I’m pretty sure Players’ Player of the Year rules oblige nominees to come from more than one club, allowing players the opportunity to vote for at least one opponent, instead of a team-mate. That being the case, we will probably see a token Aberdeen player on the list alongside the Celtic nominees.
This award, voted by the professionals, has been dominated by Celtic players for a lot longer than the league title itself. Di Canio, McNamara, Larsson (twice), Viduka, Sutton, Hartson, Maloney, Namakura, McGeady, Brown, Izaguirre, Mulgrew, Commons, Johansen and Griffiths make an incredible 16 Celtic winners in the last 20 years.
The current holder missed the chance of defending his title after an early season injury kept him out of the team, then the irrepressible form of Moussa Dembele made Leigh’s chances of a sustained run unlikely.
Moussa, alongside Kieran Tierney, are likely to be nominated for both Player and Young Player of the Year. Stuart Armstrong’s late season form may see him nominated, while Tom Rogic’s early season form deserves a shout, but all electorates have notoriously short memories, so Stuart stands a better chance than Tom.
Scott Sinclair has been the transformational element in Scottish football this season. His speed of thought and control are exceptional. He was the player who Celtic battered defences into submission early in the season as Celtic picked up from some nervy European qualification performances, and transformed into a well-oiled machine.
Scott’s performances in his debut season in Scottish football reminds me of a former PotY winner’s debut season. Both arrived as support forwards in their mid 20s. They share the same speed of thought. This instant the ball arrives(d) in their vicinity, the next phase is already underway.
I remember commenting during the season that stopped the 10 that Henrik Larsson was “precious” to Celtic. It was clear he was having a huge impact on the team, but Jackie McNamara and Craig Burley outshone him for many as they picked up the Players’ and Writers’ trophies respectively that season. Henrik’s true talent was still unfolding.
Scott Sinclair’s impact this season has been no less precious. For me he is the stand out Player of the Year. Oh, and the nomination from Aberdeen, I suppose it has to be Ryan Christie, who steadied a stuttering Dons team and helped secure what will surely be second place.
Join prodigious Celtic writer, Paul John Dykes, at the launch of Tom Campbell’s new book, Bobby Evans, Celtic’s forgotten hero, at the Admiral Bar, this Thursday, 6 April, at 7pm. You get register and find all details here.
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Sorry, the post from the RangersTaxCase didn’t work out.
Árd Macha
Cathro: and we would have got away with it if it hadn’t been for the position of those pesky goalposts!
BLANTYRETIM IS PRAYING FOR THE KNOX FAMILY on 5TH APRIL 2017 7:31 AM
Hey BT – just to let you know – Hutchybhoy has been in touch, and might be able to help re: Ross County tickets – thanks for helping facilitate, and thanks Hutchybhoy for trying to help us.
Nice to see you in Amore on Monday. The Blackberry Smoke concert was amazing – and we went in to St Luke’s for a couple beforehand too – nice pub..
Me and Wee BGFC got to meet the band after the gig – we were much more…informal…than the other folk that got photographs.
Wee BGFC beat Charlie Starr (lead vocalist) at a thumb-war, and we got the whole band to do the Huddle !!!!
Check out the photos here:
http://photos.blackberrysmoke.com/meet-n-greet-barrowland-ballroom-glasgow-scotland-4-3-17.html
HH
BGFC
And keep my nob number to yourself :-)
As I often do, I am watching a programme called ” Nazi Hunters”…………….I’ve emailed the Producers with directions of how to get to Westminster and Govan.
HH
Cathro’s comments – strange quote “take away the goalposts” – makes no sense, and I suspect he’s either said ‘goalposts’ by mistake, and meant something else , or he’s been misquoted to make him look stupid. He’s certainly not that. It’s difficult to disagree with most of what he says, in a kind of ” if your auntie had baws “way, but he seems to be like a rabbit caught in the headlights when it comes to dealing with the media.
His team were well beaten in the end, but it could have been different. As indeed could every other game ever played.
BIG GEORGE FAN CLUB,
Being a wrinkly, I’ve never heard of the group Blackberry Smoke.
Your photo’s are amazing quality, I wouldn’t know how to post a photo on a computer.
Looking at the “Blackberry Bhoys and their long hair etc”, reminds me of how I looked in the early 1970’s “….ah the feckin memories of having a comb ”
HH
I was a “Hit with the Chicks”, back then you know ?
TD 67
Funny you mention Pedro’s girlfriend / wife. Watching the Sheepies game on Friday night, the camera kept focussing on Pedro’s wife / girlfriend.
It reminded me of Mario Jardel.
How did that turn out again?
Hope all is well.
HH.
Still on Music,
The 1970’s song by Don McLean ” American Pie” has over these long years been subject to “Speculation” in relation to what the song is about etc ?
