By Niall Gartland

Here’s our entirely subjective list of the top ten Cavan players from the last 50 years. Obviously some big names have to miss out, but hopefully you’ll mostly agree with our choices.

1 Jim Reilly
REILLY was an absolutely tremendous half-back for Cavan during the ’80s, and he ticks all the boxes for us: talented, committed, a true sportsman and all the rest of it. He captained Ulster in the Railway Cup, and played in all three tests for Ireland in the 1987 International Rules series. Hardly ever had a bad game and seemed to glide across the field. The Kingscourt Stars man won numerous county medals for his club, and was a key part of the Cavan team which reached the Ulster final in 1983, losing narrowly to Donegal. There’s a consensus that he was Cavan’s greatest player of the ’80s, and we consider that he was even better than that.

2 Stephen King
FOR sheer longevity, Stephen King deserves to have his name near the top of the heap. Soldiered with Cavan for 17 years before he finally got his hands on the Anglo Celt trophy as team captain in 1997. As a player, he was a powerful midfielder whose fetching ability made him an inspirational leader on the team. He probably isn’t the most naturally talented player to emerge from Cavan in the last half-century, but he’s an icon in the county and deservedly so. Made a monumental contribution during the famine years.

3 Dermot McCabe
MCCABE was a titan in the midfield sector for Cavan during an intercounty career that stretched from 1995 to 2009. He became Cavan’s second-ever player to win an All-Star when he picked up the award after starring in their Ulster Championship run in 1997. Also played a big part as Cavan reached the All-Ireland u-21 final in 1996. McCabe was a versatile player who was sometimes thrown into the edge of the square. An excellent passer of the ball, he also was a regular scorer of eye-catching points. It’s also worth mentioning that he’s been part of Mickey Graham’s backroom team the last couple of years.

4 Damian O’Reilly
THE third player in-a-row who was a linchpin on Cavan’s Ulster Championship winning team from 1997. The Mullahoran man gave great service to the county, and perhaps his greatest asset was his versatility as he was an equally effective defender and forward. He scored arguably one of the greatest – or at least one of the most creative – points of all time with a Van Basten-esque hooked shot from near the end-line against Donegal in the 1992 championship.

5 Ollie Brady
THIS should change in the coming weeks, but there are only two All-Star winners in Cavan, and Brady is one of them. He picked up an award for his performances from centre half-back in 1978, joining the likes of John O’Keeffe, Pat Spilane and Mickey Sheehy in the list of the top 15 footballers in the country. The Redhills man was a really rock in the half-back line, but he also had an adventurous streak, regularly pushing forward for his county.

6 Gene Cusack
ONE of Cavan’s most prolific-ever goal-scorers, Gene Cusack lit up the scene for a decade straddling the ’60s and ‘70s. He had skill to burn and won a mountain of senior championship medals with his club, Crosserlough. Cusack also represented Ulster in the Railway Cup on a number of occasions.

7 Steve Duggan
AN underrated player, Duggan was another star on the Cavan team of the ‘60s and ‘70s. He was your classic wing-forward, and deadly accurate in front of the posts to boot. Duggan was part of the Cavan team which fell to a really disappointing All-Ireland semi-final defeat to Cork in 1967.

8 Peter Reilly
FOR commitment to the cause, Peter was up there with the best of them (and his brother Larry wasn’t bad either). The Knockbride clubman was a hugely versatile player who produced the goods for Cavan on a consistent basis for a decade. Suffered three cruciate injuries in his career but battled back on each occasion. Perhaps his finest season was 2001, when he spearheaded Cavan’s run to the Ulster final, where they narrowly fell short against Tyrone. Has moved into management since hanging up the boots.

9 Cian Mackey
CIAN Mackey was desperately unfortunate to miss out on an Ulster Championship medal as he retired at the start of last year, but that doesn’t take away from what was a really commendable intercounty career. He was a really talented yet hard-working full-forward who could always be counted upon to chip in with a point or two. And while he didn’t pocket an Ulster medal, at least he managed to get over the line with Castlerahan – twice – after losing four finals earlier in his playing career.

10 Martin Reilly
IT’S only in the last couple of years that Reilly has started getting the attention he deserves on a national scale. He swapped a possible soccer career with Burnley for the GAA, and it wouldn’t be quite accurate to say he hasn’t looked back as he’s had plenty of bad days in a county jersey. However, the supremely athletic half-forward didn’t give up the ghost and so deserved his Ulster Championship medal which was won late last year against Donegal. A stupendous kick-passer as well.