Only four counties remain in the 2020 All-Ireland Senior Gaelic Football Championship, in a year which has thrown up plenty of shocks on and off the GAA pitch.
The championship has reverted back to a straight knock-out format for the year, in an effort to deal with the disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
While that means there is a lot less inter-county football to savour, it has also resulted in some of the biggest upsets in decades.
All-Ireland semi-finalists combined XV.
Rank outsiders Tipperary and Cavan have claimed their provincial championships against all odds, for the first time in 85 years and 23 years, respectively.
Mayo managed to shake their poor form in the Connacht championship in recent years to win the J.J. Nester Cup when it mattered most.
Dublin meanwhile, maintained their dominance of the Leinster championship.
Some of the superb @sportsfile photos from Saturday night at Croke Park ??#UpTheDubs pic.twitter.com/3q81Y9Ypym
— Dublin GAA (@DubGAAOfficial) November 23, 2020
Below is an amalgamated starting 15 of the four remaining teams in the All-Ireland Championship.
To keep things interesting, there is a maximum of five players from each county in the line up.
Combined starting XV
- Raymond Galligan (Cavan / Lacken Celtic)
- Michael Fitzsimons (Dublin / Cuala)
- Jonny Cooper (Dublin / Na Fianna)
- Lee Keegan (Mayo / Westport)
- Patrick Durcan (Mayo / Castlebar Mitchels)
- Killian Clarke (Cavan / Shercock)
- James McCarthy (Dublin / Ballymun Kickhams)
- Thomas Galligan (Cavan / Lacken Celtic)
- Aidan O’Shea (Mayo / Breaffy)
- Ciaran Kilkenny (Dublin / Castleknock)
- Gearoid McKiernan (Cavan / Swanlinbar)
- Michael Quinlivan (Tipperary / Clonmel Commercials)
- Conor Sweeney (Tipperary / Ballyporeen)
- Con O’Callaghan (Dublin/ Cuala)
- Cillian O’Connor (Mayo / Ballintubber)
Notable omissions for the team include seven-time All-Ireland winning Dublin captain Stephen Cluxton, who loses out to Cavan captain Raymond Galligan.
While Cluxton is arguably the greatest goalkeeper of all time, Galligan’s contribution to Cavan’s incredible Ulster Championship run cannot be ignored.
Dublin sharpshooter Dean Rock has also missed out, with competition in the full-forward line particularly fierce.
Let us know what you think of the team on Facebook and Twitter and feel free to come up with your own starting 15 from the remaining sides.
Read More About: All-Ireland, cavan, Dublin, GAA, mayo, tipperary
