Best footballer ever from your county.

[Syferus]

For our Lovley neighbours it's hard to look beyond Emlyn Mulligan. Most skilled player in Connacht with vision only equalled by Gooch. If I could nab any player in the country for my team he'd be very near the top of the list.

[All of a Sludden]

Antrim - Kevin Armstrong
Armagh - Steven McDonnell
Carlow - Barney Hennessy
Cavan - Larry Reilly
Clare - Seamus Clancy
Cork - Larry Tompkins
Derry - Anthony Tohill
Donegal - Michael Murphy
Down - Paddy Doherty
Dublin - Jimmy Keavney
Fermanagh - Barry Owens
Galway - Seán Purcell
Kerry - Jack O'Shea
Kildare - John Doyle
Kilkenny -
Laois - Tommy Murphy
Leitrim - Emelyn Mulligan
Limerick - John Quane
Longford - Paul Barden
Louth - Paddy Keenan
Mayo - Ciarán McDonald
Meath - Martin O'Connell
Monaghan - Paul Finlay
Offaly - Matt Connor
Roscommon - Dermot Earley
Sligo - Eamonn O'Hara
Tipperary - Declan Browne
Tyrone - Frank McGuigan
Waterford - John Mullane*
Westmeath - Dessie Dolan
Wexford - Mattie Forde
Wicklow - Leighton Glynn

Agree with quite a few of 5Sams picks, changed a few, had to resort to google for Carlow and left Kilkenny blank.

*Mullane played minor football for Waterford**

** I may have made that one up

[moysider]

Limiting it to players I've seen.

Antrim - JP O'Kane
Armagh - Martin McQuillan
Carlow - Johnny Nevin
Cavan - Jim Reilly
Clare - Seamus Clancy
Cork - Larry Tompkins
Derry - Anthony Tohill
Donegal - Tony Boyle
Down - Greg Blaney
Dublin - Stephen Cluxton
Fermanagh - Barry Owens
Galway - Ja Fallon
Kerry - Maurice Fitzgerald
Kildare - Larry Tompkins
Kilkenny - Ned Byrne
Laois - Leo Turley
Leitrim - Mickey Quinn
Limerick - Stephen Kelly
Longford - Paul Barden
Louth - JP O'Kane
Mayo - Ciarán McDonald
Meath - Graham Geraghty
Monaghan - Kieran Hughes
Offaly - Matt Connor
Roscommon - Dermot Earley
Sligo - Eamonn O'Hara
Tipperary - Declan Browne
Tyrone - Peter Canavan
Waterford - Brick Walsh
Westmeath - Dessie Dolan
Wexford - Mattie Forde
Wicklow - Kevin O'Brien

Is that the prop?

[trileacman]

I'd be very tempted to go for Peter Canavan too.

Can I make an accusation about your list there too, and it is strongly reflected in the wider Irish psyche, alot of them whilst hugely talented didn't match that with success. It's as if we reminisce more fondly on the lads who pissed it away on drink, through injury or just never had the lads round them to finish the job. I'm pretty sure that if Canavan had not have won an All-Ireland in 03 he'd be on that list instead of Frank.

Again the others there, Matt Connor - struck down in his prime,
Jim McKeever - didn't get his All-Ireland,
Peter McGinnity - didn't get the recognition or plaudits of later players (McGrath/Owens),
John Doyle,
Tommy Murphy - always referred to "the best player never to win an All-Ireland",
Declan Browne,

Just a point I thought I'd make.

I would nearly say Cavanagh is at McGuigan's level, especially seeing him drag Tyrone around last year. He has the size, fielding, can score off both feet, has a dummy figured very well to match McGuigan (probably not exceed him though) and he is probably faster than McGuigan. Now I'm not saying that Cavanagh is the best player around at the minute (he's up there but a clear level off the best) but I think we wax too lyrically about our flawed heroes.

Ps: Would John Joe Reilly not out pip Gunner Brady? And I'd fairly rate Steven McDonnell a clear distance ahead of any of those Armagh bunch I seen.

[Dinny Breen]

Larry Tompkins is a Kildare man.

[ck]

I was born in Fermanagh so I'd say PETER MCGINNITY
I have Belfast parents (Antrim and Down) so I'd say PADDY O'HARA and JAMES McCARTAN
I spent my teenage years in Sligo and will always say EAMON O'HARA
I now live in Dublin so will say PAUL CURRAN
I work between Dublin and Tyrone so I'll also add PETER CANAVAN

[moysider]

Larry Tompkins is a Kildare man.

That s right. And so is Shay Fahy. But Thompkins is stiill in many people's opinion Cork's best player in living memory. Cork unlikely to have won those AIs without them.

[Lar Naparka]

Love starting a wee bit of debate...so imho these are the best ever from each of the 32...I picked them from own opinion, in some cases from general opinion e.g. Jack Brattan and Seán Purcell and others were just pure guesses from a vague knowledge of your county's football history ....if anyone wants to suggest a player from London and NY feel free..


So away ye go lads...let me have it.....give good arguments if you disagree...and tell me why I'm talking shite if that is the case..I have a thick skin.

Antrim - Kevin Armstrong
Armagh - Jack Brattan
Carlow - Hugh Brennan
Cavan - Gunner Brady
Clare - Seamus Clancy
Cork - JBM
Derry - Jim McKeever
Donegal - Martin McHugh
Down - Seán O'Neill
Dublin - Heffo
Fermanagh - Peter McGennity
Galway - Seán Purcell
Kerry - Mick O'Connell
Kildare - John Doyle
Kilkenny - D J Carey
Laois - Tommy Murphy
Leitrim - Mickey Quinn
Limerick - John Quane
Longford - Paul Barden
Louth - Stephen White
Mayo - Ciarán McDonald
Meath - Trevor Giles
Monaghan - Nudie
Offaly - Matt Connor
Roscommon - Dermot Earley Snr
Sligo - Mickey Kerins
Tipperary - Declan Browne
Tyrone - Frank McGuigan
Waterford - Liam Ó Lionáin
Westmeath - Dessie Dolan
Wexford - Mattie Forde
Wicklow - Sorry this one has me snookered

Moses Coffey was about the best Wicklow ever had.

