By anyone’s standards, it’s fair to say that 2016 has been a remarkable year, even if it’s mostly been for the wrong reasons.
Some of our most beloved icons of the music, sporting and cultural world have passed on.
Enda Kenny hung on as Taoiseach. Just.
Attacks in Paris in late 2015 were followed by attacks in Brussels and Nice this year. The refugee crisis has gotten worse.
Britain went ahead and left the European Union and didn’t seem to know how to deal with it afterwards.
Donald Trump has just been elected as the President of the United States. Donald Trump, the most powerful man on the planet, who’d have thunk it?
But still, it hasn’t been all bad.
The 1916 commemorations were beautifully observed and something to be proud of.
We represented ourselves with distinction at the Euros, both on and off the pitch. We beat the All-Blacks for the first time in our history. Our most talented actors and musicians have continued to fly the flag on the world stage.
As we did for the first time last year, at JOE we want to celebrate the men who made the better moments of the last 12 months possible and are calling on our readers to help by voting in the JOE Men of the Year awards.
Over the next few weeks, we want you to vote for the men that stood out in the sporting, music and cultural worlds and the men that helped carry the fight for some of the most important issues facing Irish society today.
We haven’t forgotten about the most important people of all, of course, and we’ll even have a couple of categories focussing on you: the JOE readers.
We’ll have more details on the specific categories and the nominees in due course but for now, we’re going to kick it with off with the big one: the JOE Man of the Year for 2016.
Here's who we have nominated; be sure to cast your vote at the bottom of the page.
Robbie Brady
When we’re looking back on Reeling in the Years 2016 many, many years from now, one of the images bound to stand out more than any other is that of Robbie Brady celebrating the goal against Italy that secured our progression from the group stages at Euro 2016.
That image of Brady, surrounded by those closest to him and caught up in pure emotion, summed up the mood of the nation at one of those rare but brilliant sporting moments, bringing to mind Italia ’90, Giants Stadium in ’94 and the Irish rugby team winning the Grand Slam in 2009.
Brady further cemented his status as a leader with a penalty against France in the last 16 and, having inherited the number 10 from Robbie Keane, will hopefully be a inspiration in green for years to come.
Blindboy Boatclub
Mental health has been a huge issue in Irish society, particularly amongst Irish men, for a long time, but it has arguably never been as firmly on the agenda as it has been in 2016.
That it is so is largely due to the work of a number of people and organisations, and Blindboy Boatclub of the Rubberbandits deserves singling out for special mention.
A special guest at two JOE mental health events in 2016, Blindboy has provided a refreshing and alternative outlook on the issue on public platforms; his speech on his unique guide to emotional intelligence is a must-watch.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zz82P0WqUh4
Conor McGregor
After finishing 2015 on top of the world, 2016 didn’t get off to the greatest of starts for The Notorious, who suffered defeat to Nate Diaz after jumping up two weight divisions and then teased the world about retiring from the UFC altogether.
McGregor soon got back on the horse by winning his rematch against Diaz and then becoming the first fighter in the UFC to hold titles at two different weight divisions at the same time (he has subsequently been stripped of his featherweight title) after delivering a masterclass against Eddie Alvarez in the first ever UFC event in New York.
If 2016 showed anything, it’s that McGregor is both the biggest star in the UFC right now and arguably in the history of the organisation. And boy, does he know it.
Stephen Kenny
Agonising defeat to Cork City in the FAI Cup Final will put something of a dampener on 2016 for Dundalk, but it has still been an unbelievable year for the Lilywhites.
By beating Maccabi Tel Aviv at Tallaght Stadium in September, Dundalk became the first Irish side ever to win points in the group stages of a European competition, where they continue to show that they are well able to compete with the big boys on the continent.
Behind that journey, behind the team that has won three league titles in a row, behind the team that is being talked about as potentially the greatest League of Ireland side of all time, is a man who is happy to deflect every bit of credit deservingly coming his way. Stephen Kenny, take a bow.
Lenny Abrahamson
Only three Irish directors have ever been nominated for a Best Director Oscar and Abrahamson became the third in 2016 for his work on Room, a truly harrowing yet uplifting picture.
Earlier this year, it was confirmed that Abrahamson’s already impressive body of work will soon include a biopic of bisexual boxer Emile Griffith.
Abrahamson has enlisted the assistance of Barry McGuigan in researching the movie about a man involved in one of the most controversial bouts in boxing history; Griffith's opponent, Benny Paret, died days after being knocked out in their fight in Madison Square Garden in 1962.
We represented ourselves with distinction at the Euros, both on and off the pitch. We beat the All-Blacks for the first time in our history. Our most talented actors and musicians have continued to fly the flag on the world stage.
As we did for the first time last year, at JOE we want to celebrate the men who made the better moments of the last 12 months possible and are calling on our readers to help by voting in the JOE Men of the Year awards.
Over the next few weeks, we want you to vote for the men that stood out in the sporting, music and cultural worlds and the men that helped carry the fight for some of the most important issues facing Irish society today.
We haven’t forgotten about the most important people of all, of course, and we’ll even have a couple of categories focussing on you: the JOE readers.
We’ll have more details on the specific categories and the nominees in due course but for now, we’re going to kick it with off with the big one: the JOE Man of the Year for 2016.
Here's who we have nominated; be sure to cast your vote at the bottom of the page.
That image of Brady, surrounded by those closest to him and caught up in pure emotion, summed up the mood of the nation at one of those rare but brilliant sporting moments, bringing to mind Italia ’90, Giants Stadium in ’94 and the Irish rugby team winning the Grand Slam in 2009.
Brady further cemented his status as a leader with a penalty against France in the last 16 and, having inherited the number 10 from Robbie Keane, will hopefully be a inspiration in green for years to come.
If 2016 showed anything, it’s that McGregor is both the biggest star in the UFC right now and arguably in the history of the organisation. And boy, does he know it.
Behind that journey, behind the team that has won three league titles in a row, behind the team that is being talked about as potentially the greatest League of Ireland side of all time, is a man who is happy to deflect every bit of credit deservingly coming his way. Stephen Kenny, take a bow.
Earlier this year, it was confirmed that Abrahamson’s already impressive body of work will soon include a biopic of bisexual boxer Emile Griffith.
Abrahamson has enlisted the assistance of Barry McGuigan in researching the movie about a man involved in one of the most controversial bouts in boxing history; Griffith's opponent, Benny Paret, died days after being knocked out in their fight in Madison Square Garden in 1962.
