It was a busy weekend for Gaelic Football with Round Two of the Allianz Football League and the AIB All-Ireland Club SFC semi-finals taking place.
And, despite the inclement weather conditions, there was no shortage of big crowds or high quality football.
This week’s nominees for GAA.ie Footballer of the Week are Meath’s Cillian O’Sullivan, Tyrone’s Niall Sludden, and Slaughtneil’s Chrissy McKaigue.
The voting process is simple: retweet the image of your chosen player on the GAA's official Twitter account (@officialgaa) or like their image on the GAA's official Facebook and Instagram pages. Voting will close at 10am on Tuesday, February 14 and the winner will be announced on GAA.ie.
Footballer of the Week nominations
Cillian O'Sullivan - Meath
Meath centre-forward Cillian O’Sullivan has started the season at 100mph for the Royals.
He was the one bright-spark in their dismal defeat to Kildare in Round 1, and was head and shoulders above everyone else on the field in Sunday’s impressive Allianz Football League Division 2, Round 2, victory over Derry.
He scored 2-2 from play and tortured the Derry defence throughout the match with his blistering pace, intelligent use of possession, and clinical finishing.
Niall Sludden – Tyrone
Niall Sludden made light of the terrible weather conditions and suffocating Dublin defence to produce a man-of-the-match performance for Tyrone in Saturday night’s drawn Allianz Football League Division One clash at Croke Park.
Whenever the half-forward won possession his first instinct was to run straight at the Dublin defence who struggled to contain his direct and speedy attacking thrusts.
He never stopped working hard for the cause, and finished the game with three quality points to his name which was a fair achievement in a tight game where defences generally dominated.
Chrissy McKaigue – Slaughtneil
The showdown between Slaughtneil centre-back Chrissy McKaigue and St Vincent’s centre-forward Diarmuid Connolly was billed as a pivotal one ahead of Saturday’s AIB All-Ireland Club SFC Semi-Final, but few would have predicted McKaigue would dominate it to the extent he did.
Not only did he limit Connolly to a single-point from play, he also bombed forward to support his attack at every opportunity and scored four superb points.
In a match of very tight margins, McKaigue’s heroism was the defining factor that swung the match in Slaughtneil’s favour.
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.