All-Ireland football champions Meath and defeated finalists Cork dominate the 1999 Eircell All Star team which was announced at last night's awards ceremony in Dublin. Seven Meath players made the grade while four Cork players received their first awards. Unlike the hurling awards, which were greeted with a mixed reaction earlier this week, the football candidates caused little surprise and were generally regarded as being a fair reflection of the football season.
However, Cork midfielder Michael O'Sullivan might have been rewarded for a quietly brilliant year and in many other years Armagh's Oisin McConville would have been considered a worthy recipient for the delightful skill he employed throughout his county's run to an Ulster title. The committee have included just one player who did not feature in the All-Ireland semi-final series - Dublin's Ciaran Whelan.
At last night's ceremony, GAA president Joe McDonagh said that although the organisation was flourishing as never before, it was important that overseas links be strengthened.
"Throughout the world, Irish people are enjoying our games through satellite television and the internet. The opening of new facilities in Boston and the recently created European county board are tangible evidence of the vibrancy of the Irish diaspora," he said.
McDonagh pointed out that the '90s had been a decade in which the GAA had taken significant strides forward and that the athletes being honoured with All Star awards were examples of "the glowing good health and welfare of Gaelic games".
As with the hurling team, a number of individuals had such dominant seasons that they were recognised as virtual certainties for honours. Therefore, it was hardly news that Trevor Giles was selected at centre forward and that team-mate John McDermott lines out at number eight. It is the third time that the Skryne club-mates have been honoured with All-Stars, while McDermott is the only member of the 1998 All Star team to be chosen again.
Giles's status in the game was also recognised when he was presented with the Players' Player of the Year last night. The hurling equivalent, as widely anticipated, was presented to Cork's Brian Corcoran, one of the most complete defenders in the game.
The defensive stealth which carried both Meath and Cork through to September is justifiably reflected in the back lines. There will be few arguments with Kevin O'Dwyer in goal. Meath's Darren Fay and Mark O'Reilly had two of the full-back posts sewn up and Anthony Lynch was one of the finds of the summer.
While the half-back line also runs along predicted lines, there was some fairly stiff competition. Cork's Owen Sexton might have taken the centre back spot, while both Andrew McCann and Keiran Hughes made impressive arguments at half back for Armagh. But there can be no disputing the resumes of Ciaran O'Sullivan, Kieran McGeeney and Paddy Reynolds.
There was some debate over who might partner McDermott at midfield. Cork fans may feel unhappy with the absence of O'Sullivan, but the high-octane Ciaran Whelan dragged Dublin to a Leinster final. However, had Derry not been pipped by Armagh in the Ulster semi-final, the belief here is that Anthony Tohill would have recaptured the form which sustained Derry's challenge in 1993. Ulster representation has been confined to the two Armagh recipients, Diarmuid Marsden and McGeeney. While Oisin McConville won an All-Ireland club medal with Crossmaglen and hit 2-7 in the Ulster final against Down, his All-Ireland semi-final performance was muted because of personal circumstances.
Yet while he has to be viewed as terribly unlucky not to get recognition, it is difficult to see which of the six recipients he might have displaced. Against Giles, Ollie Murphy and Graham Geraghty, who was the most influential player in the All-Ireland final, there is no real argument.
The same is true of Philip Clifford, whose astonishing maturity and tenacity earned him the Young Player of the Year award. James Horan, the only representative from Connacht, is one of the finest exponents of distance kicking in the game and hit five points against Galway in the provincial final, and added three more during Mayo's miserable semi-final experience against Cork. His claims would have been hard to overlook and the same is true of Diarmuid Marsden, McConville's co-tormentor in the Armagh attack lines.
