Read Norwich Writers: End of Season Awards
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So another season has come and gone and Norwich go into the summer preparing to adjust to life back in the second tier of English football for the second time in three years.
Looking back over the season, it was a disappointing campaign filled with missed chances (most of them from Jerome), crushing defeats and it overall left us all feeling underwhelmed.
Arguably, you could say that we shouldn’t reward failure (I know Arsenal do it every season!) and offer out awards. However, despite a season which ended in relegation, there were a few shining lights and moments sprinkled in which at the time, gave us all hope and belief that the Canaries would beat the drop.
I decided to ask the Read Norwich writers to give their opinions and thoughts on who they believe deserves to win the highly acclaimed Read Norwich awards.
If you disagree with the choices or just want to have your say on your thoughts then comment below or tweet us at @ReadNorwich.
Goal of the season
Sean Galea-Pace – I’ll go with Jonny Howson’s against Stoke for sheer quality. It was a brilliant strike in a game which sadly ended in defeat, honourable mentions would be Mbokani’s backheel against Liverpool and Nathan Redmond against West Ham at the start of the season were good goals too.
Daniel Emery – Mbokani back-heel vs Liverpool. Went for the one I saw live which is why I haven’t gone for Howson. It was a sublime bit of skill and probably the best goal I’ve seen live for Norwich.
Jacob Sinkins – Howson v Stoke. Great moment in an otherwise depressing game
Callum Sheridan – Howson vs Stoke, an amazing goal from distance, pure class in the strike.
Emma James – Howson goal vs Stoke – okay, City lost but after going down to 10 men, the cross from Wes Hoolahan meeting Vadis Odjidja-Ofoe’s chest, before Howson caught it on the half-volley from outside the box, unable to take his time with the ball, he still ensured the ball met the top left-hand corner. Brilliant strike from the midfielder. Also, a fan of Brady’s against West Ham but Howson’s got to win it.
Matt Wastell – My goal of the season was Mbokani vs Watford, it was brilliant build up play and Redmond brilliantly slid him through before unerringly chipping the keeper.
James Kerridge – Howson’s goal against Stoke was an absolute banger into the corner, tying the scores level.
Luke Keeler – Seb Bassong V Liverpool. A game that quite possibly defined our season: when Seb’s sweet strike flew from his improbable left boot into the bottom right corner of Mignolet’s already battered goal, it appeared we had saved the game and spared our blushes; and with that, Carrow Road erupted.
Given the situation it was scored in, how brilliant a strike it was and from such an unusual source, it was by far the most enjoyable goal of my season. Seb may have struggled at points this season but it can’t be denied; when a clumsy left boot delivers such a sublime goal that truly raises the roof, it has to be applauded: even if his mistakes are one of many reasons the Championship welcomes us back next year.
Moment of the season
Sean Galea-Pace – I can’t look past Lewis Grabban’s equalizer against Arsenal. Having gone AWOL from the team hotel against Rotherham in August, Grabban had found himself out of Alex Neil’s thoughts for much of the early part of the season. However, he surprisingly started against the Gunners in November to a hostile Twitter reaction prior to kick-off and silenced his doubters with a goal. But, he did eventually leave for a move back to Bournemouth two months later. A close second was Martin Olsson’s last minute winner against Newcastle because of what it meant at the time.
Daniel Emery – Olsson’s goal vs Newcastle. This for pure emotion – the 93rd minute of a massive relegation clash, it seemed like a massive moment at the time.
Jacob Sinkins – Olsson scoring v Newcastle. Sent the fans crazy!
Callum Sheridan – Howson at West Ham saving the pigeon. One of the strangest moments that I’ve seen in a football game.
Emma James – Martin Olsson’s stoppage time goal against Newcastle gave that little bit of hope in desperate times and looked like it wouldn’t be coming with City’s luck when Mitrovic had his penalty.
Matt Wastell – Martin Olsson’s goal in the dying moments of a relegation clash at Carrow Road, undoubtedly the best moment in a bleak season.
James Kerridge – Olsson’s goal “all but kept us safe” as we were told to believe, we were ecstatic. Unfortunately, it would not be enough to survive in the Premier League.
