Player of the Season by Jack Goddard
I finally got round to submitting my vote for the player of the season after the Liverpool game. Just like last year, when Russell Martin tried to win our game against Derby singlehandedly, and subsequently got my vote, our match against the Reds made it incredibly apparent who deserved the award, in my opinion. If you haven’t worked it out already, I’ll get round to my player of the season in a bit, but below are my top five Norwich players from this season:
5. Anthony Pilkington
Pilkington does have an incredibly frustrating tendency to get lost in games. He is often anonymous and can find it hard at times to produce just what he is capable of. Nonetheless, eight goals from midfield is absolutely fantastic for a player who, up until this season, had only played at League One level – and we know just how poor that division can be at times. Pilkington has shown so much promise this year, and there is much more to come – he will just get better. He has changed many a game in favour of City this season, despite what I said above, and may he have many more successful seasons with the Canaries.
4. Steve Morison
A controversial choice; this one. Don’t get me wrong, Steve Morison has been pretty abject for the last three or four months now. No one outside the club quite knows why his form has changed so dramatically, and he could be going through some very tough personal issues right now. But please don’t forget the first half of the season where, simply put, Morison was astonishingly good. 9 goals is a superb return for any striker in the Premier League, and he truly delivered the goods early on. OK, he’s hit a stumbling block. Hopefully he’ll overcome it and be back to his brilliant best next season.
3. Kyle Naughton
We have to sign Kyle Naughton in the summer. No offence to Russell Martin who, in my opinion, has had a very solid season, but Naughton is by far the best right-back at the club. He’s had some tough games, and sometimes he’s been completely destroyed, most noticeably at Aston Villa where he just couldn’t cope. But, by and large, he’s had an amazing season, and is an absolute rock at the back. The amount of potentially threatening passes Naughton cuts out is unreal, and it is clear that his awareness is extremely advanced for someone his age. Furthermore, he is a real threat going forward. He has speed and a good eye for a cross, and will just continue developing all aspects of his game next year. As such, he must be a Norwich City player next year as well.
2. John Ruddy
John Ruddy has kept us in so very many games this season. Granted, he’s made mistakes, more so as the season has worn on, but it is not through default, as many are claiming, that he has been linked with the England squad. He still has much to do in order to be a well-rounded player, and, although he has been brilliant for us, I am not convinced he is international quality just yet. His distribution could certainly be improved upon, while he hasn’t been faultless when it comes to shot-stopping this season either. But he is a goalkeeper, and, as such, his mistakes are magnified tenfold. Ruddy has, undoubtedly, made some miraculous saves this season, and is a fine addition to the squad. England could do a lot worse.
1. Grant Holt
Norwich were awful against Liverpool. There were many reasons for this, and I won’t go into them now. But the biggest reason for our lacklustre performance was, almost without argument in my eyes, because Grant Holt wasn’t playing. It may sound silly, and it may sound premature, but I genuinely fear for the club after Grant Holt leaves. He is the very backbone of this club, and without his leadership, Norwich could seriously falter. Holt’s three years at City have been without fault, and, for a third successive season he is on for the player of the year award. I haven’t actually voted for him up until this season, but he deserves it so very much. 68 goals in just over 100 games is a sensational return, while 15 goals this season isn’t half bad. Holt has proven everyone wrong. Again. Once more, when everyone said he couldn’t cut it, he crossed that white line and put in performance after performance after performance. He is the lifeblood of our glorious club and, I know I’ve already said this, but, seriously, England could do a lot worse. They have no idea just how good he is.
