We women like our GAA. A lot. Ask any female fan, hardcore or part-timer, what it is exactly that grips her and she'll cite exactly the same reasons as her male counterparts: the thrill, the skill, the passion, the sense of community and the pounding of your heart as the national anthem sounds in Croke Park. But these are clearly not the only attractions. What she may not be as forthcoming about are the bulging triceps, the well-developed pecs, the quads glistening with sweat, the broad shoulders and the shapely buttocks, all of which make GAA-going so much fun from the aesthetic perspective. While not wanting to sound politically incorrect, it would be naive to suggest that the sight of 30 fit athletes in their prime, attired in shorts and battling it out on the pitch isn't part of the appeal for many women. There are no official figures relating to female attendees at matches but you only have to look around at any of them, from club to championship level, to see that the female turnout at matches is very high. Forget rugby and forget soccer because GAA, it appears, has now triumphed to become the sexiest of sports.

But what exactly is so sexy about GAA? "It's a question I've often asked myself when I'm standing on the sideline, being battered by the Irish wind and rain," says Fiona Hyland from Mountmellick, and an avid game goer. Her hobby, she jokes, is shopping and her husband's is GAA so consequently they weren't spending any quality time together. "I thought, 'Thirty testosterone-fuelled men in shorts on a football pitch? Maybe I could endure an hour of that.' That was probably 20 years ago and now I'm an expert – on GAA that is, and not testosterone-filled men in shorts! I think quite possibly for my female GAA pals, and me, it might even have been a bit of 'If you can't beat them, join them'. It's a similar scenario to when women started frequenting pubs in the 1960s and look at us today. That's how I started going but what keeps me there is passion. It gets into your blood."

What Hyland has noticed in her two decades of match going is that there now exists a new generation of women who use GAA matches as a chance to eye up members of the opposite sex, both on and off the pitch. "On one occasion in Croke Park last year, I commented to my friends at the amount of groups of young women at the match wearing miniskirts and stilettos," she says. Lisa Fallon, sports reader with Newstalk, agrees that as a social outing, a trip to a GAA match is unparalleled and says that with the concerted effort in this country to get people to socialise outside of the pub, sport is proving a popular alternative – naturally, post-match discussion over pints afterwards is a given. "I've been at sporting venues all over the world and I've been to rugby and soccer internationals, I've been to Cheltenham race festivals, boxing matches and while they're all unique in their atmospheres, there's something very raucous and intense about a GAA one," she says.

A stand out memory for her is the 2005 Dublin-Tyrone quarter-final, which she describes as the most insane, hysterical atmosphere she's ever experienced. "Owen Mulligan scored a goal for Tyrone and that was it, it was over. And even though there was still probably 25 minutes to play, you knew the game was over. It's like live theatre in front of you. Your lads are there and they're putting their bodies on the line and you're kicking every ball with them, you're catching every ball, you're tackling everyone, you're doing it with them. When you know it's taken away from them, it's like the most gut wrenching feeling ever. I don't think there's anything else in life that gives you such a range of emotions in the range of 70 minutes."

Emotional highs and lows aside, there is the sheer physicality factor to take into account and Fallon thinks that modern Irish women are certainly more sexually liberated than of yore, and that the GAA are cognisant of this fact. "When the GAA are marketing their own products, it's natural that they're going to use a bit of eye-candy, for want of a better word. They're going to go for the better looking players or the ones that have the most prowess on the pitch in terms of scoring ability," she says.

She notes approvingly that some county boards have acknowledged that women are attending games and have produced jerseys for women. "They fit the boobs, they fit the waist and they're much more flattering. Jesus Christ, I remember wearing jerseys 10 or 15 years ago and it was like putting a cardboard box on you – big, square, massive yokes that came down to your knees and no matter how small a jersey you got, it still looked completely bulky and wrong on a woman."

In terms of women finding players attractive, Fallon's stance is that GAA players have a different appeal to the Ronaldos of the world. "You're looking at fellows that have athletic, muscular bodies but there's also something very reachable about a GAA player, that you don't have with a Premier League player. They're [soccer players] heavily promoted and in magazines, they live in a different world to us. They're earning millions for a start. But GAA players aren't like that. They're working like everyone else. People have more of a sense of closeness to them and ownership of them ✒ because these lads are playing in their back yard."

Fiona Hyland agrees. "They're sexy because a lot of them are quite grounded. They absolutely have to love what they're doing because they're giving up all their spare time and it can be a thankless job too. They can be a hero today and tomorrow you can hear people shouting abuse. You're only as good as your last goal or your last good pass."

