The Waterford players with their Bord Gáis Energy All Ireland GAA Hurling U-21 Team of the Year Awards, from left, Stephen Bennett, Shane Bennett, Micháel Harney, Conor Gleeson, Austin Gleeson, Jordan Henley, Patrick Curran and Darragh Lyons at the Bord Gáis Energy Team of the Year Awards at the Mansion House in Dublin. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile.
It’s that time of year alright. The time for teams of the year, players of the year, score of the year and so on. One such team of the year was named this week and it made very pleasant reading from a Waterford perspective. It was the Bord Gáis Energy Hurling Team of the Year
and there was no surprise that classy All-Ireland under-21 hurling champions Waterford dominated the team with no less than eight of the fifteen. Next best were beaten finalists Galway and Leinster champions, Dublin, with two each, followed by Limerick, Tipperary and Westmeath with one each.
Despite missing the semi-final through injury, Tallow’s Jordan Henley is the team’s goalkeeper. Outside him there are two Déise men named in the full-back line, Fourmilewater’s Conor Gleeson and Dungarvan’s Darragh Lyons. The half-backline also has two Waterford men, in Bonmahon’s Micheal Harney and Mount Sion’s Austin Gleeson. Ballysaggart’s Shane Bennett is the lone Waterford man in the half-forward line, while inside Patrick Curran of Dungarvan and Ballysaggart’s Stephen Bennett complete the Déise contingent.
Austin Gleeson, Patrick Curran and Stephen Bennett were the three nominees for the Player of the Year crown, which was presented at a gala function in the Mansion House over the weekend and it was Ballysaggart’s Stephen Bennett who lifted the prize as U-21 Hurler of the Year. Galway’s Brian Molloy is the sole survivor from the 2015 team.
The team was picked by Bord Gáis Energy sports ambassador Ger Cunningham, TG4’s Michéal Ó Domhnaill, Waterford great Ken McGrath and Galway attacker Joe Canning.
2016 Bord Gáis Energy Team of the Year :
1 Jordan Henley (Waterford)
2 Conor Gleeson (Waterford)
3 Eoghan O’Donnell (Dublin)
4 Darragh Lyons (Waterford)
5 Micheál Harney (Waterford)
6 Austin Gleeson (Waterford)
7 Shane Barrett (Dublin)
8 Dan Nevin (Galway)
9 Ronan Lynch (Limerick)
10 Shane Bennett (Waterford)
11 Brian Molloy (Galway)
12 Andrew Coffey (Tipperary)
13 Patrick Curran (Waterford)
14 Stephen Bennett (Waterford)
15 Niall Mitchell (Westmeath).