The line in the song, ” The Day the Music Died” has been looked at and some say it was about The Beatles breaking up or, another view is that it was about The death of Buddy Holly ?
i have for a long time disagreed with those view’s of the words “The Day the Music died”.
For me, “The Day the Music Died”…was when Pinky and Perky split up, following artistic differences ?…what a sad day that feckin was, music was never the same after that.
HH
Crippen is still innocent…..by the way !
HH
BGFC,
saw Blackberry Smoke last year at a small club in Aberdeen when they played a warm-up before heading off to some festival down south ( might have been Reading ).
Very Good live band,and I’d definitely go to see them again. Glad you and wee BGFC enjoyed it last night. :-)
Rangers Tax Case (Twitter, April 4th).
“Four of the five players that the now in liquidation club admitted to paying illegally can be confirmed as:
Nacho Novo. . . , Dada Prso. . . . Julien Rodriguez . . .and Thomas Buffel.
. . . . . .the admission of paying these players in violation of the law in these cases was specifically related to paying guaranteed bonuses through the EBT scheme. Even the newly colourful Mr Thornhill could see no Legal defence for having done so.”
*****
I remember a 2-0 “win” for Rangers (1872-2012) in November 2004, a league we infamously lost by a point on the last day of the season, scorers Novo and Prso. How can you be illegally paid, yet legally registered?
So there’s a 0-3 score reversal in our favour, and thus a league title, never mind the Supreme Court Appeal outcome.
Ard Macha
From earlier
https://twitter.com/rangerstaxcase/status/849131972916019200
https://twitter.com/rangerstaxcase/status/849495855656833024
Them 2.
HH
I’m with Cathro on this one.
If you take away the Celtic players skill and abilities then hearts competed. :-@)))
MWD
Oh dear lol.
https://videocelts.com/2017/04/blogs/latest-news/rangers-died/
An Tearmann.
Brilliant tweet from The Clumpany on there too:
“The LNS Commission was such a sham that the term ‘stitch-up’ obtained an interdict to prevent it from being used in association with it…”.
Lol Beatbhoy whit took ye lol
I read that and thought bout yourself and knew id get one of your rational updates.
;-)
HH
An Tearmann on 5th April 2017 10:20 am ,
Go raibh maith agat.
Árd Macha
For all that Cathro’s “goal post” comments were a bit bizarre, I agree with the general thrust of his argument.
I posted similar comments yesterday.
We scored five lovely goals, well constructed and finished, but overall, our play was patchy and disjointed.
I put this down to the post International blues, when virtually all of our first team squad for away on National Service.
When you hear Scott Brown admitting to his own poor game, then we have further proof of a misfiring team.
It was a strange game, as Hearts did compete, but we still hammered them.
Cathro is correct in salvaging any positives for his team, but people were always going to mock his goal post removal suggestion.
I get it Cathro is coming from the Scooby Too school of football.
He’ll be next for the high jump but if they take the bar away he’ll be fine!
Macjay @ 2.05
“Or , to summarise :
The job was too big for me and I have now returned to my comfort zone “.
One of the things we did in my time enduring a Scottish Education was to relentlessly practice the art of summary (precis).
If I had produced the above as an example I would have been marked a fail.
Yes, it is much shorter than the original so you would get some marks for that. But you would lose a wheen more for misinterpretation of the speaker’s motivation, intent and meaning. In fact distortion, revealing subjective bias, would be my feedback.
My 5 specific bits of advice would be:-
1) A (temporary) easier life is not the same as a “comfort zone”. One phrase describes a situation, the other attributes a psychological desire to have sought out this situation and avoid a more demanding one (ignoring any indication he would be willing to challenge himself again)
2) The art of precis is to summarise the speaker’s intent- not what you think he should be saying (confessing) in order to “win” an argument.
3) You have to render all the main meanings in shorter forms not just react to one word and generalise it beyond its intent and importance.
4) You should not overlook, as if it were not there, a statement that directly contradicts your conclusion. The narrative stated “If you are in a comfort zone you always go to the next level.” How you can read that and draw your conclusion is, yet again, Embra Jury like behaviour. You are arguing that you know what he means better than he knows himself.
TD67
Good on those bhoys!
Gimme Some Truth, as a singer in a wee beat combo once demanded!
Once again SFTB serves Macjay his lunch, or is it a late night snack?
An Tearmann
Ha! Ha!
Wouldn’t C&P for me, and I didn’t want it missed, so taxing(!) my ailing memory reading the tweet and trying to remember more than 3 words at a time before going back to re-read it!
Quite enjoyed typing the improperly registered names, and that lovely word ‘admission” in respect of illegal payments.