Whatever the reasons for women's interest in GAA, not everyone agrees that it's a recent phenomenon. RTE's Joanne Cantwell says that there has always been a strong female presence at GAA games over the years. "Whether or not it's increased is not something I've observed because I've always noticed that there are a lot of women at GAA matches." What does she think the appeal for women is? "I would see its appeal for women being the same from men. It's a great game – both football and hurling are great games – and I don't see why it should be different for one sex as opposed to another. Even in years gone by you had a lot of women involved at club level and even on county boards and attending games, being involved in teams so it's not really all that new. Perhaps we're noticing it more and also, more women are starting to play camogie and football and that's fuelling it as well. Obviously the more girls and women that are playing, the more interested they are in GAA in general and they're going to go to games," she maintains.

Female fans also starting younger. Lisa Fallon's six-year-old daughter Emma became besotted with Dublin goalie Stephen Cluxton and asked Santa for the new Dublin kit, a magic potion to make Dublin win the All Ireland and to meet Stephen Cluxton. When Christmas Day came, Santa had left her shorts, a jersey, socks and a potion in a bowl, decorated with blue tinsel and little Dublin flags. The highlight however was Stephen Cluxton's mobile number written on a blackboard and she had to be dissuaded from ringing him at 7.30am on Christmas morning. She eventually did meet him at the Blue Star game in January where she presented him with the potion (which he promised to sprinkle Mossy Quinn with) and he deemed her his best Dublin friend.

Of course Dublin didn't win the All Ireland that year and were beaten in the semi-final. Emma decided that Santa hadn't given her enough potion but she's still besotted with Cluxton who also makes time to say hello to her when he sees her at matches. "It's that personal touch. The players are always great with the kids and you always see them down doing couching with the clubs and stuff like that," her mother says. "It's great that they're so in touch with the community and it just makes them more accessible. Women are always going to be attracted to that kind of guy."

So we have skill, we have passion, we have commitment. We have teams of men who are dedicated to what they do and who give it their all. And as someone once pointed, the bubble perm never made it into Croke Park. The men of GAA retain a potent masculinity and have been in the main unaffected by the wimpiness that is endemic in soccer and even seems to have creeped into rugby. Is it any wonder that Irish women appreciate their GAA players so much?

And as for the finer points of their appeal? Pour over our 25 sexiest stars. Lads, you make us proud.

Best man crush material

ross mcconnell

dublin

We've done a poll – well, we asked a couple of guys – and Ross's name came up repeatedly as the man they would like to look like. What is it exactly about him? He's just got the whole package – looks, ability and a great personality too boot. He's got a fine pedigree too. His father played for Meath and his grandad was an All Ireland medal winner with the Royals in 1949 and 1954.

Best curls

eamonn mcgee

donegal

Admittedly, a head full of corkscrew curls is not always the sexiest look for a man. But Eamonn breaks all the rules. His delightful noggin is adorned with dirty blonde ringlets, curling snugly against his scalp, giving him a Ryan Phillipe-type allure. Of course, fundamentally Eamonn is just a fine-looking specimen, and when he occasionally shaves the curls he totally gets away with it. But given a choice, we'd say to keep those spiralling tresses.

Best eyes

finian hanley

galway

Unlike his peers, with their normal-shaped peepers, young Finian has the most darling, slanting orbs. There's none of this run-of-the-mill roundness for Finian. His eyes turn down ever so slightly, especially when he smiles, giving him a very appealing cheekiness, combined with a bit of vulnerability. And he has taken part in an anti-drink-driving campaign and a walkathon to raise money for Temple Street Children's hospital. Cute, talented and morally conscientious. Enough to dilate any girl's pupils.

Best brooders

the brogan brothers

dublin

Captain Alan Brogan's face is gracing the back of busses all over the capital at the moment in a campaign for Opel bringing a smile to the faces of female commuters. The good looking elder Brogan brother could have a lucrative modelling career when the time to hang up his boots comes, and we can feast our eyes on the upcoming talent of younger brothers Bernard and Paul, both on the Dublin panel.

Best legs

Tom Kelly

Laois

Kelly's pins are simply superb and it's a pure pleasure to watch him go on the pitch. They tick all the right boxes being muscly (but not frighteningly so), shapely and they're always lovely and tanned too. We're not suggesting for one second that the wing-back does anything unnatural to achieve their golden hue. Clearly, wherever he goes on holidays, it's lovely and sunny and he gets them out. As he should because these are legs that a man should be immoderately proud of.

Best biceps

paul galvin

kerry

While there are many sexy GAA men gracing our pitches, not a huge proportion of them have bulging biceps to rival their rugby peers. However, Paul certainly breaks that mould. When he took his turn to lift the Sam Maguire last year and those muscles bunched and tensed and popped from his green and gold jersey, female hearts everywhere skipped a beat. We suggest to Paul that he takes his shirt off with much more regularity and commiserate with him over the length of his draconian suspension. Tommy Walsh from Kilkenny, didn't quite make the grade.