Luke Keeler – Martin Olsson vs Newcastle United. Another left footed fluke from a sometimes error prone defender, Martin Olsson’s left footed pile driver was by far the moment of the season. In the dying embers of a game we appeared to have thrown away, at home, again, Martin popped up to unleash a much needed thunderbolt into the bottom right corner. Dubbed a “must win” the tension inside Carrow Road was building as we waited for the final whistle and echoes of Geordie taunts, at having thrown away another 3 points at Carrow Road. Yet the strike came, it was sweet and the jubilation even sweeter as the tears streamed down the faces of the Magpies, it truly was one for sorrow. But from a canary’s point of view it was an electric moment.
Player of the season
Sean Galea-Pace – Jonny Howson was Mr. Reliable all season and always performed at a 7/10. Unfortunately, he wasn’t helped by his teammates but Howson always played to the best of his ability. Robbie Brady was a contender in the first half of the season but his form trailed off as the season progressed, Nathan Redmond also showed flashes of brilliance but he was very inconsistent.
Daniel Emery – Jonny Howson. Mr. Consistent, can’t recall a bad game he has had this season. Always so reliable, no contest for me.
Jacob Sinkins – Has to be Jonny Howson for me. Mr. Consistent and criminally underrated.
Callum Sheridan – Howson. He has been the most consistent player this season, putting in some great performances and pitching in with a few goals and assists too.
Emma James – Jonny Howson – consistent, saves a pigeon, may not score awfully a lot but is always there to assist, shoot or retain possession. Plus the goal about Stoke was rather good.
Matt Wastell – Wesley Hoolahan purely because he’s been the most creative force in our side and never fails to deliver.
James Kerridge – Howson has been the most consistent player on the pitch this season, as many will agree. Always puts in 100% and has a massive work rate.
Luke Keeler – Gary O’Neil. While this may cause some controversy with opinion on the veteran midfielder being truly split amongst fans, I feel that Gary is worthy of the accolade, however in a relegation season is it really worth winning? While Gary has had his faults in a season laden with Norwich City mistakes, Stoke away for example. It should always be remembered that Gary O’Neil was not on anyone’s mind to be a regular fixture in our Premier League season, yet took his opportunity with both hands. His passing at times this season was immense and his tough tackling, never say die leadership on the pitch was something we have sorely missed since the sale of Grant Holt. While he may not be the most fashionable footballer, in my opinion he was our best on a regular basis. Gary O’Neil: Player of the Season.
Most improved player
Sean Galea-Pace – Ryan Bennett. He looked a lot more solid defensively this year prior to previous years and adjusted well to Premier League football. Found himself out of the team a lot due to injury and Neil’s preference of Bassong and Martin but didn’t disappoint when he did play.
Daniel Emery – Declan Rudd. Started the season with no chance of overtaking Ruddy but ends the season being better than Ruddy, in my opinion. I think he has to be number one next season after Ruddy’s horrific campaign.
Jacob Sinkins – Pinto. When he can here he was a total liability however in the final few games he proved that he can put a shift in playing in defence alongside being threatening in attack.
Callum Sheridan – Ivo Pinto. He was terrible defensively for the first few games but recently has been one of our better players.
Emma James – Ryan Bennett – it’s a weird one to pick as there’s quite a few in their own light or over different courses of the season but after a bit of a stop-start beginning to the Premier League’s season, about the time Steven Whittaker was dropped out of the side, Bennett suddenly made an appearance is stayed in the side for consecutive appearances and has definitely surprised me. Made a crucial block against Newcastle and when partnered with Timm Klose, I’m less panicked about the defence. Bennett does seem injury prone, though.
Matt Wastell – Gary O’Neil has thoroughly surprised me this season with fantastic displays in central midfield and being a fantastic leader on the pitch.
James Kerridge – Howson was fairly mediocre for Norwich this year but has started to put effort and passion. Wouldn’t have won POTS if the rest of the squad wasn’t so awful.
Luke Keeler – Martin Olsson. I haven’t always been a fan of the Swede and while it was muttered that he was on his way out of Carrow Road, I can’t say I’d have been too disappointed. I’ve never found him to be too reassuring at the back the same as the rest of our defence, but going forward he is undeniably a threat, if he suckers up enough courage to venture into enemy territory. However I spent the best part of the season believing Brady to be a better Left Back than Martin, until he returned from his injury. Towards the end of the season he seemed to have a new found confidence, more than likely received from his Newcastle winner, and at times in the final act of the Canary season, he looked like the player he has always been hyped up to be.
