At last his talent has been recognised in the form of an All Star Award - fully deserved.

Fionn (Dublin) - Posts: 3738 - 23/10/2014 09:26:32    1666343

Joxer
Connolly does his talking on the pitch but I'd say other matters have influenced the decision not to have awarded him an all-star in previous years

Don't know about that. In fact Id say that he was lucky enough to get one this year to be honest with you. It is alright playing great stuff against poor teams who are beaten before they start. But the first real challenge and he faltered. Look at Aidan O'Shea for example, match-winning performances against Galway and Cork, and dragged mayo back into the game when a man down against Kerry. Those should be worth far more than a hammering against wexford or meath. Same with Ryan McHugh. A series of big performances, culminating in the dismantling of Dublin totally against the odds. Again, far more value than early round hidings of poor teams. Connolly was lucky enough to get into the team this year for my money.

TheMaster (Mayo) - Posts: 16187 - 23/10/2014 09:38:55    1666345

Best footballer without a doubt.

DLlegends (Donegal) - Posts: 503 - 23/10/2014 09:54:12    1666351

The master
I totally agree with you.

KingdomBoy1 (Kerry) - Posts: 14092 - 23/10/2014 10:28:31    1666369

So The Master you must then think Connolly was unlucky last year not to get an all star? League Leinster and all ireland champions and connolly Motm in the dismantling of kerry in the semi final, surely going by your assessment he was robbed last year?

clondalkindub (Dublin) - Posts: 9926 - 23/10/2014 10:51:48    1666391

at the moment there is no doubt that he is the best footballer in the country !

HurlerOnTheFenc (Mayo) - Posts: 282 - 23/10/2014 11:03:31    1666398

ruanua

its a lot easier to stand out as being a good forward in a team like donegal
that only plays one forward throughout a match like colm mcfadden
where as connolly plays in an attack that consists of 5 other forwards every bit as good.
surely you also can understand that players like mattie forde and declan browne also stand out a mile
because they are playing with average players beside them
if your in a team with players of the same ability as you its harder to be a stand out

hill16no1man (Dublin) - Posts: 12665 - 23/10/2014 11:21:08    1666412

The Master, are you for REAL, have you been watching the same games as the rest of us. To even speak about Connolly and Aidan O'Shea in the same breath is a farce. Connolly is pure class, has talent and skill in abundance and has well and truely performed at the highest level both at club and county level this year. As the old saying goes "ye cant buy class, you either have it or ye dont !!! "......No luck whatsoever in Connolly receiving his All Star, he did his talking on the field of play.....

Mollymalone (Dublin) - Posts: 1137 - 23/10/2014 11:45:59    1666433

Agree with you there Molly.

For some poster to also think it is a pure joke for DC to get an All Star ahead of AOS, beggars belief imo.

Fionn (Dublin) - Posts: 3738 - 23/10/2014 12:00:35    1666440

hill16no1man
County: Dublin
Posts: 8646

1666412
ruanua

its a lot easier to stand out as being a good forward in a team like donegal
that only plays one forward throughout a match like colm mcfadden
where as connolly plays in an attack that consists of 5 other forwards every bit as good.
surely you also can understand that players like mattie forde and declan browne also stand out a mile
because they are playing with average players beside them
if your in a team with players of the same ability as you its harder to be a stand out

Is it not a lot more difficult for the player playing alongside five average forwards? They will likely be double if not triple marked because the opposition know that if they stop the marquee forward, they will likely win. That's not the case with Dublin. If a team goes all out to stop Connolly, they will likely be leaving Brogan, Flynn, McMenamin, Kilkenny or whoever else free to score freely. Better teammates are also likely to be more effective at creating space and picking out difficult passes etc, ensuring the forward gets a better service than say a Mattie Forde or a Declan Browne in a weaker team.

beir_bua (Kildare) - Posts: 746 - 23/10/2014 12:30:03    1666461

Connolly in my opinion deserved an all star this year, that while he did perform to his brilliant best against weaker teams he also pick off some wonderful scores against Donegal. And over the championship he did deliver. Aidan O Shea is a funny one. Wonderful going forward and ball winning at midfield and really took the game to Kerry but on the other hand I think he is the opposite in defence. He commits stupid fouls with clumsy tackles and gives away soft frees for the opposition. Maybe im the only one who thinks this. Maybe its because of his big frame that the same tackle by say Ryan McHugh wouldn't be deemed a free. However it would be interesting to see how many frees he is responsible for.

cavan97 (Cavan) - Posts: 369 - 23/10/2014 12:41:43    1666469

So The Master thinks that once Dublin beat Meath, DC disappeared and did nothing in the rest of the championship V Monaghan and Donegal.....

Well lads, if ever a post defined a man, that has to be it!

He does it to himself really!!

