Top ten GAA Warriors

1 Patsy Bradley (Derry)
2013 Ulster Championship quarter-final v Down
THIS is a bit of a lifetime achievement award, in fairness. Bradley plays with no apparent regard for his own health and safety, so it’s no major surprise that the Derry and Sleacht Néill midfielder has suffered his fair share of injuries down through the years. His warrior spirit is exemplified by his performance against Down in 2013, when he was nowhere near fit to play due to back, groin and Achilles injuries. The mind was as willing as ever, and he somehow made it through 67 minutes before basically being rolled off the pitch by physios (yes, that’s what we’ve been told). Braveness personified, he’s still going strong for Sleacht Néill.

2 Enda McGinley (Tyrone)
2003 All-Ireland final v Armagh
HE played with a broken neck for crying out loud! Okay, he didn’t know it at the time, but McGinley suffered a very serious upper neck injury in the 12th minute of the All-Ireland final (or to quote Irish Independent Journalist Colm Keys, he “broke a bone more associated with the impact of a car accident than a football match”). After shipping a heavy challenge from Tony McEntee (it wasn’t even a full-frontal tackle), McGinley coughed up blood at half-time and had a headache, but the All-Ireland title was at stake and it was only later on that he realised something was badly amiss. He had to wear a neck brace for weeks, and it may surprise you to learn that it eventually contributed to his decision to retire – he suffered another neck injury in a club game for Errigal Ciaran in 2013 and he was told he couldn’t get away with another.

3 Paddy McGrath (Donegal)
2010 All-Ireland U-21 final v Dublin
SHORT of stature but large of heart, Paddy McGrath is one of Donegal’s best ever servants. He’s got plenty of medals in his backpocket to show for it, and from an early age it was apparent he was made of the right stuff. McGrath broke his jaw in the build up to the 2010 All-Ireland u-21 final against Dublin, but that didn’t stop him. Here’s Jim McGuinness’ take on it: “I saw the x-ray myself. Paddy said to the surgeon, ‘if I go out and get it broken again, what’s the worst that can happen’. The surgeon told him, ‘I’ll fix it’. Paddy said, ‘that’s OK then. I’m going to play in the game’. That’s the type of person that predominantly wins you football matches and I’m glad to have him in the senior squad” Think that sums the man up pretty well.

4 Colin Walshe (Monaghan)
2014 All-Ireland quarter-final v Dublin
THE sides were tied at three-points each and then it happened – Walshe landed awkwardly on his left knee, and although he heard a ‘pop’, he elected to play on despite being in very serious pain. He discovered after the match that he’d ruptured an ACL, and it’s hard to understand why he thought playing on was a good idea. For the remainder of the match, he tried to avoid turning as he felt like the knee was unstable (sounds about right), but the tigerish Doohamlet defender later said that the damage was done at that stage anyway. Full marks for bravery, anyway.

5 Diarmaid Marsden (Armagh)
1999 Ulster Championship first-round v Donegal
MARSDEN was just about fit enough to make the bench for Armagh’s first-round clash against Donegal. They found themselves six points behind early on, and when he got the call to go on, the Armagh legend said that “If I go on I mightn’t play any more matches this year if I knock this injury back.” He answered the SOS call and inspired Armagh’s comeback as they went onto force a replay. They ended up winning their first Ulster Championship in 17 years, and although Marsden is primarily remembered as a gifted attacking player, his spirit and commitment was just as impressive.

6 Thomas Galligan (Cavan)
2020 Ulster Championship final v Donegal
THE term ‘Roy of the Rovers’ had to be used somewhere in this list, and we’re going to apply it to Thomas Galligan’s lion-hearted performance against Donegal in the Ulster final. He had to go off as a blood sub after a coming together with Caolan McGonagle (only the Donegal man knows whether it was accidental or not), but you can’t keep a good man down and he was truly inspirational in the second-half. Last-ditch blocks, incredible catches and a tenacious point from nothing – you name it, this superhuman performance had it. He was named man of the match as a result, and you have to put it all into context as well: this was a talented young player inspiring Cavan to their first Ulster Championship title in 23 years.

7 Brian Dooher (Tyrone)
2007 Ulster Championship quarter-final v Donegal
IN hindsight, it’s hard to believe how badly Tyrone were written off in the lead-up to this game. It mustn’t have gone down well with Brian Dooher anyway as he produced perhaps the finest display of his career against a shell-shocked Donegal team. He scored five points from play, but we all know Brian Dooher is good for so much more and he covered every blade of grass before eventually being substituted to a standing ovation. Mickey Harte, a man who normally doesn’t do sentiment, shook Dooher’s hand when he was brought off, and he’d go onto captain Tyrone to a second All-Ireland title a year later despite being dogged by injuries.

8 Kevin McCloy (Derry)
2006 Ulster Championship first-round v Tyrone
I’M a Tyrone man, so I’ve been reared from the cradle believing that Derry are the natural enemy, but there’s no doubt that they’ve produced some seriously tough hoors over the years. Brian McGilligan, Johnny McGurk, Henry Downey and Anthony Tohill were no shrinking violets, but I’ve elected for a player from more recent memory. Derry were rank outsiders against the All-Ireland champions in 2006, but they played like men possessed after an inspirational team-talk from Eamonn Coleman. McCloy was chief among them winning five or six possessions that he’d no right to win. We’re also reminded of the time he waved away the offer of some magic spray for an Achilles injury as he didn’t want the Tyrone players to know he was in difficulties.

9 Paul McGrane (Armagh)
2002 All-Ireland final v Kerry
YOU won’t need reminding of the basic narrative of the day: Armagh reeled in a four-point deficit to win their maiden All-Ireland title with a 1-12 to 0-14 victory over Kerry. However, what’s sometimes forgotten, is the performance of their legendary midfielder Paul McGrane. Kerry’s stranglehold in the middle was loosened in the second-half as McGrane imposed himself on proceedings and helped haul Armagh back into the game. Stevie McDonell kicked the winner, Oisin got the goal and McGeeney lifted Sam, but the Ballyhegan man was just as crucial on the day.

10 Neil Gallagher (Donegal)
2012 All-Ireland semi-final v Cork
PARDON the recency bias in all this, but we hope you’ll agree that Neil Gallagher’s tour de force against Cork in 2012 is worthy of mention. That Cork team was stacked with man-mountains, but Neil Gallagher held his own in the middle and then some as they booked their place in the final in style. He wasn’t the flashiest player around, but he had impeccable timing as he often out-jumped men bigger of stature, and he topped it off with another outstanding display in the final as he negated Mayo’s Barry Horan.