Team of the Year

So the Sunday game panelists have selected their team of the year - amazing how they all say Kerry weren't the best team during the year and yet almost half the team is made up of Kerry players

1.Diarmaid Murphy
2.Karl Lacey
3.Michael Shields
4.Tom O' Sullivan
5.Tomas O'Se
6.Graham Canty
7.John Miskella
8.Dermot Earley
9.Seamus Scanlon
10.Paul Galvin
11.Pearse O' Neill
12.Paddy Kelly
13.Stephen O' Neill
14.Declan O' Sullivan
15.Michael Murphy

i would also have to question Stephen O' Neills inclusion in the team - he had one really good game against Kildare - but then it looks like one good game in the year is sufficient.

Paddy Cunnigham scores 11 points in a provincial final and is not even mentioned Tony Hannon from Wicklow surely deserved a mention too. Others who were unlucky were Gerard O' Kane and possibly Kevin Hughes and John Galvin from Limerick

Post your team of the year here for the craic to see how they compare

Best keeper I saw this year was Mr Schlingerman of the Mayo minors!!

Yes in truth as I said elsewhere Kerry played one brilliant game and were quite good yesterday in the first half. Bernard Brogan played 3 good games and one not so good - does that rule him out??

If we are to take the season in its entirety you should not be looking at more than 3/4 Kerry players. Paddy Cunningham definitely has a shout as does Leighton Glynn.

Paddy Bradley too had a couple of really good games.

tyrone reached the semis this year and only had one player in the fifteen.

if some one said to me pick only one tyrone player i would have had justy mcmahon tyrone played 5 games and conceded two goals in that time. he even kicked the best point that i have seen a defender kick in a long time.

antrim deserved a couple surely a wicklow man could have made the cut two but its like the allstars unless you do the biz in the last 2-3 games your not included.

1. Diarmuid Murphy- Kerry

2. Colin Brady- Antrim
3. Justin Mc Mahon- Tyrone
4. Karl Lacey- Donegal
5. John Miskella- Cork
6. Graham Canty- Cork
7. Geard O Kane....This is a bit biased but if anyone has watch Derry in any games this year then you will understand the choice, he was scoring points against Monaghan from half Back then had former footballer of the year Sean Cavanagh in his back pocket. I genuinely think he was one of the best half backs this year.

8. Dermot Early- Kildare
9. Kevin Hughes- Tyrone

10. Paul Galvin- Kerry
11. Joe Sheridan- meath Turned the game v Mayo
12. Pearse O Neill- Cork
13. Michael Murphy- Donegal
14. Declan O Sullivan- Kerry
15. Paddy Cunningham- Antrim

1.Diarmaid Murphy

2.Karl Lacey
3.Michael Shields
4.Tom O' Sullivan
5.Tomas O'Se
6.Graham Canty
7.John Miskella

8.Dermot Earley
9.Seamus Scanlon

10.Paul Galvin FOTY
11.Pearse O' Neill
12.Declan O' Sullivan
13.Colm Cooper
14.Tommy Walsh
15.Cian Ward

YFOTY-Michael Murphy

Loyal2TheRoyal highly anticipated, eagerly awaited, Team of the Year as follows:

1. Diarmuid Murphy (Kerry)

2. Karl Lacey (Donegal)
3. Justin McMahon (Tyrone)
4. Tom O'Sullivan (Kerry)

5. Gerard O'Kane (Derry)
6. Graham Canty (Cork)
7. Tomas O'Se (Kerry)

8. Dermot Earley (Kildare)
9. Nigel Crawford (Meath)

10. Paul Galvin (Kerry)
11. Declan O'Sullivan (Kerry)
12. Tadgh Kennelly (Kerry)

13. Colm Cooper (Kerry)
14. Colm O'Neill (Cork)
15. Michael Murphy (Donegal)

1. D. Murphy - Kerry

2. T. O'Sullivan - Kerry
3. Justin Mc Mahon - Tyrone
4. K. Lacey - Donegal
5. J. Miskella - Cork
6. G. Canty - Cork
7. J. Davey - Sligo

8. D. Earley - Kildare
9. S. Scanlon - Kerry

10. P. Galvin - Kerry
11. J. Sheridan - Meath
12. B. Brogan - Dublin
13. M. Murphy - Donegal
14. P. Cunningham - Antrim
15. D. O Sullivan - Kerry

Probably need to explain J. Davey - Player of the year for Sligo by a long way and one of the best wing-backs in the country. If he was with a team that was regularly playing in August he'd have two or three All-Stars. Outstanding defensively as always, and his surging runs from defence were one of the highlights of Sligo's play this year. Won the penalty against Kerry, and should have been the one to take it as well.

