Patrick Horgan and Conor McManus, proof that brilliance doesn't need an All-Ireland medal

When Monaghan defeated Armagh in the 2023 All-Ireland quarter-final on penalties, the arrival of Conor McManus into the match in the 40th minute ensured that Monaghan had possibly the greatest player the county has ever produced on the field when it mattered most.

And when it did, McManus delivered. His leadership was vital late on, especially in the last play of extra-time when McManus won a free, which he converted. His penalties were also sublime, nailing two when the shootout went to sudden death.

Monaghan subsequently lost the All-Ireland semi-final to Dublin and, when McManus came back again in 2024, he stated at the outset of this season that it would more than likely be his last with Monaghan.

McManus did feature in every championship match for Monaghan in 2024 but, of his 0-9, only 0-1 was from play. 

McManus hasn’t said yet what his plans are for 2025 but it’s possible that he may have played his last match at senior inter-county.

If he has, McManus couldn’t have given any more to the cause, having played every senior championship game for Monaghan since 2008. In that time, McManus accumulated a staggering 9-291 in championship football.

ELITE

Despite playing with a serious hip injury in recent years, McManus is still fourth in the list of all-time leading championship scorers, behind Cillian O’Connor, Colm Cooper and Dean Rock.

In the top 20 championship scorers, McManus is one of only five players to have made that list without having won an All-Ireland medal, alongside Cillian O’Connor (Mayo), John Doyle (Kildare), Paddy Bradley (Derry) and Ross Munnelly (Laois).

Munnelly is the only one of that five in the top-15 list of championship appearances. That’s not really a surprise considering that O’Connor is the only one of those five to have played in an All-Ireland final – and he played in six of them, including one replay. That would have been seven if O’Connor hadn’t missed the 2021 final against Tyrone with injury.

O’Connor’s scoring statistics have been phenomenal. Despite having played 10 less championship games than Cooper, O’Connor has already accumulated 117 points more than the Kerry-man. And he isn’t finished yet.

Neither is Aidan O’Shea; back in June, O’Shea became the first outfield footballer to clock more than 90 championship appearances. O’Shea moved ahead of Seán Cavanagh’s 89. The only footballer to have played more championship matches than O’Shea is Stephen Cluxton, but Cluxton is a freak, having accumulated a colossal 126 championship appearances.

Cluxton’s record haul of All-Ireland medals (nine) sets him apart, alongside James McCarthy and Michael Fitzsimons, but the example of O’Connor, O’Shea and McManus underlines how some of the most iconic players of the modern era are those without All-Ireland medals.

Mayo’s Lee Keegan and Andy Moran could also be added to that list. Having so many players from one team who tried, and are still so valiantly trying, for so long does bump up their figures, especially around appearances. Yet one of the standout features of any comparison with the top list of championship scorers and appearances in football and hurling is that the hurling lists mostly include All-Ireland winners.

And Patrick Horgan remains the most commendable figure in that context.

After swapping the top-scoring championship record over and back with TJ Reid over the last couple of seasons, Horgan reclaimed it during the All-Ireland final against Clare in July.

At the outset of the season, Horgan was third on the list of most championship appearances but he surpassed Michael 'Brick' Walsh during the summer, and is now second, behind Reid.

PHENOMENAL

However, along with Brick Walsh and Tony Browne, Horgan is the only other player on that top-20 list of championship appearances that doesn’t have an All-Ireland medal. 

If that list is extended to the top 40, the only other player without an All-Ireland medal in that bracket is Seamus Harnedy.

In the top-20 list of highest championship scorers, Horgan is joined by four other players who don’t have that precious Celtic Cross - Lee Chin (Wexford), Donal Burke (Dublin), Shane Dooley (Offaly) and Paul Flynn (Waterford).

It's unknown if Reid will return for 2025 but Horgan certainly intends to. Whenever he does pack up, it’s unlikely that anyone else outside of Reid will ever get close to Horgan’s phenomenal scoring record in the future.

At the moment, the players still playing (outside of Reid) who are closest to Horgan’s record are still galaxies away; Tony Kelly is 346 points behind Horgan; Aaron Gillane is 384 points back; Horgan is 389 points ahead of Chin, and 436 ahead of Donal Burke.

Reid and Horgan are the first players in history to accumulate more than 80 championship appearances. Reid is one shy of 90 now, but Horgan has that milestone in his sights now too.

Horgan’s primary quest for an All-Ireland medal continues but he gave an interesting insight before the All-Ireland final as to what keeps driving him on his journey.

“I’ve spent 17 years of my life coming here, hanging out with the boys, new fellas coming in, getting to know them, becoming great friends with them,” he said.

“That means a lot to me. 

Obviously, it'd be unbelievable if we could get across the line, but it can't be just about that. You know what I mean?” 

Everything is measured so much by an All-Ireland medal. Yet as Horgan, McManus, O’Connor, Keegan, Moran – and so many more like them – have shown, it can’t be just about that Celtic Cross.