Best manly grimace

brendan devenney

donegal

Whether he's running, kicking, tackling, or just watching the play, Brendan always has this very specific grimace of determination fixed upon his face. His eyes are narrowed, his lips pursed, his cheeks blown out with effort. It's enough to make a girl go all a-flutter with nervous anticipation. And he scrubs up fantastically well off the pitch –dressed in a suit, Brendan looks handsome and respectable, with just a hint of the simmering warrior underneath. Sigh.

Best athena poster boy

eoin kelly

waterford

The defining poster for 1980s fatherhood was that famous Athena's 'Man and Baby'. Hurling's equivalent is this heart-melting picture of Eoin Kelly embracing his young son. It's a little bit cheesy but ladies everywhere loved it. Not to be mixed up with Tipp's Eoin Kelly, the Deise's Eoin K is a brutish force. The ladies love that too, as well as the fact he's one of Ireland's best hurlers. ✒

Best bone structure

michael meehan

galway

When the West get it right, they really get it right. Like an Adonis carved out of Connemara marble, Michael's bone structure is gratifyingly well-defined with cutting straight, strong lines in his face. Razor sharp cheek bones, a beautifully shaped nose and a chiselled chin combine to make this Galway man one of the most striking in GAA. We also happen to think that, with his thick dark hair and thin lips, Michael bears a startling resemblance to Clark Kent. The real Superman.

Best mover on the pitch

niall mcnamee

offaly

Clichéd as it sounds, McNamee is sheer poetry in motion. He has a poise and elegance that you never grow tired of watching. Combine that with his steely determination and it means that few other players get in his way. Those who do regret it. Of course it doesn't hurt that aside from his athletic grace, he also has a very attractive face. He's an important example to all those who thought that all Offaly men look like Brian Cowen.

Best roguish charm

ciaran whelan

dublin

Country people hate Whelo. They think he plays dirty but we wouldn't mind a bit of that. How envious are we of Darragh Ó Sé that he gets to rub up against him on a regular basis? A brilliant player and complete hottie.

Best eyebrows

ronan clarke

armagh

Never underestimate the seductive powers of a pair of nicely shaped, sardonic looking brows – see how well it worked for Jack Nicholson and Christian Slater. The fella also has a come-hither glint in his eye and looks like he would be kind but firm. Bonus points for his haircut, which is the Armagh equivalent of a Hoxton fin.

Best fashion-forward look

ciarÁn mcDonald

mayo

What is it with Mayo footballers and their dye jobs? McDonald might have gone a bit too far with the flowing gruaig, which sometimes verges on a more Ronald side than Ciaran, but his striking looks and locks definitely earn him a place in this list. He's not afraid to take chances with his look. The fact that McDonald has lost three All Irelands with Mayo just makes him more endearing. He's a fighter and that's why we love him.

Best jailbait

joe canning

galway

He's not even 20 years old, but Joe is already quite a man. It's his earnestness, his enthusiasm, his natural talent and above all his innocence that has endeared him to the Tribune. So young, so impressionable, and – best of all – so malleable. Of course, it doesn't hurt that he appears to have a hard little body under his maroon jersey. And that ever-present helmet only adds to his mystery. We look forward to following his burgeoning career with suitable scrutiny.

Best brunette

dan shanahan

waterford

Yum, yum. With his big chocolate brown eyes, rich brown hair and sallow skin, Dan's just a good-looking man. Even with his shirt off, the Waterford man doesn't lose his appeal, revealing a suitably manly torso that is matted with hair and adorned with tattoos. Indeed, Dan's best asset is most certainly his hair, and the Tribune reprimands his tendency to chop his thick brown locks. Let those follicles grow and flourish, Dan. Hair suits you.

Best baldy

martin flanagan

westmeath

It's not every man who can go naked on his head. Many try it (often many have no choice), but Martin Flanagan shows the male species how it's done. His fully, unapologetically, fantastically bald head screams of confident masculinity. Add that to his piercing eyes, lovely-shaped lips and exceptional ball skills and you have quite the potent combination. And of course, wherever there's a bald head, there's always the desire to see what it feels like...

Best bleach job

conor mortimer

mayo

Ordinarily, we don't agree with guys and frosted tips, it all smacks of private school 15-year-old running wild with the Sun-In during the summer holidays. That said, young Mort pulls it off. With his flowing surfer boy locks and excellent scoring record, we can only assume the golden sheen on his head distracts backs into basically handing him points. It's distracting in plenty of other non-sport related ways too.

boys to men

greatest gaa hits of the past

Kieran McGeeney

Armagh

It was a sad day for fans of the Armagh captain (who led the team to their first and only All Ireland victory) when he retired in 2007. Thankfully, he's still around, as Kildare manager. Why so hot? Pillow lips and sort of like a much better looking version of Eddie Irvine.