Also, Tommy Walsh unlucky to miss out on full forward. His display coming off the bench against Meath, and his performance yesterday were a big factor in Kerry winning Sam, but his lack of form earlier in the year costs him

Can't understand Miskella getting the nod from so many people. Granted i didn't see any of the 2 Cork Kerry games in Munster, but i am assuming most people are basing their choice on his performance against Donegal and the 3 points he got. With all due respect to RMD and all Donegal fans Stevie Wonder would have scored against Donegal that day.

I would put Gerard O' Kane in ahead of Miskella.

Why is Diarmad Murphy a shoe in with everyone? While O'Neill took his goal well yesterday Murphy still had his angles all wrong. He made a couple of good saves v Dublin but I recall a howler or two v Cork in Munster, no??

Jayo, I just went for the flow with the goalie no keeper stood out this year at all.

The penalty save against Sligo and the fact nobody else was standout will get him the All star.

Derry goalie was on Ulster Team of the Year, maybe he could get it, !

Jayo Cluxton wrote:Why is Diarmad Murphy a shoe in with everyone? While O'Neill took his goal well yesterday Murphy still had his angles all wrong. He made a couple of good saves v Dublin but I recall a howler or two v Cork in Munster, no??

i agree JC - unless one keeper has a really good season - and none have this year - its hard to pick a keeper. I cant even think of one stand out nominee, granted Murphy probably kept Kerry in the championship with his penalty save against Sligo.

The Armagh minor keeper pulled off two excellent saves yesterday too

No keepers really stood out but they cannot be serious about picking Murphy.
Alan Quirke conceded 3 goals in 7 games against teams like Kerry - 3 times and Tyrone
Diarmuid Murphy conceded 7 goals in 7 games against teams like Antrim, Sligo and even a brutal Dublin.
The Sligo penalty was practically kicked at him. Chest height and slightly to one side - bread and butter for a Junior B 'keeper never mind a senior inter-county 'keeper.

The panellists did allude to the fact that the All Stars are picked on the basis of the semi and final - and occasionally a token quarter-finalist but Kerry played superbly against Dublin and were poor the rest of the year. In truth, Cork beat themselves yesterday.

Shinners wrote:No keepers really stood out but they cannot be serious about picking Murphy.
Alan Quirke conceded 3 goals in 7 games against teams like Kerry - 3 times and Tyrone
Diarmuid Murphy conceded 7 goals in 7 games against teams like Antrim, Sligo and even a brutal Dublin.
The Sligo penalty was practically kicked at him. Chest height and slightly to one side - bread and butter for a Junior B 'keeper never mind a senior inter-county 'keeper.

The panellists did allude to the fact that the All Stars are picked on the basis of the semi and final - and occasionally a token quarter-finalist but Kerry played superbly against Dublin and were poor the rest of the year. In truth, Cork beat themselves yesterday.

Shinners i would agree with most of what you say except the last bit. I was at the game and i haven't watched it on tv yet so i cant say if it portrayed the game any differently than it was in the flesh but Kerry deserve a lot of credit for the game they played.

They went 5 points down and were most teams would capitulate Kerry just knuckled down and worked harder to reduce the amount of primary and secondary possession Cork were getting - up to that point Cork were lording it all over the field. Kerry were breaking the ball and then winning it to boot. Its easy to say Cork were clueless in the latter part of the first half and the entire second half but the truth is such was Kerrys game plan in terms of tracking back and restricting the space that Cork had little or no options when they did get possession.

Canty's influence was negated almost completely as was that of the rest of the half back line - Corks half forward line was virtually non existent except for the first 15 minutes. JO'C had his homework done and the game plan worked a treat.

Kerry are a better team than perhaps we give them credit for.

As I was actually in Tullamore at the Kerry V Antrim match I tend to agree with Jack O'Connor. The most significant aspect to Kerry winning Sam was McCarthy's comeback. In the 2nd half of this game he was unreal, took me a while to work out who it was even.

And not a mention at centre half?