JOE Men Of The Year Awards: Who is your man of the year for 2015? Sponsored by Virgin Media

Who caught your eye in 2015?

It might feel like barely a wet week since January but Christmas is only around the corner and it's time to reflect on all that's gone on over the past 11 months. We’re bang in the middle of awards season at present and as the voice of Irish men, here at JOE.ie we thought we’d join the fun by paying tribute to the men who have really made their mark in 2015. Who made you proud in the last year? Who made the hair stand up on the back of your neck? Who made you laugh? Who made you cry real man tears, not just tears caused by the chopping of a particularly pungent onion? To help celebrate the men who made those moments and many more, we’re calling on you to vote in the JOE Men Of The Year Awards. Over the next few weeks, we want you to vote on the men that stood out in sport, music, comedy, fashion and many more fields and we’ll even have a couple of categories focussing on the most important people of all: the JOE readers. We’ll have more details on the specific categories and the nominees tomorrow but for now, we’re going to kick it with off with the big one: the JOE Man of the Year for 2015. Here's who we have nominated as 2015 Man of the Year, sponsored by Virgin Media - be sure and cast your vote at the bottom of the page.

Paul O’Connell

A month has passed since the heartbreaking sight of big Paul O’Connell being stretchered off the Millennium Stadium pitch yet it’s still hard to believe we’ll never see him in a green jersey again. Prior to his injury, O’Connell had been enjoying an Indian summer and playing some of the best rugby of his career and you only have to listen to the tributes of his teammates to recognise what an inspirational leader he was right to the last. We’re sure going to miss him.

Rory O’Neill AKA Pantibliss

When we look back on 2015 in years to come, the day May 23 will stand out above all others; the day that Ireland made history in becoming the first country in the world to recognise same-sex marriage. Few made as much of an impact on the ‘Yes’ side as Rory O’Neill, AKA Pantibliss, and a good year was made even better with the success of the documentary, Queen of Ireland, which was released to rave reviews in October. Hozier’s self-titled debut album was released at the tail end of 2014, but since the turn of the year his star has risen to stratospheric levels. The release of singles like ‘Work Song’ and ‘Someone New’ illustrated that ‘Take Me to Church’ is far from the only highlight on a fantastic album, while performances at the Grammys and on a whole host of US TV shows have showcased his talent to a global audience. In January, Conor McGregor was fighting and beating an average fighter in Dennis Siver in a fairly average UFC event in Boston. By mid-July, he had become UFC Interim Featherweight Champion in the MGM Grand in Las Vegas and had cemented his status as one of the bona-fide stars of a sport that continues to grow worldwide. 2015 was a pretty good one for ‘The Notorious’ alright. If you were in any doubt as to how big McGregor has become, just wait and see the hype that will greet his long-awaited bout with Jose Aldo in Vegas next month. It’s going to be huge. Well, he put the ball in the German net, didn’t he? After his exploits against Bosnia and as the hero of the Euro 2016 qualifying campaign, we felt it our duty to include the great Jon Walters as a late entry. Check out a more detailed explanation for Walters' late inclusion . Get voting.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHMyAs9T3BE