After Cork recently bagged All-Stars in both codes for the first time in four years, a discussion began on Twitter (https://twitter.com/search?q=%23CorkDreamTeam&src=hash) to pick respective All-Star teams of all time from the Rebel hurlers and footballers who have collected awards since their inception in 1970. Here are my selections:
FOOTBALL
- Billy Morgan - just shades it from John Kerins
- Niall Cahalane - the toughest and most committed defender of his era
- Michael Shields - with honourable mentions to Colman Corrigan and Kevin Kehily
- Anthony Lynch - fantastically reliable during a relatively lean period before 2010
- Ciarán O'Sullivan - arguably the best Cork defender to never win an All-Ireland medal
- Stephen O'Brien - gets the nod ahead of Conor Counihan
- Graham Canty - his contemporary John Miskella is unlucky to miss out
- Shea Fahy - keeps his usual partner, Teddy McCarthy, out
- Aidan Walsh - two All-Stars by the age of 22 is just enough to have him ahead of Nicholas Murphy
- Joe Kavanagh - twice a goalscorer in All-Ireland finals but never finished on the winning side
- Larry Tompkins - probably the first name down on this team
- Paul McGrath - squeezes out a Cork sporting legend in Dave Barry
- Jimmy Barry-Murphy - arguably Cork GAA's most iconic personality
- Ray Cummins - still the only player to be honoured on both hurling and football All-Star teams in the same year
- Colin Corkery - like Kavanagh, never got to enjoy the ultimate reward his talent deserved
HURLING
- Donal Óg Cusack - tough call but just got the nod ahead of Ger Cunningham
- Wayne Sherlock - difficult to accept that he never again started a championship game after collecting his award
- Diarmuid O'Sullivan - shades the full-back spot ahead of Martin O'Doherty
- John Horgan - gets in before both Brian Murphys
- Seán Óg hÁilpín - chosen ahead of his contemporaries Ronan Curran and John Gardiner
- Brian Corcoran - picked in the position that he best demonstrated his leadership and dominance
- Denis Coughlan - edges out both the Cashman brothers
- John Fenton - an automatic choice with five All-Star awards
- Gerald McCarthy - his haul of five All-Ireland medals edges out Jerry O'Connor
- Ben O'Connor - squeezes out Tomás Mulcahy
- Jimmy Barry-Murphy - seven All-Star awards, five of them as a hurler, says it all
- Tony O'Sullivan - another five-time All-Star
- Charlie McCarthy - a five-time All-Ireland medallist like his namesake
- Ray Cummins - revolutionised full-forward play and was rewarded with a place on the Team of the Millennium
- Joe Deane - arguably Cork's most reliable and consistent marksman
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