Biggest flop
Sean Galea-Pace – There was a few I could have chosen but I decided to opt for Cameron Jerome. His countless amount of missed chances cost Norwich a huge amount of points and highlighted how valuable a clinical striker in the Premier League is. He scored a mere two goals in the league and his performances were very Ricky Van Wolfswinkel-esque. Other candidates include John Ruddy who’s performances were so bad that it led to him being dropped in December for Declan Rudd before being re-instated in February and Steven Naismith who massively underperformed and didn’t do enough to justify the price tag having signed from Everton in January.
Daniel Emery – John Ruddy. The worst season he has had in a Norwich shirt. I can’t remember him saving us on many occasions at all. He has cost us more points than he has won us, which is nowhere near the standard required in the Premier League.
Jacob Sinkins – Patrick Bamford. The man who terrorised defence’s last season has gone from a fearsome lion to a tabby cat.
Callum Sheridan – Naismith. Apart from the first game he has done nothing for the team, and I personally would want him to go in the transfer window.
Emma James – Patrick Bamford/Youssouf Mulumbu– I know everyone will probably put Jerome understandably but I can’t. Hardest question for me to name a certain person. Bamford because my view over the past season has changed – at Wembley, I was confused about the hype (even if he was injured), when he joined I wanted to see what the fuss was about at Middlesbrough so I livened up, against Manchester City I found a bit of hope in his performance and then things started to just fade, didn’t seem to have much heart to play, no doubt would be wanting to go to Middlesbrough next season. Shame. As for Mulumbu, he isn’t exactly a flop but the injury during preseason didn’t help one bit and I would have loved to see more of him and for him to perform, but unfortunately didn’t. I also had huge expectations for Nathan Redmond but faded during the season BUT came into his own by the end eventually so not naming him as a flop, also expected a bit more from Naismith but had his moments.
Matt Wastell – Steven Naismith, came to the Canaries with a lot of promise but ultimately failed to deliver apart from his debut against Liverpool.
James Kerridge – Bassong. I expected more from him than just constantly making mistakes on both ends of the pitch. It ultimately cost us our season.
Luke Keeler – Cameron Jerome. While it breaks my heart to say it about the first NCFC player to score at Wembley, he has been woeful this term. It was evident he wouldn’t knock in as similar tally to his Championship record, but the opportunities he squandered in the 14-15 campaign were a looming sign of things to come. Unfortunately for Cameron the chances he were presented with over the course of a game didn’t recede that much, but the goals dried quickly and he has hauled in a miserable 3 for the season. A hatful of crucial chances in crucial games for Cameron just can’t be papered over anymore and his season has been doomed to calamity ever since the OHK V Palace was ruled out. Sorry Cam.
Signing of the season
Sean Galea-Pace – Timm Klose was a revelation since signing from Wolfsburg in the January window and helped shore up a very leaky Norwich defence. However, an injury against Crystal Palace and his season was over. Norwich replaced him with Sebastian Bassong and the Cameroon man’s subsequent mistakes cost the Canaries points. This shows how vital he was.
Daniel Emery – Timm Klose. Best central defender Norwich have had in the Premier League era. Sounds like a big statement given that he only played ten games, but he made next to no mistakes and was simply immense. Will be key to keep him next season.
Jacob Sinkins – Klose. Had he not got injured we would still be a PL team.
Callum Sheridan – Brady, looked really good at the start of the season. Has dipped in form recently, but will be a crucial player next season if we can keep him.
Emma James – Timm Klose – pretty sure the majority would pick him but definitely played a huge part in City’s defence and had he not suffered an injury, City might have had a chance – however hopeful that might have been. However, when Robbie Brady has moved onto the wing, whilst Olsson has played in Left back, I have been a massive fan of him too.
Matt Wastell – Without question Timm Klose has been our signing of the season for transforming our defence in a short period of time.
Luke Keeler – Robbie Brady. He ventured closer to Norwich airport as the season went on which unfortunately resulted in a rather non-existent last few games since he scored at the Hawthorns. While he may not have scored as many as we would have hoped, his chance creation was immense and he was undoubtedly the best option we had in multiple positions at times this season. Commanding the same price tag as the likes of Bradley Johnson, Lewis Grabban and Steven Naismith says it all about the man. Robbie is definitely Signing of the Season.
