There was a packed schedule of Minor football this week, as we entered the business end of the provincial title chases around the country.
Galway overcame Roscommon in a thrilling affair at Pearse Stadium on Wednesday night to book their place in the final, while Kerry were dominant against Clare to claim yet another Munster title.
There were some standout performances worthy of mention in both games, including whoever was manning Roscommon's twitter account for the game against Galway. They struggled on and kept us abreast of the latest developments, despite the inhospitable conditions.
There could be trouble here, no tea in the press box! #gaa
— Roscommon GAA (@RoscommonGAA) June 28, 2017
The real nominees for the Electric Ireland Minor Player of the Week award were actually on the pitch however, and you can cast your ballot every week on Electric Ireland's Facebook page, or get involved in the conversation through #GAAThisIsMajor.
Liam Boyle - Galway
Galway are looking for their third Minor title in a row, and they faced a difficult test against Roscommon to secure their place in the final this past week.
Liam Boyle lead by example on the night from wing back, helping his side to stay calm despite not making the most of some of their early dominance.
After Roscommon found the back of the net to take the lead, he scored a point that settled whatever nerves there may have been, and was on hand to stick a point over the bar when Rory Cunningham's effort came back off the post.
Oran Burke's late penalty save may have had him in with a shout for the Man of the Match award for the Tribesboys on the night too, but Boyle's contribution at both ends of the pitch gets him the nod this time around.
Brian Derwin – Roscommon
The final scoreline doesn't quite reflect just how difficult Roscommon made life for Galway, and Derwin's performance kept his side within touching distance at key points in the game, scoring 1-03 of his side's 1-06 on the night.
With both sides pointing just once in the opening quarter, it was a tight affair from the off. Derwin got the scoreboard moving for Roscommon after 10 minutes, and sprang into action again a quarter of an hour later, finding enough space in the Galway defence to put the ball in the back of the net.
That gave Roscommon a two point lead, but Galway were able to peg them back and head in at half-time with nothing between the two sides. As Galway looked to continue that scoring run after the break, Derwin stepped up with two vital frees and made sure that the Rossies were once again on level terms as the game entered its closing stages.
A flurry of five unanswered points and a goal proved to be too much for Roscommon to come back from, but had they not missed a late penalty, they could have caused a real upset against one of the best Minor sides in the country.
Donal O’Sullivan – Kerry
Kerry were completely dominant on their way to claiming another Munster final win this weekend. Clare had no response as the Kingdom cruised to a 2-21 to 0-03 win, and it was O'Sullivan who caught the eye with a thrilling scoring performance.
Captain David Clifford scored six points in the first half to make sure his side went in at the break with commanding lead, but not to be outdone, O'Sullivan turned on the style in the second period.
Some words may have been had in the dressing room about the amount of wides that Kerry were racking up, and O'Sullivan almost single-handedly looked to set that right in the second. He racked up eight points, and showed no mercy as he added two well-taken late goals to his tally to round out his strong performance.
One thing's for sure, the Kerry production line looks to be running as well as ever when it comes to Minor talent.
You can cast your vote for your Minor Player of the Week nominees every week on Electric Ireland's Facebook page.
