tyrone against Cork in a Semi.

Brian McIver in top 6 for me. Taking a team that had lost 12 finals in a row to a League title was good, to do it in a county that only Brian McEniff has managed to a National or Ulster championship was huge to. Championship was a huge disappointment, but there was only so much he could do.

blackbelt wrote:

For me,the manager of the year goes to Seamus McEneaney

Definitely, another example of a team being better than its parts. And to get that believe in a team/county that really hasn't done anything in years!

kevmy

blackbelt wrote:

I disagree,the standard of football has declined big time in Connaught.While I believe Mayo will be back next year,Galway are a side that have declined rapidly over the last 2 years.Losing to Westmeath was a shock for Galway fans and the neutral.Mayo seem to have a one year on-off trend.

Ah yes the old chestnut of Connaught Football being crap. Well Mayo were in the finals in both 04 and 06 (and prob performed as well as most other teams would have) and the league final this year. Galway still have a decent team. The problem with Connaught is lack of teams/population. Club football in the West is as strong if not stronger than most provinces it's just that if Mayo or Galway have a bad year (as they undoubtedly did) everyone writes off Connaught. The thing is Mayo will have the odd bad year so will Galway and this time around they both happened to have bad years at the same time.
I would say over the past decade Connaught football has been ahead of Leinster and about level with Munster and only a bit behind Ulster so don't go writing of the poor state of Connaught football. Mayo will be back next year especially if the hold on to Pearse Hanley. If the draw throws up a Mayo Galway Connaught Final then it will be better for both teams but especially Mayo since it'd be on in Castlebar. The winners will get to a semi at least.


As for my team of the year:

Murphy(Meath)

M O' Sé(Kerry) Canty(Cork) Mone(Monaghan)

T O' Sé(Kerry) O' Mahony(Kerry) King(Meath)

D O' Sé(Kerry) Murphy(Cork)

O' Sullivan(Kerry) Brogan(Dublin) Bray(Meath)

Gooch(Kerry) Vaughan(Dublin) Freeman(Monaghan)

Unlucky players: Fay(Meath), McCloy(Derry), Henry(Dublin), McNamara(Sligo), Galvin(Kerry), Bradley(Derry), Geraghty(Meath), Donaghy(Kerry).

The rest didn't feature in my thinking. Cluxton hadn't his best year and is slightly overrated in any event. 3 very good full backs this year at least one is going to be disappointed. Mid fielders had a poor year but Murphy gets in ahead of Whealan because even though both didn't perform on there big days Murphy was more consistent through out the year. Not a fan of Galvin but the half forward nominations are poor enough and he was close to gettin in. Full forward nominations packed full of good players Bradley and Geraghty especially unlucky as they both had good years. The Cork forwards just pulled out 1 or 2 exceptional games all year not consistent enough to get an award


Edit: Player of the Year: O Sullivan, both Gooch and Marc O' Sé ran him close but he was really good all year
Manager of the Year: Mc Eneaney(Monaghan) for actual management. Pillar didn't overcome anything new and O' Se didn't really impress me

lillywhite7

McEneaney of Monaghan definitely my manager of the year. He did one hell of a job

shiibata

bit disappointing for donegal to win the league and only get 1 nomination.
Think neil gallagher should have been nominated too..but as mentioned before, laceys back must have been broken carrying donegal all year..
As for Monaghan, lets see how they do next year..

K-9

shiibata wrote:

bit disappointing for donegal to win the league and only get 1 nomination.
Think neil gallagher should have been nominated too..but as mentioned before, laceys back must have been broken carrying donegal all year..

Thought he deserved one or Kevin Cassidy. Both where immense in the League. Kildare got one?

The Rooster

blackbelt wrote:

Interestingly enough,is there no category for manager of the year?

My nominations are

1.Paul "Pillar" Caffrey (Dublin)
2.Billy Morgan (Cork)
3.Seamus Mceneaney (Monaghan)
4.Pat O Shea (Kerry)
5.Colm Coyle (Meath)
6.Mickey Harte (Tyrone)

Paul Caffrey sustaining progress while other big teams declining is a browny point.3 Leinsters in a row and two semi finals is quite a resume.

.

A total joke to have Caffrey as a contender for manager of the year.

He made progress in his first year to put us number one in Leinster, but has not progressed since then. The only other achievement beating a poor Westmeath and an alright Derry team in quarter-finals. Both semi-final defeats would have been victorys had Dublin had a manager who is capable of reading a game and making astute subsitutions. Caffrey is very good, maybe excellent, at preparing a team, but once the match starts he's useless.

