David Clifford made history on Friday evening by becoming the first ever player to be named Footballer of the Year for two consecutive years.

The Kerry star beat Dublin's Brian Fenton and Brendan Rogers of Derry to the award and joins Trevor Giles (1996, '99) and Dublin midfielder Brian Fenton (2018, '20) as a two-time recipient.

And fans were quick to remind former Dublin star Paul Flynn of a tweet he posted earlier in the year after the conclusion of the All-Ireland football championship.

READ MORE: Paudie and David Clifford pay tribute to their late mother as they win All-Star awards

James McCarthy, who was not among the nominees for the Footballer of the Year, was named the Sunday Game's Footballer of the Year back in July, which led to plenty of debate on the programme.

Announcing the Footballer of the Year on the RTE show, former Kerry star Tomás Ó Sé stated that he didn't agree with the decision to give the award to McCarthy, saying: "It was a very difficult decision, I think we actually got the decision wrong.

"I got a text a while ago from Pat Gilroy during the show to smile, he thought I was too serious altogether, so I got a laugh out of that.

"It came down to two players, James McCarthy and David Clifford, and we gave the Footballer of the Year, I have no issues with it - well on a personal level, I think the best footballer throughout the whole season (was Clifford) I think today James McCarthy didn't have his best day at the office, he won't be too pushed about that, neither will any Dub be too pushed about it.

"Obviously there's a lot of votes that go around, my personal vote was Clifford but James McCarthy got the nod as Player of the Year."

Flynn was among the other pundits on the couch for the show and insisted McCarthy deserved the accolade.

He said at the time: "The one added thing, like not only did he perform at the highest level all season, you can guarantee that he got 10% at least out of every player that played with him this year, and that adds to it.

"It's not all about what they do on the pitch, it's what they do to bring others into the game and he walks the walk every day, and I'm chuffed for him."

Continuing the debate on social media some time later, Flynn tweeted in the early hours of morning: "Clifford was smoked against Dublin and poor against Tyrone yet still people think he is footballer of the year. Not for me - James Mc led Dublin to glory without having his best day yesterday! He’s a born winner and leader."

He later took to Twitter to say he believes Clifford is "one of best in our generation" and added he wouldn't be tweeting late at night again.

He posted: "Bit of controversy re my last tweet; Do I think Mick Fitz got the better of Clifford? Yes Do I think Clifford was POTY? No Do I think he’s one of best in our generation? Yes - and top ambassador for game. No more midnight tweets".

Flynn hasn't tweeted since, but that didn't stop fans reminding of his comments after Clifford was named Footballer of the Year on Friday.

One wrote: "You've got to feel for Paul Flynn waking up this morning to learn that David Clifford won GAA footballer of the year last night. My thoughts and prayers are with him."

Another commented: "Congratulations David Clifford, the best there is and best there ever will be. My thoughts and prayers are with Paul Flynn."

Someone else tweeted: "Has anyone checked on Paul Flynn?"

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