Senior Hurling Championship Team of the Year
Mount Leinster Rangers goalkeeper Frank Foley and manager Paul O'Brien after their final success Photo: Pat Ahern
It was probably not a vintage championship for net-minders where, on a given day, all five respective keepers had good reasons to look hard at the defenders in front of them. Yet on county final day Frank Foley kept a clean sheet as Rangers regained the title they lost last year. A tremendous shot stopper and safe under the high ball he breaths confidence in those in front of him.
While it was a disappointing county final day for the Carlow intercounty defender and his colleagues, Doyle could but won’t look back with pride on his contribution against Mount Leinster Rangers. His performance that day typified his season where his pace and strength can confound the opposition. He also scored two fabulous points from distance which, on another day, it would have given his side the momentum to go on and win the game.
There are players who go through a game relatively unnoticed but if you were to ask those around him you would be told how big a contribution they give. The Rangers defender falls into this category. A tight marker who does the simple things well, he keeps his concentration and is as valuable to his side in defence as those high-profile colleagues who do their business at the other end of the field.
The experienced full-back for club and county had, yet again, an excellent season in the club jersey. He has all the requirements of an effective defender where he is comfortable on the ball but also makes life difficult for those he is marking when possession is being hard fought for. If there was a transfer market in GAA, he would probably fetch a big price in the market.
It was a perfect season for the Rangers man who can fill almost any position on the field. Yet the centre-half back role seems to be the one where he is most comfortable.
He has tremendous pace, a great eye for the ball and often has potential problems sorted out long before the danger has even arisen. He scored seven points in the championship with five of those coming from play.
There are players who are worth the entrance fee alone and the St Mullins man is defender is one of those. He has a wonderful eye and his timing helps him win balls which others might not. His distribution is wonderful to watch and he falls into the category as one of Carlow and St Mullins greatest ever players.
While his brother, Chris, carries out his magic in the forward line, Jon Nolan brings skill, huge competitiveness and mongrel to the Mount Leinster Rangers side. In a world where the numbers on the jerseys mean little, Jon scored 1-11 from play in the championship.
He is very much the heart-beat of the Rangers team where is contribution, his ball-striking ability and attitude inspires those around him.
If there was one moment in the championship this year which defines the contribution James Doyle has brought to his club and county over many years then go back to a third round game against Bagenalstown Gaels.
Trailing by a point, St Mullins looked to be in trouble. Showing no fear he took on the responsibility and picked off two long-range points to break their opponents hearts. From a midfield position, he went on to score 1-18 in the championship.
The Rangers midfielder cum defender and attacker is akin to a back-row forward in rugby who is continually grafting, getting onto dirty ball and from the bottom of the ruck suddenly the ball becomes available to his supporting colleagues. From the engine room, he also scored seven points in the championship all from play.
Wearing number five on his back, the Ballinkillen man certainly didn’t operate in a defensive role but did funnel back when required to do so. He has gone from being a player of the future to a player of the present where he scored fifteen points in his side’s five championship games.
Many of them were long-distance and he has now firmly established himself as an automatic starter with his club.
He didn’t have to but he did so anyway when he reminded Carlow hurling followers of his ability by scoring 3-2 in a fourth round game against Bagenalstown Gaels. He went on to score 4-12, all from play, in the entire competition.
His pace and decision making stretched defenders throughout the championship.
A Man of the Match performance in the County Final where he scored 1-10 bookended his championship where he scored 0-16 against Ballinkillen in the opening round.
In all he was the leading scorer in the championship hitting 4-57 with 0-41 of that total coming from placed balls.
When it was really needed, Feathers, as he is affectionately known, produced when it mattered most. In the county final against old rivals, St Mullins, he might not have scored but he had a tremendous game where he fought hard in the full-forward line and those around him prospered.
He did score 2-4 in the championship. He was ultra-competitive throughout the year and epitomised what Rangers stood for in their determination to regain the title they lost last year to the same final opponents.
The Mouse continues to produce. In the championship this year he scored a total of 6-39 with 1-33 coming from placed balls. No matter how close defenders get to him, he still finds a way.
Whether it is for club or county, Marty may be the leading scorer where his pace, his competitiveness and accuracy have been a hall-mark of his record-breaking career.
With a total of 6-13, the St Mullins and Carlow intercounty player was in the top five scorers of the Carlow Senior Hurling Championship. He has it all in the full-forward line where his pace gives him time and room to reach out and carry out those trade-mark catches. Another one of those great players which his St Mullins club continues to produce.
It has been a difficult year for Bagenalstown Gaels who were short a number of players from last year. Yet their keeper, Andrew Townsend brought off some excellent stops and can look back with some degree of satisfaction on 2025. Jake Doyle also scored 3-18 with 1-18 coming from play. (That included a side-line cut).
For Rangers, Ted Joyce scored 4-9 in the championship while his colleagues such as Donagh Murphy, Conaill Fitzpatrick and Richard Coady can be proud of what they produced this year.
St Mullins continue to harvest good ones. Colm Kavanagh and Eamonn O’Shea to name just a few.
Naomh Eoin continue to struggle to return to the glory days. The sweet striking Ciaran Abbey scored 0-36 in the championship while Brian Treacy, Paddy Doyle and James Smithers were some of their standout players.
For Ballinkillen, who enjoyed a solid championship, Ciaran Whelan, Kevin Kavanagh and Padraig Hynes caught the eye in a season where the timing of the hurling and football championships is a topic which must surely come down to at least a discussion.
