2025 Gaelic Football and Hurling Awards

This past Friday, the Albany Rebels GAA celebrated another year in the books. This year marked a changing of the guard for the team and the club with rookies stepping in on the field and longtime Chair and heart of the Rebels, Cillian Flavin, stepping down because he loves his family or something silly like that.

To the awards!

Football Awards

Player of the Year: Kevin “The Backdoor Bantry Bandit” Clifford

This award goes to the player who had the best season. While the competition was stiff, Coach Henry Best mentioned giving serious consideration to at least 4 players, at the end of the day it was obvious Kevin had one of the best seasons a Rebel has ever had. An import from Nowhereville, Cork County, Kevin adapted well to a social circle devoid of livestock. He played both midfield and halfback for the Rebels providing excellent distribution, ball-carrying, ball-winning, and steady free kicks throughout the season. Unfortunately, he blew his hamstring in the first-half of the first game at Midwest Championships after not drinking for the whole week leading up to it. I don’t think he’ll make the same mistake next year. 

Rookie of the Year: Jason Chicone

This award goes to the best Rebel who is brand new to Gaelic Football. The brother of stalwart Rebel Joe Chicone, Jason stepped on the practice field and immediately became one of the best players on the team. In a normal year, Jason might’ve won Player of the Year. The guy is tall, annoyingly handsome, friendly, scrappy on the field, intelligent in how he moves the ball, and can actually kick a point the proper way (harder to do than you’d think!)! There’ve been some great rookies over the years: RC Helsing, Mark Adam, Henry Best, Marc Massena, but Jason’s maiden voyage might be the best yet. He looks like he’s played the sport for years and even the great athletes who dominate from the start typically don’t seem like they quite know what they’re doing at first.

Most Improved Player: Chris Hunley

This award goes to the player who made the biggest leap in their ability this season. Chris joined near the end of last year and had a big impact in his first game against Hartford. He came into the next year determined to make an impact, and did he ever. He won pretty much every hop ball he competed for, scored goals, and attacked kickouts in the air with vicious intensity. Great guy to have a beer with to boot. We’ll miss you Chris!

Most Like Chuck Flood: Craig Larsen

Chuck Flood is a former player and the only former player to have an award named after him. The reasons are obvious: Men want to be him, women want to be with him, children dream of becoming him. Chuck is tall, chiseled, has the charisma of 007, the tenacity of Indiana Jones, and the heroic goodness of RANGO. Craig embodies Chuck in many of these attributes. He is as pure an Albany Rebel as there has ever been. He fights like a demon on the field and has a great time off of it. He’s a welcoming ambassador for the team and as generous a friend as you could hope to have. #Justice4Gingers

Mines of Moria Defender of the Year: RC Helsing

Scoring may be sexy and get all the attention, but as a selfless talented player (WHO COULD SCORE WHENEVER WANTED IF HE WANTED TO) who has languished on the dirty side of midfield, Coach Henry Best decided there needed to be an award for the players whose main contributions are making games ugly.

After moving to fullback midseason, RC went from a great defender to the man who stood before the Balrog and shouted “YOU SHALL NOT PASS” and put the Balrog firmly on its ass. As the last line of defense, RC was key to Rebel success in Syracuse and at Midwest. RC has the grit of a warrior and has been referred to as the beating heart of this team. Selfishly, I kind of hope Buffalo sports misery continues so he can stay in a bad mood for game days.

Irish Viking of the Year: Marc Massena

The invasion and integration of the Vikings is a huge part of Irish history and cultural development. The Irish Viking of the Year is the player who best embodied the Viking spirit on the field of violence and disregard for personal safety. 

Despite his scrawny nature, Marc is no mere finesse attacker. He covers every blade of grass on the field and assaults any opponent who ends up with the ball. Marc also gets hurt every game and practice. He rolls around like he’s dead, and then as a Viking newly arrived in Valhalla, he rises to fight on more violently than before.

Golden Boot: Pierre Massena

No ties this year, Pierre scored the most goals on the team.