Dara Ó Cinneide

Kerry studio Bod

Whenever moral is low and we're in need of a bit of a boost, we look up Dara Ó Cinneide 2004 rousing acceptance speech when Kerry overcame Mayo in 2004 on YouTube. Maith an fear. He now makes The Sunday Game essential viewing – not that it isn't anyway.

Tony Davis

Cork

Football's loss was the Gardai's gain when the former Cork captain retired in 1993. The only player to have won All Ireland medals at minor, under-21, junior, senior and club levels, he's still a regular contributor to The Sunday Game and coaches the Douglas underage teams. Exceptionally manly.

Anthony Tohill

Derry

In the top-10 all-time scorers in Ulster inter-county football, he played an important role in Derry's 1993 All Ireland Championship-winning side and went on to represent Ireland in the International Rule Series. Tall (Six foot four, if you're curious), strapping, handsome and missed.

jimmy barry-murphy

cork

Unique in GAA history for popularising a hair style, at a time in history when skinheads were the preserve of thugs and hooligans, the dashing JBM made a crew cut cool.

Liam Hayes

Meath

It's been many years since Liam cut his dashing figure on the pitch (who could forget that magnificent ripped shirt incident?) but his byline picture is probably the reason that the Sunday Tribune sports pages are the most thumbed over in the country. Feted for his piercing blue eyes and well-trained hair, we want to know why he isn't doing The Sunday Game? Liam or Pat Spillane? There's no question in our minds as to who we'd rather gaze at. ✒

Best diet coke break guy

declan o'sullivan

kerry

O'Sullivan may have left his job as a rep for Coca-Cola a long time ago, but he still retains the fizz of his employers in the form of that kind of 'cute-lift-repair-man' chic that can be exceptionally hard to pull off. His talent for scoring key goals at the right moments (namely against Monaghan and Dublin last year) only adds to his allure. Diet Coke break with Declan, anyone?

Best bear

james gill

mayo

James hairy look makes us want to consign metrosexuality to the bin of male grooming history. You see Gill is what you would call 'a real man', all stubble and grizzliness. In an era of male cosmetic surgery, waxed eyebrows, and more, you know all Gill wants to do is run into a forest chopping down trees with his bare hands/teeth, spear-fishing, saving damsels in distress, that kind of thing.

Best hands

eoin brosnan

kerry

Being a centre-forward for Kerry means Brosnan needs speed, accuracy, brute force and a sharp eye. It helps that he is a pretty towering six foot three inches, but of course, none of that matters when you have the best hands in the Kingdom. While they might assist Brosnan in strong catches and firm solos, all we can just imagine them is cradling us on a long, cold Kerry night.

Best au naturel good looks

bryan cullen

dublin

When you think about it, belting around on the pitch isn't a great beauty enhancer. You sweat, you go puce in the face and generally look flustered. But not Bryan. No matter how much he exerts himself the man looks as if he's stepped out of a photo shoot. It helps that nature has been kind in bestowing such excellent colouring upon him and his hair always looks perfect and never too styled. We hate 'too styled'.

Best gladiator

eamonn o'hara

sligo

With his towering physique and bulky authority, Eamonn O'Hara would make us change our name to Scarlett in a second. His massive thighs and intimidating grimace ward off the opposition, but only draw us closer to his charms. He's not all bulk and brutishness though, a foray into eccentric style with his yellow football boots show that O'Hara is not afraid to be a bit flash.

Best blue steel look

david collins

galway

We like to think of David as the Derek Zoolander of Galway. We considered awarding him the prize for 'Best Nose', but then we spotted his adorable little ears and decided to expand the title. That pert little sniffer, lightly dusted with freckles, perched in a perfect position on David's handsome face... Everything combines to make him model material of the cutest sort. Can't you just see him doing 'Discover Ireland' ads and causing an invasion of foreign women to these shores. And then of course there are his lips... can we count his lips in too?

Best underdog

kieran donaghy

kerry

Dishy Donaghy won our hearts way back when TG4 cast him as one of their Underdogs who hadn't made it at county level. Since then, Donaghy has broke on through to the other side and was selected for Kerry, becoming triumphant as an All Ireland winner. His dual ability as a basketball player shows quite a charming versatility, which leaves us wondering just what else he can do well.

Best all-rounder

seán Óg Ó hAilpín

cork

What more can you say about the Adonis of the GAA, the man with a six-pack to rival any body builder, and with features that A-list hotties can only dream of? Well, we have plenty to say, although most isn't fit for print. What is for sure, though, is that he and his brother Setanta sexed up GAA. We know double trouble when we see it, and are more than happy to indulge.