It wasn’t Ronnie’s fault,that 30,000, seats were empty,one of the factors,was the Huns,not in the same league,and anyone who says it wasn’t is living in cuckoo,land,Ronnie first job at Celtic was to be a coach,until Lennon chucked it,he Lennon went to Bolton,were he was a failure,The ones that the Celtic fans should be critical of is the Board,Lawell,Bankier,McDonald,for giving him the first team coach role,and if it were not for Dermot Desmond,getting Brendan Rogers,Ronnie Delhi would still be with us,
Up in Lurgan visiting my mum for her birthday and the sister has the hearts game recorded and something funny struck me.
At the start of the season Hearts were being lauded to the high heavens about their shirt sponsor being “Save the Children”, Anne Budge was held up as an example of a proper CEO not like our “bonus obsessed” CEO. However watching the game I have so far seen pitch side adverts for McBookie, William Hill, 888, Ladbrokes and Dafabet.
I know we are also sponsored by these companies but maybe Mrs Budges halo is a little less shiny than it was originally claimed.
Craig Gordon
KieranTierney
Jozo Simo
Dedryck Bhoy
Mikel listig
Scott Broon
Stuart Armstrong
James forrst
Scott. Sinclair
Moussa Dembele
Paddy Roberts
Sub
Leigh
Erik
Christian
Liam
Wee aitchison
Just ma guess as I head to game
:-)
HH
Also in other news.
My sister and her son have got places on the bus for the game so can use the tickets won in the Mother’s day competition. She is just worried the boring hospitality types will try and stop her enjoying her self.
Maybe that’s what’s up wi’ Lee Wallace, a bad bout of Runnie Delhi Belly!
Big Jimmy
“For me, “The Day the Music Died”…was when Pinky and Perky split up, following artistic differences ?…what a sad day that feckin was, music was never the same after that. ”
A terrible incidence of the problem of Helium Abuse in modern rock music
SFTB
I love your indefatigable defence of Ronny and salute you for your conviction.
IMO, as I have stated many times, Ronny was not a failure as manager. He won us the league twice. The failure was at a level above Ronny. It sits unadulterated on the lap of Peter Lawell for employing a coach/potential assistant manager as manager.
Ronny was not qualified to cut his managerial teeth at a club as big as ours. He was at a managerial level of mid level SPFL teams. He did not have the strength of character to control the ego’s of the playing staff he took over and neither did he have the stature to hold the respect of a number of the team, a failure I also bestow on the ego’s in the dressing room as it is again my opinion that a few decided not to give their all for Ronny which in turn reflects that they also did not give their all for us the paying supporters.
Macjay will slate Ronny without regard for the failure of those who employed a manager who was not qualified to take the role on.
All that said I do think Ronny would be a good fit for a coaching role within the current management structure under Brendan. His work with the 20’s and age groups below was from what I’m led to believe was very good.
I thank him for keeping 10 in a row on track.
I found the commentary from Brendan very interesting that he sought the advice of John Collins with regards taking the Celtic job. If was not stated by either that that conversation or subsequent conversations related to individual players. But by inference, I am also of the opinion that JC influenced Brendan with regard certain ego’s that were at play during his time as an assistant under Ronny and it looks like Brendan has taken that on board since he began the task of emproving the team off and on field.
MWD
*improving
MWD
Have the mods not answered Ernie yet?
How disrespectful of them. Shame that is! :-@))
MWD
Owen,
Re the Hearts “Save the Children” sponsorship.
A Hearts benefactor paid the club for the opportunity to sponsor the StC, therefore any altruism came from the benefactor, not the club, who received the cash.
Later that infamous season, Rangers (1872-2012), 2-0 “victory” at Celtic Park.
Improperly registered and illegally paid Novo a scorer again.
So we’ll have that 3-0 to the good ghuys anaw!
Away now, as the sense of outrage on here at having paid to be cheated, admitted,and now with names to picture in actual games we attended, is palpable.
MWD
A fair and reasoned assessment.
Some promising coaches- Solbakken, Bielsa etc; are still good coaches despite having failed at clubs.
Both Jock and Cloughie struggled to adapt at Leeds, though neither was there long enough to be classed a failure.
Adding to the Ronnie debate.
I agree with MWD. the fifth Column in the dressing room of Stokes, Commons and Mulgrew, aided by the kebab eating captain.
RD identified the culprits and Brendan dealt with them.
I would further suggest that Johansen probably supported his manager, which may have alienated him in the dressing room…….something happened to his form.
In fairness to Neil Lennon, for all that he jumped ship at the prospect of having Deila as his assistant, I think he recognised that his own football philosophy was not suited to deliver the style that Ronnie talked about and what Brendan is delivering.
Big Georges Fan Club Re Ross County tickets I notice you may be sorted if not I can help, let me know. Hail Hail Hebcelt