[thebandit]

Limiting it to players I've seen.

Antrim - cant think of one
Armagh - Oisin
Carlow - Brendan Murphy
Cavan - Big Dermot
Clare - Seamus Clancy
Cork - Tompkins
Derry - Anthony Tohill
Donegal - Michael Murphy
Down - Mickey Linden
Dublin - Stephen Cluxton
Fermanagh - Marty McGrath
Galway - Joyce
Kerry - Tomás
Kildare - Dermot Earley
Kilkenny - ?
Laois - Beano as a minor
Leitrim - Mulligan
Limerick - The midfielder...... Can't think of his name
Longford - Paul Barden
Louth - Keenan
Mayo - McDonald
Meath - Giles
Monaghan - Tommy
Offaly - Niall McNamee
Roscommon - Frankie Dolan
Sligo - Eamonn O'Hara
Tipperary - Declan Browne
Tyrone - Peter Canavan
Waterford - Hurney
Westmeath - Dessie Dolan
Wexford - Mattie Forde
Wicklow - Kevin O'Brien

[seafoid]

I'd be very tempted to go for Peter Canavan too.

Can I make an accusation about your list there too, and it is strongly reflected in the wider Irish psyche, alot of them whilst hugely talented didn't match that with success. It's as if we reminisce more fondly on the lads who pissed it away on drink, through injury or just never had the lads round them to finish the job. I'm pretty sure that if Canavan had not have won an All-Ireland in 03 he'd be on that list instead of Frank.

Again the others there, Matt Connor - struck down in his prime,
Jim McKeever - didn't get his All-Ireland,
Peter McGinnity - didn't get the recognition or plaudits of later players (McGrath/Owens),
John Doyle,
Tommy Murphy - always referred to "the best player never to win an All-Ireland",
Declan Browne,

Just a point I thought I'd make.

I would nearly say Cavanagh is at McGuigan's level, especially seeing him drag Tyrone around last year. He has the size, fielding, can score off both feet, has a dummy figured very well to match McGuigan (probably not exceed him though) and he is probably faster than McGuigan. Now I'm not saying that Cavanagh is the best player around at the minute (he's up there but a clear level off the best) but I think we wax too lyrically about our flawed heroes.

Ps: Would John Joe Reilly not out pip Gunner Brady? And I'd fairly rate Steven McDonnell a clear distance ahead of any of those Armagh bunch I seen.

Football is a team sport. If you restrict the criteria to all Ireland winners it means there are 150 players per decade who qualify.
And every all Ireland team has a passenger or two. Or even three.
In the hurling Michael O'Halloran was a back on the Clare team in 95. To say he was better than all the losers that played intercounty hurling in 95 would be insane.
Tyrone had some fabulous players in 03-05-08 but do they automatically trump every single player who ever put on the jersey going back 100 years.? 
Those boys brought recognition and kudos to Tyrone but the excellence was there in individual cases long before.
You need 3 or 4 stars to win an all Ireland .  If you only have 2 it doesn't mean the 2 fellas are less good than those that won.

I like that thing the Follower said - "they will be remembered by their people"

[Redhand Santa]

I think the point was that quite often players get more credit and built up for not playing and messing about during their career and a dedicated successful footballer. Canaan delivered time and time again for Tyrone over a long period of time. He helped inspire a log of young footballers in Tyrone in 95 and went on to help them win the all Ireland. Mcguigan was a brilliant footballer but didn't deliver often of wasn't available for long enough to make him the best in my opinion.

[BennyHarp]

I think the point was that quite often players get more credit and built up for not playing and messing about during their career and a dedicated successful footballer. Canaan delivered time and time again for Tyrone over a long period of time. He helped inspire a log of young footballers in Tyrone in 95 and went on to help them win the all Ireland. Mcguigan was a brilliant footballer but didn't deliver often of wasn't available for long enough to make him the best in my opinion.

Exactly - if we are discussing Tyrone's best footballer, it has to be Canavan. He delivered nearly every time over a period spanning almost 15 years. McGuigan was a massive talent but didn't necessarily fulfill that talent in a Tyrone jersey over a consistent period of time to warrant being in the same bracket as Canavan. If we were discussing the greatest talent to come out of each county then that might be a different argument.

[Dinny Breen]

Larry Tompkins is a Kildare man.

That s right. And so is Shay Fahy. But Thompkins is stiill in many people's opinion Cork's best player in living memory. Cork unlikely to have won those AIs without them.

True but it states from your County Tompkins played for Cork he is from Kildare.

[blanketattack]

Have swapped a dozen times between Tomás Ó Sé, Maurice Fitz, Jack O'Shea, Mick O'Connell and Paddy Kennedy and from prioritizing greatest talent, most influential or most consistent. In the end going for Jack O'Shea as he was consistently brilliant in virtually every game for about 10 years winning player of the year an incredible 4 years. He had an advantage over Tomas Ó Sé in that a midfielder will have huge involvement in a game while Tomas would regularly have completely dominated his man, had a good few bursts upfield and it would be put down as a quiet or normal performance.

[Wildweasel74]

Hell, Matt Connor the best player on this thread