In attendance at a photocall ahead of the 2018 TG4 All-Ireland Junior, Intermediate and Senior Ladies Football Championship Finals, are Junior Intermediate Senior finalists, from left, Kate Flood of Louth, Cathy Mee of Limerick, Ceannaire Spóirt TG4 Rónán Ó Coisdealbha, Ciara O'Sullivan of Cork, Sinead Aherne of Dublin, LGFA President Marie Hickey, Neamh Woods of Tyrone and Niamh O'Sullivan of Meath. TG4 All-Ireland Ladies Football Championship Finals Captains Day at Croke Park, in Dublin. Photo by Eóin Noonan/Sportsfile.

Following another record-breaking season of Ladies Football championship action, the 45 nominees for the 2018 TG4 All Star team have been revealed.

Senior champions Dublin, who made history by claiming back-to-back titles in front of a 50,141 attendance at Croke Park on September 16, lead the way with 14 nominations, while runners-up Cork are honoured with 12 players on the list.

There are eight nominations for Ulster champions Donegal, who lost out to Cork at the semi-final stage.

Galway, the Connacht champions who were beaten by Dublin in the last four, have three players included on the long list.

Kerry may have suffered relegation from Division 1 of the Lidl National League but the Kingdom rallied to reach the TG4 All-Ireland Senior quarter-finals.

They’ve been rewarded with two All-Star nominations while Armagh, Cavan, Mayo, Sligo, Tipperary and newly-crowned TG4 All-Ireland Intermediate Champions Tyrone have one player each on the list of nominees.

Seven players from the 2017 All Star team are nominated for awards once again.

Dublin goalkeeper Ciara Trant is joined on the 2018 list of nominees by team-mates Leah Caffrey, Nicole Owens, Sky Blues captain Sinéad Aherne and Noelle Healy, who was also the 2017 Senior Players’ Player of the Year.

Cork’s Emma Spillane and Donegal’s Ciara Hegarty were 2017 All Star recipients and they’re nominated for awards again.

Dublin’s other nominees for 2018 are Martha Byrne, Sinéad Goldrick, Siobhán McGrath, Niamh Collins, Olwen Carey, Lauren Magee, All-Ireland Final player of the match Carla Rowe, Lyndsey Davey and Niamh McEvoy.

Joining Spillane from Cork on the list are goalkeeper Martina O’Brien, Eimear Meaney, Róisín Phelan, Melissa Duggan, Máire O’Callaghan, Ashling Hutchings, Eimear Scally, Áine O’Sullivan, Orla Finn and sisters Ciara and Doireann O’Sullivan.

Donegal are well represented by Hegarty, Treasa Doherty, Nicole McLaughlin, Deirdre Foley, Katy Herron, captain Karen Guthrie, 2018 Senior Championship top scorer Geraldine McLaughlin, and Yvonne Bonner.

Having defeated Mayo in the Connacht Final, before progressing to the All-Ireland semi-finals, Galway have Sinéad Burke, Nicola Ward and Tracey Leonard in the running for All Star awards.

Aislinn Desmond and captain Sarah Houlihan are the Kerry duo nominated while Armagh’s Caroline O’Hanlon, Cavan’s Aisling Maguire, Rachel Kearns from Mayo, Sligo goalkeeper Noelle Gormley, Tipperary’s Aishling Moloney and Neamh Woods from Tyrone, who captained the Red Hands to Intermediate glory, complete the list of nominees.  

Woods and Sligo’s Noelle Gormley, who was also nominated for the goalkeeper’s position last year, are the Intermediate representatives on the 45-player list.

One player will be chosen from three shortlisted in each of the 15 positions to make up the final selection.

The 2018 TG4 All Star team will be announced at a gala banquet at the Citywest Hotel on Saturday, December 1, along with the Junior, Intermediate and Senior Players’ Player of the Year award winners, the Provincial Young Players of the Year and the 2018 inductee into the Ladies Gaelic Football Association (LGFA) Hall of Fame. 

2018 TG4 All Star nominations

Goalkeepers

Ciara Trant (Dublin), Martina O’Brien (Cork), Noelle Gormley (Sligo).

Right Corner Back

Treasa Doherty (Donegal), Martha Byrne (Dublin), Eimear Meaney (Cork).

Full Back

Róisín Phelan (Cork), Nicole McLaughlin (Donegal), Aislinn Desmond (Kerry).

Left Corner Back

Sinéad Burke (Galway), Leah Caffrey (Dublin), Melissa Duggan (Cork).

Right Half Back

Sinéad Goldrick (Dublin), Máire O’Callaghan (Cork), Rachel Kearns (Mayo).

Centre Half Back

Ciara Hegarty (Donegal), Nicola Ward (Galway), Siobhán McGrath (Dublin).

Left Half Back

Niamh Collins (Dublin), Emma Spillane (Cork), Deirdre Foley (Donegal).

Midfield

Lauren Magee (Dublin), Neamh Woods (Tyrone), Ashling Hutchings (Cork)

Olwen Carey (Dublin), Caroline O’Hanlon (Armagh), Katy Herron (Donegal).

Right Half Forward

Ciara O’Sullivan (Cork), Karen Guthrie (Donegal), Carla Rowe (Dublin).

Centre Half Forward

Tracey Leonard (Galway), Noelle Healy (Dublin), Aisling Maguire (Cavan)

Left Half Forward

Lyndsey Davey (Dublin), Eimear Scally (Cork), Aishling Moloney (Tipperary).

Right Corner Forward

Geraldine McLaughlin (Donegal), Sinéad Aherne (Dublin), Áine O’Sullivan (Cork).

Full Forward

Doireann O’Sullivan (Cork), Yvonne Bonner (Donegal), Niamh McEvoy (Dublin).

Left Corner Forward

Orla Finn (Cork), Nicole Owens (Dublin), Sarah Houlihan (Kerry).

County by county breakdown:

14 Dublin

12 Cork

8 Donegal

3 Galway

2 Kerry

1 Armagh

1 Cavan

1 Mayo

1 Sligo

1 Tipperary

1 Tyrone

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