Players will always say that individual awards don’t really matter.
But when it comes to being rewarded for their exploits over the last few months, we’re sure that a few hurlers will be feeling disappointed at not collecting an GAA-GPA All-Star hurling award this weekend.
The awards ceremony takes place on Friday night, when the hurling and footballer awards will both be handed out, but we now know who a panel of exerts feel are the best 15 hurlers of 2015.
Kilkenny as All-Ireland champions top the list with seven winners, but the major feature of this season’s selection is that almost half of the team are first time winners, while the only teams represented are those who made the last four of the championship.
Also only five players survive from the 2014 All-Star team with Seamus Callanan the only non-Kilkenny player to feature in both.
Kilkenny duo Joey Holden and Ger Aylward pick up their first ever gongs while Galway’s Colm Callanan as well as Cathal Mannion and Daithi Burke are also first-time winners.
Maurice Shanhan and Tadhg De Burca also win their first awards with the league champions securing three in total thanks to the inclusion of Noel Connors at left-corner back.
Tipperary’s only award winner is Seamus Callanan who is selected at full forward despite the Premier County winning the Munster title and only missing out on the All-Ireland final by a single point.
2015 GAA-GPA Hurling All Stars
1. Colm Callanan (Galway)
2. Paul Murphy (Kilkenny)
3. Joey Holden (Kilkenny)
4. Noel Connors (Waterford)
5. Daithà Burke (Galway)
6. Tadhg de Búrca (Waterford)
7. Cillian Buckley (Kilkenny)
8. Michael Fennelly (Kilkenny)
9. David Burke (Galway)
10. Cathal Mannion (Galway)
11. Richie Hogan (Kilkenny)
12. TJ Reid (Kilkenny)
13. Ger Aylward (Kilkenny)
14. Séamus Callanan (Tipperary)
15. Maurice Shanahan (Waterford)
The Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year will both be announced live on RTE on Friday night.
