CONSIDERING THE openness and unpredictable nature of this year’s GAA football championship, the Opel Gaelic Players Association team of the year has some notable differences to the rival All Star selection.

For starters, All-Ireland champions Cork drop from four to three representatives, although they have managed to get a forward included as Daniel Goulding held off a strong challenge from Kerry’s Colm Cooper.

Full back Michael Shields and wing back Paudie Kissane also made it through the voting process that pits three players in their specific positions against each other.

Down have five names on the list, after receiving just three All Stars, with goalkeeper Brendan McVeigh, Marty Clarke and Benny Coulter now joined by Kevin McKernan and Daniel Hughes.

Munster and Ulster champions, Kerry and Tyrone (winners of the previous seven All-Irelands between them), are unrepresented, having been removed from the championship at the All-Ireland quarter-finals by Down and Dublin respectively.

Only Goulding and Shields survive from last year’s team with, remarkably, no player back from the 2008, ’07 or ’06 sides.

Despite losing the 2009 All-Ireland final, Cork had six players in that team which was made up entirely of Cork and Kerry players with the exception of Kildare’s Dermot Early.

Cork’s young midfielder Aidan Walsh is another to miss out but considering John Galvin’s brilliant display in the Munster final defeat to Kerry not many would be surprised by players voting for the Limerick man.

Defeated All-Ireland semi-finalists Dublin and Kildare got two players in the team with Dublin corner back Philly McMahon joining Bernard Brogan, who is named at corner-forward, while Kildare’s Emmet Bolton saw off Cork’s Graham Canty for the centre-back spot with his team-mate John Doyle named at left-half forward.

Tyrone’s Philip Jordan is another notable absentee but that is due to the presence of Kissane.

The other players selected are Sligo corner-back Charlie Harrison and Louth midfielder Paddy Keenan.

Doyle, Brogan and Coulter are the nominees for the Gaelic Players Association footballer of the year, the result of which will be announced tonight at the awards ceremony at the Citywest hotel in Dublin. Brogan has already won the All Star version.

The winner will get an Opel car worth €25,000 while those in the team of the year will receive €2,500.

The hurler of the year will also be announced tonight. The nominees are Lar Corbett (Tipperary), Michael Fennelly (Kilkenny), Brendan Maher (Tipperary) and Tommy Walsh (Kilkenny).

“The Opel GPA awards stand alone in that the ultimate selection of the team is made by the players,” said Martin McHugh, the chairman of the football selection committee.

“As a selection committee we put forward who we believed were the three most deserving nominees for each position and now the players have made their choice.

“It is a great achievement for any footballer to be honoured by his fellow players and I congratulate the 2010 winners.”

Dessie Farrell, chief executive of the GPA, added, “There is no doubt that 2010 was a year of change in the football championship and I think the competitive nature of the season is reflected by the fact that seven counties are represented on the team of the year.

“I’d like to congratulate the 15 winners and all the nominees and thank all the players who voted.”