Ryan Giggs wins PFA Footballer of the Year Award

[SUFC Forever]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/8019726.stm

Congratulations to Ryan Giggs. A great player and ambassador for the game for which this award is well overdue.

No Southend players in the League 1 representative team however I see.

 

[OldBlueLady]

Amazed that's the 1st time he's won it, and also very surprised at the L1 team - two Oldham players, no Cox, no Hooper? Can't say the keeper stood out either, usually you'll have an idea of him.

 

[Ron Manager]

He's won it this year after only 12 starts but been overlooked when he's been in his prime (sure he must have won the young player of the year version though).

However as sentimental choices go it's a pretty well deserved one. Giggs (along with Paul Scholes in the current team) is IMO a rare example of a Manc U player being genuinely liked by the rest of us non Man U supporting public.

 

[Uncle Leo]

I'm a huge fan of Giggs but I think it was a bit of a cop-out giving him the award. He's been no more influential for Man Utd this season than Darren Fletcher, let alone Michael Carrick or Nemanja Vidić.

There would have been no shame in Giggs ending his career without winning this award; top players such as Bryan Robson, Glenn Hoddle, Chris Waddle and Graeme Souness never won it either.

 

[Slipperduke]

Footballers know nothing about football. It's always been the case, I'm afraid. Giggs has been a bit-part player for United. One goal all season and he's the best player in the country? Ux is absolutely right. Darren Fletcher has done more than him, but he's not a fashionable name.

Even funnier was the PFA Team. Nicolas Anelka? For a run of goals in Autumn, the vast majority of which were hit from a yard out? Cristiano Ronaldo? Playing within himself since the CL Final in Moscow? Christ, he's not been out of second gear all season.

They should really leave these kind of things to the end of the season, and then maybe get some people who have actually watched a few games to decide.

 

[EastStandBlue]

Pay more attention to who wins the FWA Player of the Year... Never leave anything in the hands of footballers.

 

[SUFC Forever]

Pay more attention to who wins the FWA Player of the Year... Never leave anything in the hands of footballers.

Absolutely right. The writers player of the year is probably the more prestigious of the two as you say.

It is a bit like when John Wayne won the Oscar for the only time in his career for "True Grit" in 1969. Far better films than that were made by him and came and went without recognition. They obvioiusly thought (as in the Duke's and Giggsy's case) that this was the time for the award to be bestowed in view of great careers and services past.

 

[manor15]

He's a good player but 24 appearances, 16 as a sub is not good enough to be the best player of the year in my opinion. You need to be consistently good, 8 starts in a year doesn't show consistency to me. To say that Giggs played better than Rooney, Vidic, Torres, Gerrard, Arteta, and loads more is rubbish.

 

[manor15]

Amazed that's the 1st time he's won it, and also very surprised at the L1 team - two Oldham players, no Cox, no Hooper? Can't say the keeper stood out either, usually you'll have an idea of him.

Had Yeovils keeper (Josh Wagenaar?) been at a better club I think he would be up there, kept us out at the Hall and he's very young with hardly any experience, best keeper I have seen this season. Also surprised it wasn't (Joe?) Lewis, the Peterborough keeper wasn't just because of being involved with England making him more of a 'name', definitely wouldn't have deserved it due to a dodgy spell since Christmas has nearly cost him team big time.

 

[ian_the_girth]

how is was lampard not voted in the top 6 by the players ?!
he has been the best performer in top division for the last 6 seasons.

 

[Sandbach Shrimper]

Giggs is a Premiership legend but you can't give the award to someone who's only started 12 league games this season. The award should be based on performances over the season not nostalgia or records. The original shortlist was wrong in the first place, typical PFA who always just give most of the nominations to the teams who are top in each league. I agree Lampard should've been in the list of 6, and Van der Sar shouldnt have been in there because he just has an excellent defence in front of him. I'd consider even choosing 2 players outside the big 4 (shock horror) in Matty Taylor and Glen Johnson. Gerrard would've been my winner, and I think Ireland has been better than Young in the young player category.

 

[Sandbach Shrimper]

No Southend players in the Leagu...fs and haven't had a regular team all season.

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

The PFA awards have been a joke for along time. Like our title season when our best player (Eastwood), didn't get chosen but our third best centre-half (Barrett), second best central-mid (Maher) and Flahavan all got chosen.

Anelka clearly got chosen for his performance against us.

 

[ian_the_girth]

Giggs is a Premiership legend but you can't give the award to someone who's only started 12 league games this season. The award should be based on performances over the season not nostalgia or records. The original shortlist was wrong in the first place, typical PFA who always just give most of the nominations to the teams who are top in each league. I agree Lampard should've been in the list of 6, and Van der Sar shouldnt have been in there because he just has an excellent defence in front of him. I'd consider even choosing 2 players outside the big 4 (shock horror) in Matty Taylor and Glen Johnson. Gerrard would've been my winner, and I think Ireland has been better than Young in the young player category.

i dont understand why the players have to vote for the year jan to jan.
why not get them to vote after the last league game of the season & do awards two weeks after. if they did it that way, id have thought hangerland of fulham would be in with a shout. a great season for the defender & his team.

 

[Manchester Shrimper]

Amazed that's the 1st time he's won it, and also very surprised at the L1 team - two Oldham players, no Cox, no Hooper? Can't say the keeper stood out either, usually you'll have an idea of him.

As Southend fans, I don't think we're really in a position to argue with their choice of strikers considering Fryatt and Lambert have scored a total of nine goals against us in four games. IMO, those two have a looked a cut above any other strikers I've seen this season.

 

[Davros]

Footballers know nothing about football. It's always been the case, I'm afraid. Giggs has been a bit-part player for United. One goal all season and he's the best player in the country? Ux is absolutely right. Darren Fletcher has done more than him, but he's not a fashionable name.

Even funnier was the PFA Team. Nicolas Anelka? For a run of goals in Autumn, the vast majority of which were hit from a yard out? Cristiano Ronaldo? Playing within himself since the CL Final in Moscow? Christ, he's not been out of second gear all season.

They should really leave these kind of things to the end of the season, and then maybe get some people who have actually watched a few games to decide.

while Ronaldo has not really been as good as he was last season (did he even give himself a chance), let it not be forgotten that he is once again (from midfield) the top scorer in the premiership.

Having said that, i agree with Anelka. No place for Rooney who has been exceptional, for cluba dn country, especially since xmas.