Waterford duo named as May winners of Women's GAA Player of the Month awards
Meanwhile, Limerick talisman Cian Lynch and Donegal's Michael Murphy have been named the PwC GAA/GPA Hurler and Footballer of the month, respectively.
Advertisement
The Player of the Month awards aim to recognise the country's standout players from the Provincial Championships as well as the opening rounds of the 2025 All-Ireland Championships.
Niamh Rockett made history with the Déise as they recorded their first ever senior championship victory over Kilkenny in Nowlan Park, on May 31st.
Rockett, who has this year taken over free taking duties, scored nine of Waterford's 17 points, including three in the final minutes to secure the victory.
Rockett will look to continue her scintillating form in the next round as Waterford take on Dublin Saturday, June 21st.
Advertisement
The Waterford ladies football team came agonisingly close to overcoming the reigning All-Ireland champions Kerry with Kellyann Hogan's six well taken scores a key factor in the Déise running Kerry close.
Hogan dusted herself off and put in a dominant performance in nine-point victory against Cork in Dungarvan, booking a rematch against the Kingdom in the Munster Football Championship final.
Hogan was first on the scoreboard and delivered a standout performance in the middle of the park throughout. Four scores from the Ballymacarby clubwoman were unfortunately not enough however as Waterford tasted defeat at the hands of the Kingdom once more.
Cian Lynch and Michael Murphy
A month in which Cian Lynch delivered commanding performances for Limerick in the Munster Hurling Championship has earned him the May player of the month award.
Advertisement
Cian Lynch (L) and Michael Murphy (R). Photo (R): Inpho/Leah Scholes
Two pivotal wins over Waterford and Cork kept the six in a row dream alive with Lynch being the focal point in each. Three scores accompanied by an array of immaculate skills earned Lynch the Man of the Match award after a six-point triumph over Waterford.
In the next clash against league champions Cork in the TUS Gaelic Grounds, Limerick and Lynch in particular showed up from the opening whistle. The Limerick captain and playmaker was instrumental in a decisive 16-point victory which booked Limerick's spot in their seventh consecutive Munster final.
Donegal stalwart Michael Murphy has been awarded the May player of the month award for his inspirational performances throughout the month, none more prominent than the Ulster title decider versus defending All-Ireland champions Armagh.
After taking a year off Murphy appears to be back to his best, dominating aerial contests and overpowering his opposition.
Advertisement
A repeat of last year's Ulster final, the returning Murphy was the difference-maker, scoring three points and helping set up plenty more as Donegal retained their provincial crown. Murphy followed this up with an eight-point haul in a defeat against Tyrone in the All-Ireland series.
Managing Partner at PwC Ireland, Enda McDonagh, said: 'May brought a series of exceptional performances across all codes, as thrilling provincial campaigns concluded and the All-Ireland Championship series burst into life.
'On behalf of everyone at PwC, heartfelt congratulations to Niamh, Kellyann, Cian, and Michael on being honoured as May's Players of the Month."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
10 minutes ago
- The Independent
Tennis superstar becomes co-owner of football club
Tennis icon Novak Djokovic has acquired a part-ownership stake in French Ligue 2 club Le Mans FC. He joins a group of high-profile investors, including former Formula 1 drivers Felipe Massa and Kevin Magnussen. The significant investment is led by the Brazilian consortium OutField, co-founded by Pedro Olivera, and also features Georgios Frangulis of OakBerry. Le Mans FC highlighted that Djokovic's mental strength and the F1 stars' experience will bring considerable added value and create a unique link between football and motorsport. The newly promoted club is set to commence their Ligue 2 season on 9 August.
Reuters
11 minutes ago
- Reuters
Milner to honour former teammate Jota with jersey number switch
Aug 1 (Reuters) - Brighton & Hove Albion's James Milner will don the number 20 shirt this season as a tribute to former Liverpool teammate Diogo Jota, who died in a car crash in Spain last month. Jota and his brother Andre Silva were killed in early July when their Lamborghini veered off the road and burst into flames in northwestern Spain. The Portuguese forward had worn the number 20 during his time at Liverpool, where he and Milner played together for three seasons before the veteran midfielder's move to Brighton in 2023. "Once I heard Carlos (Baleba) was looking to change his number and 20 was available, I wanted to do it as a mark of respect and obviously pay tribute to Diogo Jota," Milner said. "(He was) an amazing player I was fortunate to play with and a great friend as well. So it'd be a great honour to wear his number in the Premier League." Liverpool are permanently retiring the number 20 after consultation with the player's wife Rute and family. The squad number will not be used at any level, including the women's team and academy. The 39-year-old Milner recently agreed a one-year contract extension with Brighton and is chasing Premier League history of his own. With 638 Premier League appearances already to his name, he sits within striking distance of Gareth Barry's all-time record of 653 games.
BBC News
11 minutes ago
- BBC News
'We back ourselves' - Gordon eyes Rangers scalp to ignite Askou era
Motherwell defender Liam Gordon is excited to put Jens Berthel Askou's "fresh ideas" into practice in the Premiership opener at home to manager Askou's clear vision of possession-based attractive football has been evident in the Steelmen's successful League Cup group-stage campaign and pre-season draw with Hertha Berlin."We've learned lots of new ideas and we're really enjoying it, I'm just exited to take the new style into the league campaign," said Gordon."I think you can see from the first few games against Hertha and then the League Cup games we're focusing much more on possession and controlling the game on and off the ball."The manager has given us a good structure to build from and we all know our jobs. It's been very detailed personally and collectively. He's brought a nice fresh idea to Motherwell and hopefully it will be successful."Gordon believes the visit of Rangers on Saturday is the perfect test, adding: "I get that it's tough right at the start of the season, but I think it's a great game to kick us off. Especially at home to one of the biggest teams in the country."You can always be better but we take confidence from the Hertha game, who were a very good opposition and probably a similar standard to Rangers."So I don't see why we can't do the same again, we're under no illusion it will be easy but we back ourselves."Askou has not ruled out the possibility of Lennon Miller featuring on Saturday and Gordon praised the teenage star's mentality amid fervent transfer speculation."He just handles his business, I sometimes feel I'm a young player speaking to him the way he carries himself but honestly he's been brilliant," he said."So much noise around him but you'd never know, just takes it in his stride. I'd be a nervous wreck so credit to him."