Especially with the decline of Tyrone and Armagh in the last two years (temporary no doubt), not reaching an All Ireland final has to be considered a failure for Caffrey.

blackbelt

The Rooster wrote:

A total joke to have Caffrey as a contender for manager of the year.
He made progress in his first year to put us number one in Leinster, but has not progressed since then. The only other achievement beating a poor Westmeath and an alright Derry team in quarter-finals. Both semi-final defeats would have been victorys had Dublin had a manager who is capable of reading a game and making astute subsitutions. Caffrey is very good, maybe excellent, at preparing a team, but once the match starts he's useless.

Especially with the decline of Tyrone and Armagh in the last two years (temporary no doubt), not reaching an All Ireland final has to be considered a failure for Caffrey.

Have to disagree with you here.I think Pillar has brought us on a lot.Remember,Dublin GAA was in the doldrums from 1996 until 2004 and even though we had mixed success under Tommy Lyons,it was not consistent.Pillar Caffrey has managed to bring consistency to the Dublin team.We are number one in Leinster and have proved it 3 years in a row where other managers have failed to even win a provincial title with Dublin.Sure we won Leinster in 2002 but Lyons had his own agenda on managing the team and brought very limited success.

Ok,we beat Westmeath as expected but it was sweet revenge for 2004 and Westmeath are one of those formidable teams when at their best.Certainly I think you are not giving Derry enough credit.To say they are ok is an understatement.Look who they took this year...Armagh,Mayo and Laois.Whilst these teams are seen to be in decline,there is a lot of pride taking these teams under.

To be honest,the only point I agree with you on is Pillars inability to read some games.Certainly I was critical of him last year when he took off Mossy Quinn and brought on Vaughn who had little exposure in the championship and again this year when he brought on Cosgrove for B Brogan.This is a repeat of last years mistake.I would think it would have been very interesting to see how Bernard would have contributed to the end of the match and if he could save Dublin in the semi.

I think he warrants a nomination but as I said previous,I think Seamus McEneaney from Monaghan has to be manager of the year.

yahoo_moe

Agree that Seamus McEneaney had a great year and would be deservedly in the running for such an award, as would Pat O'Shea for club and county (probably pipping McEneaney for me)... think Billy Morgan, Brian McIver and Colm Coyle would be worth their nominations too though

as for Caffrey, I'll have to disagree here blackbelt - I think last year was the year to acknowledge him for bringing some consistency... although he obviously continued that this year, to make the same mistakes again (as you also point out) and show no progress compared to last year puts him out of the running imo.

The other managers succeed because they get their teams playing as teams - Dublin (much to my disappointment) failed to this on a spectacular scale this year

An Citeog

yahoo_moe wrote:

Agree that Seamus McEneaney had a great year and would be deservedly in the running for such an award, as would Pat O'Shea for club and county (probably pipping McEneaney for me)... think Billy Morgan, Brian McIver and Colm Coyle would be worth their nominations too though

as for Caffrey, I'll have to disagree here blackbelt - I think last year was the year to acknowledge him for bringing some consistency... although he obviously continued that this year, to make the same mistakes again (as you also point out) and show no progress compared to last year puts him out of the running imo.

The other managers succeed because they get their teams playing as teams - Dublin (much to my disappointment) failed to this on a spectacular scale this year

I'm afraid I have to agree with you. Caffrey has done everything (well most things ) right in terms of preparation and conditioning of his players. They're not just a bunch of super-fit athletes anymore, they've got a lot more about them. He also seems to have gotten more out of Whelan than any other manager has managed. Where he falls down though, is during matches. He seems unwilling to make the right changes and has made some bad calls in the last couple of years. Still the best man we've had in a long while and hopefully he can lead the team further next season.

I'd have McEneaney as my manager of the year aswell for the way he got Monaghan playing together as a unit.

modmuffin

I know it hasnt been realeased but have the selection panel picked it?

Got a text last night, (one of those friend of a friend whose uncles bosses brother kind of texts) with this team:

Cluxton
O'Se
McCloy
Canty
Cahill
O'Mahony
O'Se
Whelan
O'Se
O'Sullivan
Brogan
Bray
Freeman
Bradley
Gooch

yahoo_moe

If it ain't, it won't be that far off... fair play to Paddy Bradley if so - top footballer (even if I didn't have him in my selection )

K-9

yahoo_moe wrote: »

If it ain't, it won't be that far off... fair play to Paddy Bradley if so - top footballer (even if I didn't have him in my selection )

I'm on a Bradley crusade. Think he deserves based on the last 4/5 years. He also answered his last critics this year by doing it on the big day in Croker.

meathman 007

tbh i think its a discrace nicolas murphy didnt get one at midfield - im sorry but you can question my objectivity, but he was far better than ciaran whelan this year

meathman 007

Seanies32 wrote: »

I'm on a Bradley crusade. Think he deserves based on the last 4/5 years. He also answered his last critics this year by doing it on the big day in Croker.

i wont debate that statement, he was definately deserved one over the years, but based on this year alone....?, im not convinced....