The curtain will come down on a memorable 2025 GAA season with 15 hurlers and 15 footballers set to be chosen as this year's PwC All-Stars.
The 45-man list for both football and hurling will be debated at length, with the winners to be revealed on Friday, 7 November at the RDS in Dublin.
A sizable portion of the list are returning nominees, 16 to be exact, while five players from last year’s All-Star team feature again.
Peadar Mogan (Donegal), Craig Lennon (Louth), John Maher (Galway), Oisín Conaty (Armagh) and Rob Finnerty (Galway) all return for another chance to be made All-Stars for a second year in a row.
The nominations were decided by GAA correspondents from across print, TV, radio and digital media and chaired by GAA president Jarlath Burns.
All-Ireland finalists Donegal dominate with 10 All-Star nominations, one more than All-Ireland champions Kerry.
Following them were Armagh and Meath (5), Monaghan, Louth and Galway (3), Dublin and Tyrone (2), and Mayo, Down, and Derry with one nomination each.
Footballer of the Year nominee David Clifford would make history if he wins by becoming the first player to win it three times, having previously won in 2022 and 2023.
He’s up against team-mate Joe O’Connor, who played a pivotal role in Kerry’s Sam Maguire success, as well as Donegal’s Michael Murphy, who stepped out of retirement for 2025.
The Young Footballer of the Year award has Armagh’s Conaty, Donegal’s Finbarr Roarty and Galway’s Matthew Thompson in contention.
For the All-Star team, the goalkeeper slot sees Shane Ryan of Kerry up against Rory Beggan of Monaghan and Armagh’s Ethan Rafferty. Ryan had an impressive campaign during Kerry’s run to the All-Ireland while Beggan continues to set the standard for the modern shot-stopper.
In defence, 18 players will compete for six spots. Brian Ó Beaglaíoch, Jason Foley, Gavin White, and Michael Breen fly the flag for Kerry, while Donegal has five players duking it out; Brendan McCole, Roarty, Mogan, Ciarán Moore and Ryan McHugh.
Meath’s impressive championship campaign is reflected with Ciarán Caulfield and Seán Rafferty included among the nominations.
The rest of the list includes Jarly Óg Burns and Ross McQuillan from Armagh, Niall Devlin and Kieran McGeary from Tyrone, while Craig Lennon (Louth), Dessie Ward (Monaghan) and Jack Coyne (Mayo) complete the defensive options.
Midfield has half a dozen players competing for two spots, with Michael Langan (Donegal), the aforementioned O'Connor (Kerry), Odhran Murdock (Down), Conor Glass (Derry), Maher (Galway) and Dublin’s Peadar Ó Cofaigh Byrne vying for a spot on the team.
And then there’s the forward line, which is the source of great debate and discussion, much of which is intensified with the new scoring changes.
Kerry trio David Clifford, Paudie Clifford and Seán O’Shea spearhead the attacking nominations, joined by the Donegal quartet of Murphy, Conor O’Donnell, Shane O’Donnell and Ciaran Thompson.
Meath are represented by Mathew Costello, Jordan Morris, and Ruairi Kinsella.
Armagh pair Rory Grugan and Conaty, Louth’s Sam Mulroy and Ryan Burns as well as Galway pair Rob Finnerty and Matthew Thompson are also included.
Michael Bannigan (Monaghan) and Dublin’s eight-time All-Ireland winner Ciarán Kilkenny complete the list.
PwC are proud sponsors of The PwC All-Star Awards since 2017, celebrating excellence and recognising talent for the country’s top male intercounty players. For more information visit www.pwc.ie