“Orange Crush” Play of the Year: Pierre Massena

In the final game of NY Cup play, the Rebels found themselves down a point with less than a minute to go against Syracuse. Pierre won the kickout from Des Norris just beyond midfield. He turned and ran through the entire Syracuse defense en route to a game winning goal with seconds left on the clock.

Weather Boy of the Year: Alex Bielfeld

The Rebels have been blessed with many talented professionals over the years, however in recent years we’ve found ourselves bursting at the seams with weathermen. This year, Alex stood far above the others (Liam Healey). Unlike Liam, Alex came to training. Unlike Liam, Alex came to most of our games. Unlike Liam, Alex never bailed at the last minute. And unlike Liam, Alex is a nice handsome guy.

Rec League Weekend Warriors of the Year: Craig Larsen and Frank Cabe

Playing like a rabid animal during our competitive matches is easy. Going out in a just for fun Saturday morning rec league and playing every game like it’s your last is something else. Frank and Craig embodied the spirit of the grinder on Saturdays with Frank even suffering a broken finger for his troubles.

Club Awards:

The Cillian Cup

After months of hard work, Jack Conley finished construction of the Cillian Cup. With the likeness of eternal Cillian Flavin embedded Han Solo style on the front, the Cillian Cup will be cherished for generations to come. The cup is made of 24-carat gold harvested in the 1795 Wicklow Gold Rush. The wood from the base was carved from a centuries old Sessile Oak which tragically fell in a storm last year deep in the vasts of County Limerick. Legend has it, Kerry footballing  icon Maurice Fitzgerald once relieved himself on this tree during a hiking trip in his youth.

The Inaugural Cillian Cup was presented by Christopher Scotto Di Carlo to the GFRL champion Scotto Tacos led by RC Helsing. Their beer of choice for the cup was Labatt Blue. The trophy will reside with the Tacos until next year a new champion is crowned and has the honor of joining generations of footballing heroes in lifting the Gaelic world's most sought after and venerated trophy: the Cillian Cup.

John Carswell Rebel of the Year: Henry Best

5’5” of pure thunder!

This award goes to the volunteer who has gone above and beyond in their contributions to the club. To paraphrase Cillian Flavis: Last year, Henry Best had the idea to take over as football coach. He introduced a new focus and style of play to the team. While his pregame speeches were a little demented, there was a method to the madness. This year, Henry had the idea to start a Rec League that he tried and failed to rig, he had the idea to help coach the youth program, and he had the idea to take over doing write-ups for the website. 

With that last bit in mind, it’s worth reflecting that the megalomaniac’s pursuit of power often begins with gradually taking over small institutions before moving on to nation states and finally the inevitable march to Global Hegemon.

Hurling Awards:

For the 3rd year in a row, the Rebels hurlers played for a Midwest Junior D Championship! Couldn’t get over the line this year, but the success of the hurlers has been a great source of pride for the Rebels (let’s go immigration!)

Player of the Year: Stuart McMahon

The pride of County Clare, Stuart is cerebral leader on and off the field. A mobile ball winner and clutch point scorer, Stuart has been a key cog in the Rebels hurling success the last two years (he’s a hell of a footballer too). Quick with a laugh, he’s been a great addition to the club and we look forward to having him as a foundational leader on the hurling squad for years to come.

Rookie of the Year: Taylor Epting

One time hip-hop dancer, Taylor is an animal on the field. Like football rookie Jason Chicone, Taylor looks like he’s been playing the sport for years. Winning sliotars against experienced players and playing precision passes up the field, Taylor was a big part of the Rebels hopes for a repeat of last year's championship. Guy showed up to his first practice wearing cowboy boots–no cleats.

Most Improved Player: Geoff O’Connor

A dual athlete, Geoff grew immensely as a player over the course of the year. In the beginning, he had the typical struggles of new hurlers: doing anything with the sliotar was extremely difficult. But by the time Midwest rolled around, Geoff was one of the best defenders on the field. He won balls and played through taking a full swing from a hurl off his shin. He was a key cog in a dramatic last-second game winning goal in the semi-finals against Akron. We’ll miss you Geoff!