Twelve Mayo contenders for 2020 PwC All-Star football awards

Beaten All-Ireland finalists Mayo have 12 contenders for the 2020 PwC All-Star fooball awards.

The contenders were announced this morning, with players from 10 different counties represented in the final list of nominations.

Mayo's nominees are: David Clarke (goalkeeper), Oisin Mullin, Eoghan McLaughlin, Lee Keegan, Chris Barrett, Patrick Durcan (defenders), Matthew Ruane (midfielder), Cillian O'Connor, Kevin McLoughlin, Ryan O'Donoghue, Aidan O'Shea and Tommy Conroy (forwards).

Cillian O'Connor has also made the three-man shortlist for the PwC/GPA Footballer of the Year Award along with Dublin duo Brian Fenton and Ciaran Kilkenny, while a Mayo man is guaranteed to win the PwC/GPA Young Footballer of the Year Award as all three nominees – Oisin Mullin, Eoghan McLaughlin and Tommy Conroy – are from the county.

Six-in-a-row All-Ireland champions Dublin head up the high-calibre 45-strong All-Star shortlist with 13 men throughout every area of the pitch.

After winning a first Ulster title since 1997, Cavan have been rewarded with seven nominations. The Breffni County’s previous winners are Ollie Brady (1978) and Dermot McCabe (1997).

Tipperary’s memorable march to a first Munster senior football title since 1935 is reflected in four nominations.

Iain Corbett’s eye-catching exploits for Limerick in their league and championship displays in 2020 is honoured with an inclusion among the 18 top defenders – a nomination for the Treaty footballers for the first time since John Galvin in 2010.

There are three nominations for Ulster finalists Donegal, two for Galway, while Armagh’s Aidan Forker, Cork midfielder Ian Maguire and Kerry attacker David Clifford are also included.

Congratulating the nominees, Uachtarán CLG John Horan said: “I want to acknowledge all of those who have been chosen among this list of nominees for the PwC All-Stars. The 2020 season will go down in history for the backdrop against which it was played, and all of our players deserve great credit for producing the levels of skill and enjoyment we witnessed. Our thanks to PwC for helping ensure those heroics are recognised here.”

Feargal O’Rourke, managing partner, PwC, added: “Sincere congratulations to all of the 45 players named as nominees for the PwC All-Stars on behalf of everyone at PwC. It is a tremendous achievement to make the 45-strong shortlist and it is a testament to these players’ abilities, both individually and as part of a team, that they were selected.

“Despite all the obvious difficulties and obstacles, the 2020 championship was packed with entertainment, brilliant games and outstanding individual performances and the nominees all played their part in this tremendous spectacle. Their nominations are all well-deserved and we wish them all every success in the new season ahead.”

Paul Flynn, chief executive of the GPA, stated: “Warmest congratulations to all 45 footballers who have been nominated for PwC All-Star Awards for 2020, a year that none of us will ever forget. While our games are all about the team, individual recognition through the PwC All-Stars, which are the pinnacle in individual achievement in Gaelic football, is a huge honour. Congratulations also to the nominees for both the PwC Footballer of the Year and the PwC Young Footballer of the Year.”

The nominations were chosen by a panel of Gaelic games correspondents from across print, radio, TV and digital media, chaired by Uachtarán CLG John Horan. It is intended that the presentation of the PwC All-Star Awards will take place late next month in a TV show that will be in line with Covid-19 restrictions and will be confirmed in due course.

The full list of nominees is as follows:

Goalkeepers: David Clarke (Mayo), Stephen Cluxton (Dublin), Raymond Galligan (Cavan)

Defenders: Davey Byrne, Michael Fitzsimons, Eoin Murchan, John Small, Robbie McDaid (all Dublin), Oisín Mullin, Eoghan McLaughlin, Lee Keegan, Chris Barrett, Patrick Durcan (all Mayo), Ciarán Brady, Padraig Faulkner, Gerry Smith (all Cavan), Kevin Fahy, Bill Maher (Tipperary),

Iain Corbett (Limerick), Aidan Forker (Armagh), Peadar Mogan (Donegal)

Midfielders: James McCarthy (Dublin), Brian Fenton (Dublin), Colin O’Riordan (Tipperary), Gearóid McKiernan (Cavan), Matthew Ruane (Mayo), Ian Maguire (Cork)

Forwards: Niall Scully, Con O’Callaghan, Ciarán Kilkenny, Dean Rock, Seán Bugler (all Dublin), Cillian O’Connor, Kevin McLoughlin, Ryan O’Donoghue, Aidan O’Shea, Tommy Conroy (all Mayo), Martin Reilly, Thomas Galligan (Cavan), Shane Walsh, Paul Conroy (Galway), Michael Langan, Ciarán Thompson (Donegal), Conor Sweeney (Tipperary), David Clifford (Kerry)

PwC GAA/GPA Young Footballer of the Year: Oisín Mullin, Tommy Conroy, Eoghan McLaughlin (all Mayo)

PwC GAA/GPA Footballer of the Year nominees: Brian Fenton (Dublin), Ciarán Kilkenny (Dublin), Cillian O’Connor (Mayo)