Win of the season
Sean Galea-Pace – I don’t think there’s anything that can beat Norwich’s surprise win at Old Trafford in December. It was a massive shock and I still don’t know how they did it. Manchester United were going through a bad spell but despite that, the Canaries turned up and won 2-1 at the Theatre of Dreams.
Daniel Emery – Manchester United away – 2-1. Best win of the season as they were the only ‘big’ team that we managed to beat. To beat Manchester United at Old Trafford was special – to do it with goals from Alex Tettey and Cameron Jerome was even better.
Jacob Sinkins – United away. Finally breaking the curse of Old Trafford.
Callum Sheridan – 3-2 vs Newcastle. An amazing game, with some cracking goals from Olsson and Mbokani. You could not end a game in a better way than that.
Luke Keeler – Man United (A) 1-2. I decided on this game for two reasons: firstly we never win at Old Trafford and is probably the biggest scalp of our torrid season; and secondly because I’m bored of talking about either Liverpool or Newcastle at home. We showed in that game something we lacked for the rest of the season, solidity in defence and clinical finishing upfront. Plus winning against Man United is always entertaining and the result did enough for some of our more optimistic supporters to believe we would stay up.
Emma James – Norwich 3 – 2 Newcastle – similar reason to the one given above, Newcastle kept equalising and that last minute goal brought the spirit back to the fight, although everyone knows how it turned out.
Matt Wastell – Newcastle at home, 3-2. Brilliant team performance when we needed it.
James Kerridge – Old Trafford win, confident and well done. Must I say more?
Team of the season
Sean Galea-Pace – Ruddy, Martin, Bennett, Klose, Olsson, Redmond, Howson, Tettey, Brady, Hoolahan, Mbokani.
Daniel Emery – Rudd, Pinto, Bennett, Klose, Olsson, Redmond, Howson, Tettey, Brady, Hoolahan, Mbokani.
Jacob Sinkins – Rudd, Pinto, Klose, Bennett, Olsson, Howson, Tettey, Redmond, Hoolahan , Brady, Mbokani. (4-2-3-1)
Callum Sheridan – Ruddy, Pinto, Klose, Bennett, Olsson, Howson, O’Neil, Redmond, Hoolahan, Brady, Mbokani
Emma James – Ruddy; Wisdom, Bennett, Klose, Olsson; Jarvis, Howson, Tettey, Brady; Naismith/Hoolahan, Mbokani.
Matt Wastell – Ruddy, Pinto, Klose, Bennett, Olsson, Redmond, Howson, O’Neil, Brady, Hoolahan, Mbokani
James Kerridge – Ruddy, Martin, Klose, Bennett, Olsson, Redmond, Howson, O’Neil, Brady, Hoolahan, Mbokani.
Luke Keeler –
4-2-3-1
GK: Ruddy- Neither GK was any good, Rudd was too indecisive and scared of making key decisions, and John was only willing to show his dominant, aggressive side on Prince of Wales Road. John just because he played more games and therefore more clean sheets.
RB: Pinto- Ivo was dire when he first signed but did have a good last few games when he got more confidence and was even my MOTM V Man Utd; another who was just best of a bad bunch.
CB: Bennett- Always pretty reliable and didn’t make too many mistakes, I rate Ryan Bennett and believe he could be a quality centre half for us for a few years to come.
CB: Klose- He didn’t woo me straight away and I did question some of the hype until we played Man City, his injury could well have been the straw that broke the relegation camel’s back.
LB: Olsson- Most improved player should make the XI.
CDM: Howson- He had a shaky start to the season but as it wore on became his consistent self. Future NCFC captain in my eyes.
CDM: O’Neil- Player of the season also has to be in the XI.
RM: Redmond- As much as he frustrates me and I do wonder why he plays sometimes, at other times this season he has shown glimpses of his potential, plus he’s the only out and out RM we have.
CAM: Hoolahan- Wes is our best player still. This is good and bad for us but once again he has showed his worth to us by being our top assist maker; we only one once this season without him in the starting XI.
LM: Brady- Signing of the season.
ST: Mbokani- It’s a shame Mbokani’s spell here ended the way it did. Joint top goal scorer with 6 is nothing to write to Ukraine about, but the top scoring striker should be up there.