Alan Cadogan
It was a decisive weekend for hurling as four teams - Dublin, Offaly, Laois, and Westmeath - exited the Championship.
They were sent packing by Cork, Wexford, Clare, and Limerick who advance to Round 2 of the Qualifiers.
Kilkenny also won yet another Leinster title on Sunday, beating Galway, and were inspired by the half-time introduction of Richie Hogan who made his comeback from a broken hand.
He makes the short-list for this week's Hurler of the Week nominations, and is joined there by Cork's Alan Cadogan and Clare's Aaron Shanagher.
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, July 5 and the winner will be announced on GAA.ie.
Hurler of the Week Nominations
Alan Cadogan - Cork
Cadogan was one of the few Cork players to emerge with credit from their Munster Semi-Final defeat to Tipperary and he was superb for the Rebels in Saturday's All-Ireland Qualifier victory over Dublin.
He looked capable of cutting the Dublin defence to shreds every time the ball came down his channel and finished with a tally of 1-5 from play.
Cadogan had a lot of injuries blast year but has had a clean run so far this year and is in top form. He has everything a top corner-forward needs in his locker - speed, skill, a low centre of gravity, and clinical finishing.
Richie Hogan is back from injury and included on the Kilkenny bench for their match against Antrim.
Richie Hogan - Kilkenny
Kilkenny had other star performers in Jonjo Farrell and Conor Fogarty, but you just can't argue with the fact that Richie Hogan's half-time substitution was the major turning point of Sunday's Leinster SHC Final.
Until his arrival the Kilkenny attack had struggled to find their groove, but with Hogan on the field everything clicked into place.
The Danesfort man scored five wonderful points from play, and his clever movement and interplay also brought the previously relatively quiet TJ Reid into the game. Considering he's been sidelined for the past number of weeks with a broken bone in his hand, it was a remarkable 35 minutes by Hogan.
Aron Shanagher impressed for Clare.
Aaron Shanager - Clare
Laois may not have provided Clare with the stiffest of tests in Saturday's Round 1 Qualifier, but the star quality of teenager Aaron Shanager is still impossible to ignore.
He scored three goals for the Banner County, and all of them were brilliantly taken efforts that underlined the 19-year-old's prodigious talent.
Shanager might be only be in his first year out of the minor grade, but he already has the physical stature and strength of a grown man. Combine that with blistering pace, deft skill, and clinical finishing, and it looks like Clare have found another forward of the very highest calibre.
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.
