Stephen Maher
Carlow IT sharpshooter Stephen Maher has come out top in the public vote for this week's GAA.ie Hurler of the Week.
Even though his team were defeated by Mary I in the Fitzgibbon Cup Final, Maher still produced a fantastic individual display. It was second-time lucky for 'Picky' who was also nominated last week for his heroics in a Laois jersey.
Maher earned 1,753 votes on the GAA's official Twitter (@officialgaa), Facebook, and Instagram pages with Mary I's Cian Lynch second and Cuala defender Sean Moran third.
GAA.ie Hurler of the Week
1: Stephen Maher (Carlow IT) - 1,753 (43%)
2: Cian Lynch (Mary I) - 1,375 (34%)
3: Sean Moran (Cuala) - 936 (23%)
Carlow IT were well beaten in the end by Mary Immaculate in the Fitzgibbon Cup Final, but Stephen Maher did his very best to keep them in the contest.
He finished the match with a fine personal tally of 1-13, 1-1 of which was from play, and his accurate free-taking was all that kept them in touch for much of the match.
His late goal was too little too late in terms of sparking a come-back, but it was well-taken nonetheless.
Mary Immaculate produced a close to perfect performance in the Fitzgibbon Cup win over Carlow IT, and Limerick star Cian Lynch was at the heart of it.
He scored three classy points in the first-half, but his game was about much more than just scoring.
He roved all over the field to great effect, hoovering up possession, jinking into pockets of space, and then distributing the ball smartly.
Cuala's explosive forward-line has rightly earned a lot of plaudits for their role in propelling the Dublin club to the AIB All-Ireland Club SHC Final.
But underpinning that attack has been a rock-solid defence superbly marshalled by centre-back Sean Moran.
The centre-back was superb again in Saturday's All-Ireland semi-final win over Slaughtneil as he dominated under the dropping ball, hoovered up possession right across the half-back line, and distributed it intelligently.
Players of the Week are decided based on votes cast by followers of @officialgaa on Twitter, on the Official GAA Facebook Page and on the Official GAA Instagram page.
