One player from each county. 15 players. 15 counties.
After two thrilling games on Saturday, football has once again resurrected from the dead (we make that 43 times now). People are only wasting money on obituaries at this stage.
Mayo and Dublin surged into the last four and set up what are sure to be two cracking, open semi-final ties between the Connacht men and Tipperary and the All-Ireland champions and Kerry.
If anyone isn’t excited about football at this time of the summer, I give up.
All-Star selections are traditionally made up of semi-finalists but what if you could only pick one player from every county?
What if, for once, the team wasn’t made up of four counties and the rest of the island were actually taken into consideration? And, heck,what if the best players were even considered and not overlooked because of who they play for or when they were put out?
So here’s the 2016 All-Star football team made up of the finest-performing players this season. But, crucially, with the stipulation that only one man can be selected from each county.
David Clarke (Mayo): His inclusion in the team has proven to be more and more merited as the season goes on. He’s grown into the jersey, making big saves at big stages of big matches and he’s coming for balls with pure conviction.
Conor Moynagh (Cavan): Has been starring in the Cavan number six jersey, usually dropping back in front of his full back line but some of his best moments this year were his mad tackles and huge hits. Plays with aggressive freedom.
Aidan Breen (Fermanagh): Another case of shoehorning but Breen couldn’t be left out. Played out around midfield and half back despite being deployed at full back during the league. Performed everywhere.
Dermot Brady (Longford): Feels like he has been man-marking the best forwards for the last 22 years. And doing a fine job of it too all the while.
Ryan McHugh (Donegal): Another superb season. Darting runs, vital interceptions, inspirational scores.
Peter Harte (Tyrone): Class personified.
Tyrone's Peter Harte is like nothing football has ever seen before, @ConanDoherty was at Clones https://t.co/HPVBNGwXrj #GAA
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) July 3, 2016
James Dolan (Westmeath): Seemed to always be on the ball and, every single time, he seemed to be cutting through opposing backlines for fun.
Gary Brennan (Clare): The closest thing to Anthony Tohill we’ve ever seen. Another fantastic season as Clare won Division Three and made it to the All-Ireland quarter-finals. He’s only 27.
Mark Lynch (Derry): Led from the front yet again for his county. Work rate, brains, running power and a right foot that has a tractor beam for inside forwards and the posts.
Enda Smith (Roscommon): When the Rossies’ season petered out from a superb league campaign, it was Enda Smith there stepping up the tempo when, at times, it felt like he was doing so alone. Hit some crucial scores when his county needed him.
Darran O’Sullivan (Kerry): Still plays, runs, and shoots like a teenager. Still an absolute deadly livewire. His goal in the quarter-finals was something else.
Ciaran Kilkenny (Dublin): It doesn’t matter where he plays, he’s picking up more ball than anyone and he’s absolutely brilliant with it.
Conor Sweeney (Tipperary): Has hit 2-7 from play in the last two games to drag Tipperary to the semi-finals for the first time in 81 years. Enough said.
Damien Comer (Galway): Unbelievable threat. Send him in any kind of ball, he’ll make something happen. He’ll more than likely be going for goal if he gets a sniff of it too.
Conor McManus (Monaghan): His influence never wanes.
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