NOMINATIONS FOR IRISH INDEPENDENT YOUNG SPORTSTAR OF THE YEAR
EDDIE DUNBAR Eddie Dunbar may have only just got his hands on the key to the door but he already holds the keys to the cycling kingdom.
The talented Corkman, who turned 21 in September, has been blazing a trail for Irish cycling internationally for the last three seasons, and in April he claimed the biggest victory of his fledgling career in the prestigious U-23 Tour of Flanders.
The most exciting prospect in Irish cycling powered away from the chasing bunch to take a solo victory in the green jersey.
After signing for Irish cycling team Aqua Blue Sport, Fast Eddie looks set to come of age at elite level in 2018.
GINA AKPE-MOSES The fastest girl in Europe is Irish, and her name is Gina Akpe-Moses.
Until this year, no Irishwoman had ever won a European sprint title at U-20 level or above, but in a little over 11 seconds Akpe-Moses changed all that.
The 18-year-old took a surprise gold medal over 100m at the European U-20 Championships in Italy in July, shrugging off a series of injuries and a roaring headwind to power to victory in 11.71 seconds.
Akpe-Moses moved to Ireland with her family from Nigeria at the age of two, first settling in Athlone, then later Dundalk, where she used to beat the fastest boys in her class in races across the schoolyard.
DAVID CLIFFORD The Kingdom surley have a rare gem on their hands in the Fossa teenager, who has been the talk of terraces over the last two years – first helping St Brendan’s, Killarney claim the Hogan Cup and then inspiring the Kerry minors to back-to-back AllIreland MFC titles. A gifted forward with a languid style similar to the great Maurice Fitzgerald, Clifford can kick points from distance off both feet and can poach goals in an instant. His scoring stats have been staggering – crowned by his 4-4 haul against Derry in this year’s minor final. Now that he has decided to turn down Aussie Rules offers, the GAA world is quite literally at this feet.
CON O’CALLAGHAN
Con O’Callaghan may no longer be a secret weapon for Dublin or Cuala but he continues to deliver devastating attacking performances in Gaelic football and hurling.
The 21-year-old has had a remarkable 2017, winning three All-Ireland medals and starring for all three of those teams – his club hurling crown preceding his success with Dublin’s U-21 and senior footballers.
O’Callaghan was then crowned Young Footballer of the Year before picking up his first All-Star. And he has shown no signs of slowing down as the nights get shorter – as any of Cuala’s opponents in recent weeks could testify.
SAOIRSE NOONAN Saoirse Noonan had a year to remember in two codes. Ireland’s most exciting women’s soccer prospect won her first senior cap, helped the U-19s qualify for the elite stage of the European Championship qualifiers, was voted U-17 Player of the Year and helped Cork City win the Women’s FAI Cup.
And, as if that wasn’t enough, Saoirse was the stand-out performer in the ladies minor Gaelic football championship. The Nemo Rangers player scored 3-4 from full-forward, all but two points coming from play, as Cork defeated Galway in the All-Ireland final, having earlier bagged 4-4 in their victory over Kerry.
MONA McSHARRY Mona McSharry became the first Irish swimmer to win a gold medal at the World Junior Championships when she won the 100m breaststroke in Indianapolis in August.
And she smashed the national senior record in the process, clocking 1:07.10 as she led from start to finish. The Sligo 17-year-old, a member of the Marlins Swimming Club in Ballyshannon, also won bronze in the 50m breaststroke to cap a remarkable summer, during which she also claimed the gold medal in the 50m and 100m breaststroke and silver in the 200m breaststroke at the European Junior Championships.
CONOR WHELAN It is a measure of Galway’s prolific accuracy from distance that they managed to win a first All-Ireland title in 29 years without scoring a goal in their last four matches.
Central to that was Conor Whelan, the recently crowned ‘Young Hurler of the Year’ who lit up the league and championship with his devastating pace, ability to turn and shoot on the run.
When Galway were crowned league champions with a 16-point win over Tipperary, he whipped over five points and followed that up with a seven-point return against Offaly in the Leinster semi-final before hitting four more against Tipp in the All-Ireland semi-final. He is a young man around whom Galway can plan a big future.