The omission of Loughnane from the team and the decision to give such an award, the first of its kind, to Fr. Bohan raised questions about the deepening divide between Loughnane and some of the County Board officials he worked with during his tenure as county hurling manager. Loughnane had also received a backlash from some of his past players, most notably goalkeeper Davy Fitzgerald, and supporters in the county for his critical TV and newspaper analysis of the Clare hurling set-up and the team's performances throughout the previous two hurling seasons.