James Crombie / INPHO
James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
The most feared forward in the land. For the majority of the championship, he had a spare defender in front of him to contend with, while on Sunday he ruthlessly exposed Joey Holden, scoring nine points from play.
Callanan finished the championship campaign with 2-47 to his name, putting up 1-11 in the Munster final and 0-13 in the All-Ireland final.
For those two performances and his body of work over the last three years, he thoroughly deserves to be named Hurler of the Year.
If Waterford had made the final he’d be the front runner for this award. At just 21 years-old Gleeson has developed into one of the finest young athletes in the country, of any sport.
A Dan Shanahan-Ken McGrath love-child, he controlled the airwaves in both Waterford’s semi-finals against Kilkenny.
Probably deserves the award because of his consistency, but it generally goes to a player from the All-Ireland champions. His day will come.
A colossus on Tipperary’s half-back line. The arrival of younger brother Ronan at 6, freed up Paudie to his natural home at wing-back.
The elder Maher is frighteningly physical, but added some mobility to his game this year.
He scored in every one of Tipperary’s championship matches in 2016, none more spectacular than his point from the left sideline in the biggest game of all on Sunday.
Noel’s younger brother nailed down his spot in Tipp’s starting lineup this year and never looked back.
His introduction into the team by Michael Ryan proved a masterstroke. John and Noel’s intelligent interplay down the left flank of Tipp’s attack was a huge factor in their All-Ireland victory.
A big game player, McGrath stood up when Tipp needed him most. He scored 1-3 from play in his first senior All-Ireland final. His hat-trick in the Munster final was one of the highlights of the hurling season.
Despite all the flash of their inside forwards, the backbone of Tipp’s triumph was their domination in the middle third.
Maher chipped in with two points on Sunday, but he contributed so much more than that over the course of the year.
The 26-year-old led from the front all season with his remarkable appetite for work.
Richie Hogan (Kilkenny)
Morgan Treacy / INPHO
Morgan Treacy / INPHO / INPHO
Kilkenny’s most consistent performer in 2016. Hogan’s impact off the bench won Kilkenny the Leinster final after everything went Galway’s way in the opening 35 minutes.
He showed his versatility this year by contributing five points from full-forward to win the provincial final, before helping Kilkenny past Waterford in the semi-final replay with a four point showing from midfield.
In Sunday’s final, Hogan was Kilkenny’s best player, contributing 1-1 from play, but not even his presence could disguise their frailties.
***
Who deserves the award? Let us know.
Poll Results:
Seamus Callanan (2763)
Austin Gleeson (2053)
Paudie Maher (1024)
Patrick 'Bonner' Maher (260)
Richie Hogan (175)
John McGrath (170)
Other (127)
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Poll: Who deserves to be crowned the 2016 GAA/GPA Hurler of the Year?
Seamus Callanan (Tipperary)
The most feared forward in the land. For the majority of the championship, he had a spare defender in front of him to contend with, while on Sunday he ruthlessly exposed Joey Holden, scoring nine points from play.
Callanan finished the championship campaign with 2-47 to his name, putting up 1-11 in the Munster final and 0-13 in the All-Ireland final.
For those two performances and his body of work over the last three years, he thoroughly deserves to be named Hurler of the Year.
Austin Gleeson (Waterford)
If Waterford had made the final he’d be the front runner for this award. At just 21 years-old Gleeson has developed into one of the finest young athletes in the country, of any sport.
A Dan Shanahan-Ken McGrath love-child, he controlled the airwaves in both Waterford’s semi-finals against Kilkenny.
Probably deserves the award because of his consistency, but it generally goes to a player from the All-Ireland champions. His day will come.
Paudie Maher (Tipperary)
A colossus on Tipperary’s half-back line. The arrival of younger brother Ronan at 6, freed up Paudie to his natural home at wing-back.
The elder Maher is frighteningly physical, but added some mobility to his game this year.
He scored in every one of Tipperary’s championship matches in 2016, none more spectacular than his point from the left sideline in the biggest game of all on Sunday.
John McGrath (Tipperary)
Noel’s younger brother nailed down his spot in Tipp’s starting lineup this year and never looked back.
His introduction into the team by Michael Ryan proved a masterstroke. John and Noel’s intelligent interplay down the left flank of Tipp’s attack was a huge factor in their All-Ireland victory.
A big game player, McGrath stood up when Tipp needed him most. He scored 1-3 from play in his first senior All-Ireland final. His hat-trick in the Munster final was one of the highlights of the hurling season.
Patrick ‘Bonner’ Maher (Tipperary)
Despite all the flash of their inside forwards, the backbone of Tipp’s triumph was their domination in the middle third.
Maher chipped in with two points on Sunday, but he contributed so much more than that over the course of the year.
The 26-year-old led from the front all season with his remarkable appetite for work.
Richie Hogan (Kilkenny)
Kilkenny’s most consistent performer in 2016. Hogan’s impact off the bench won Kilkenny the Leinster final after everything went Galway’s way in the opening 35 minutes.
He showed his versatility this year by contributing five points from full-forward to win the provincial final, before helping Kilkenny past Waterford in the semi-final replay with a four point showing from midfield.
In Sunday’s final, Hogan was Kilkenny’s best player, contributing 1-1 from play, but not even his presence could disguise their frailties.
***
Who deserves the award? Let us know.
Poll Results:
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Contenders GAA Tipperary