Liamwalkinstown (Dublin) - Posts: 8166 - 23/10/2014 13:14:18    1666492

Ok I have it now
Connolly over the part five years is one of the greatest players of all time but isn't good enough to stand out like Flynn or the 2 brogans. He is better than players like Gooch or JOD or Michael Murphy because they only look good because the are surrounded by mediocre players but Connolly is great because he can still look good beside natural gifted players like o GAra

Fair enough Im convinced . Mikey Sheehy, Trevor Giles , Matt Connor, Maurice fitz, Gooch , Peter the great - stand aside because you ain't seen nothin yet

ruanua (Donegal) - Posts: 4966 - 23/10/2014 14:00:35    1666510

Delighted to see Diarmuid Connolly finally get an All Star. The most talented footballer in Ireland by some distance.

tireoghainabu (Tyrone) - Posts: 276 - 23/10/2014 14:15:52    1666519

Rua, the hyperbole does your argument no favours.
Can I ask, why the intense dislike for Connolly and the point blank refusal to acknowledge his class?

Why is it if someone says Player A is a great player, and you disagree, you try to make a mockery of the opposing argument?

Plenty lads here from your own county and province would call BS on your post there my friend

Liamwalkinstown (Dublin) - Posts: 8166 - 23/10/2014 14:31:47    1666532

Mollymalone Im not denying Connolly's ability. But the fact is we aren't picking the best players, we are picking the guys who performed best in a particular set of games. He wasn't in the top 3 half forwards in the country in those games, simple as that. Even the article in the herald, which is partisan to say the least, can only come up with Connolly's performances against tyrone in the league, and for vincents as justification for his inclusion - neither of which are viable criteria for an all star selection by the way. Liam references his performance against monaghan - where he scored a goal and missed 2 sitters in a dead ringer of a game. So if you score a goal you get an all star, is that it liam? They simply don't measure up to the performances of McHugh or O'Shea in the corresponding fixtures. If people want to start awarding all stars just on ability as mollymalone is doing here, then lee keegan would be nailed on, right? The fact is regardless of his undeniable ability, he doesn't deserve one because his performances in those games weren't good enough, same as Connolly.

TheMaster (Mayo) - Posts: 16187 - 23/10/2014 15:04:40    1666550

Liamwalkinstown
Rua, the hyperbole does your argument no favours.
Can I ask, why the intense dislike for Connolly and the point blank refusal to acknowledge his class?

Why is it if someone says Player A is a great player, and you disagree, you try to make a mockery of the opposing argument?

Can I ask, why do you instantly try to pretend a poster has something personal against Connolly when someone doesn't agree with you? Is it strictly to make their point sound biased or is there more to it? It seems to me that you are just trying to blackball the poster because you are struggling to respond to his post.

TheMaster (Mayo) - Posts: 16187 - 23/10/2014 15:09:42    1666551

TheMaster
County: Mayo
Posts: 12168

1666345
Joxer
Connolly does his talking on the pitch but I'd say other matters have influenced the decision not to have awarded him an all-star in previous years

Don't know about that. In fact Id say that he was lucky enough to get one this year to be honest with you. It is alright playing great stuff against poor teams who are beaten before they start. But the first real challenge and he faltered. Look at Aidan O'Shea for example, match-winning performances against Galway and Cork, and dragged mayo back into the game when a man down against Kerry. Those should be worth far more than a hammering against wexford or meath. Same with Ryan McHugh. A series of big performances, culminating in the dismantling of Dublin totally against the odds. Again, far more value than early round hidings of poor teams. Connolly was lucky enough to get into the team this year for my money.

-----
AOS is a work horse. Connolly is an artist. It's like comparing Glen Whelan to Michel Platini. They are worlds apart. Funnily enough, none of my stand out moments with Connolly this year were against weak Leinster teams. A club championship final, league against Mayo, league against Tyrone, AI qtr final against Monaghan and AI semi against Donegal. I could have banged on about his demolition of teams in Leinster but sure what's the point as you say. Well deserved all-star for the man.

Joxer (Dublin) - Posts: 4700 - 23/10/2014 15:25:39    1666564

JOXER
AOS is a work horse. Connolly is an artist. It's like comparing Glen Whelan to Michel Platini.

lol :o)
Nice one Joxer.

Fionn (Dublin) - Posts: 3738 - 23/10/2014 15:36:51    1666573

Joxer, so is Paul Flynn, yet it didn't stop him from getting 4 all stars in a row, and if it was a shootout between himself and Connolly this year, then Flynn would have gotten that too. The reality is it doesn't matter what type of player you are, the award is for the best player in the championship in that position, whether you are an 'artist' like Connolly or a work horse like Flynn, it doesn't come into it. If it was awarded for ability like you are suggesting here then lee keegan would have another all star, but he doesn't deserve one this year, and neither did Connolly. You rhyming off a load of league games and club matches makes no difference, they have no bearing on the award.

TheMaster (Mayo) - Posts: 16187 - 23/10/2014 16:02:39    1666580