Five players down, six to go. Honestly, the amount of slagging I got for picking Kovacevic over Adam Matthews, and for not selecting Kelvin Wilson. I shudder to think what 'feedback' I'll receive when someone realises I've picked three Motherwell men and only two Celtic players...
MIDFIELDERS: Victor Wanyama (Celtic), Nicky Law (Motherwell), Murray Davidson (St. Johnstone)
Honourable mentions: Kris Commons (Celtic), Andrew Shinnie (Inverness), Iain Vigurs (Ross County)
I'm going to get a slagging from Hoops fans out there for leaving Kris Commons out, but as far as I'm concerned he was awesome at the start of the campaign, and again in February and March, and that's about it. Admittedly, Wanyama was magnificent until Christmas and has tailed off dramatically since, but the Kenyan was the best player in the country by a distance up to that point so he gets in. Anyone who listens to The SPL Podcast will know I'm a big fan of Motherwell midfielder Law, who is hugely underrated in my opinion, while Perth Saint Davidson has been consistently excellent for his club for about three seasons now. If I'd gone 4-4-2, I'd have probably fitted in Vigurs on the left of the midfield. Despite being an ICT fan, I'm not convinced Andy Shinnie's inclusion on the player of the year shortlist was justified, but at his best he's a nightmare to defend against.
WIDE PLAYERS: er, none.
Honourable mentions: James Dayton (Kilmarnock), Chris Humphrey (Motherwell), Gary Mackay-Steven (Dundee United), Gary Teale (St. Mirren)
If I'd gone 4-4-2, I'd have probably squeezed in Dayton, who, having stayed largely injury-free, had his best season at Rugby Park. And he had a terrific beard. Is it a coincidence that, as soon as he shaved the beard off, he got crocked? I don't think so. Mackay-Steven was superb when fit, but unfortunately he appears to be made of glass. Humphrey added some consistency to his game this season, while veteran Teale appears to have rolled back the years a bit.
FORWARDS: Leigh Griffiths (Hibernian), Michael Higdon (Motherwell), Billy McKay (Inverness Caledonian Thistle)
Honourable mentions: Gary Hooper (Aberdeen), Niall McGinn (Aberdeen), Johnny Russell (Dundee United)
I'd have picked Griffiths over Higdon as Player of the Year, personally; Higdon had an excellent supporting cast, while in the case of Griffiths, no-one's had to carry as much on their shoulders since Atlas. The Hibs forward scored more SPL goals than his teammates put together, and set up plenty too, whilst showing a much-improved maturity. Higdon has developed into much more than an immobile target-man, and was a nightmare for every centre-back in the SPL. I just about tossed a coin to pick McKay over McGinn, but picked the former because (at the time of writing) he's scored more goals; the latter has been the only attacking threat the Dons have posed all season long. Dundee United's Russell has been better than his goals return suggests, while Hooper has been excellent for Celtic again but saved his best efforts for the Champions League.
Right, that's that for another year. Until next time...
L.
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