Professional Footballers Australia (PFA) today announced that 22 of Australia’s most outstanding professional footballers plying their trade in 9 countries have been shortlisted for the prestigious PFA Footballer of the Year Awards to be presented next Tuesday 4 October 2011 at the Australian Football Awards to be held in Sydney in conjunction with Football Federation Australia.

The PFA Footballer of the Year Awards comprise:

  • the PFA Footballer of the Year, previously won by Tim Cahill (2009) and Mark Schwarzer (2010);
  • the PFA Harry Kewell Medal for Australia’s best male player under the age of 23; and
  • the PFA Women’s Footballer of the Year.

Nominated by the PFA Awards Committee, which is made up of some of Australia’s recently retired greats including Paul Okon, Tony Vidmar, Mark Bosnich, Stan Lazaridis, ZeljkoKalac and Craig Moore, the 22 names are now being voted on by the more than 300 professionals based both in the A-League and in some of the great leagues throughout the world.

The players will be asked to take into account their peers’ performances for club and country in 2010/11, being a monumental season for Australian football highlighted by:

  • Matt McKay leading Brisbane Roar to its inaugural A-League championship at Suncorp Stadium only weeks after the players’ favourite stadium was hit by the devastating Brisbane floods;
  • the Socceroos narrowly losing the 2011 AFC Asian Cup final to great rivals Japan in a tournament which saw experienced campaigners Lucas Neill and Harry Kewell star and the emergence of a new generation of Socceroos including Robbie Kruse;
  • the Matildas qualifying for the quarter finals of the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup Germany, featuring some of Australia’s most consistent internationals such as Heather Garriock, Elise Kellond-Knight and Collette McCallum as well as our young stars in Kyah Simon, Sam Kerr and Emily van Egmond; and
  • junior international tournaments in Uzbekistan, China, Mexico and Colombia.

Individual highlights among the nominated players include:

  • Josh Kennedy’s goal scoring feats with J-League champions Nagoya Grampus;
  • SasaOgnenovski’s recognition as the AFC Player of the Year whilst leading South Korean outfit SeongnamIllhwaChunma to the AFC Champions League and becoming Lucas Neill’s regular central defensive partner for the Socceroos;
  • Argentinean Marcos Flores’ Johnny Warren Medal winning season for Adelaide United;
  • Matt Ryan’s consistency in goal for Central Coast Mariners, culminating in a Joe Marston Medal after a heroic grand final performance in a losing side;
  • Nikita Rukavytsya’s consistency for Hertha Berlin on its way to promotion to Germany’s Bundesliga; and
  • Caitlin Foord’s official recognition by FIFA’s technical study group as the young player of the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup Germany.

“As ever, season 2010/11 saw PFA members uphold the standards of their profession and their country across the globe,” PFA Chief Executive Brendan Schwab said in announcing the nominees at the PFA’s headquarters in Melbourne.

Harry Kewell, on hand at the announcement with his skipper Adrian Leijer, PFA President Simon Colosimo of Melbourne Heart and Matildas skipper Melissa Barbieri, stated that:

“The awards that really count are the ones voted on by your fellow professionals because you are getting the respect of the players that you have played with and against.  That’s the biggest thing that you can possibly achieve.”

The nominees for the 2010/11 PFA Footballer of the Year and the PFA Harry Kewell Medal are (with their 2010/11 clubs):

PFA FOOTBALLER OF THE YEAR PFA HARRY KEWELL MEDAL
Thomas Broich, Brisbane Roar (Australia) Mustafa Amini, Central Coast Mariners (Australia)
Tim Cahill, Everton FC (England) KostaBarbarouses, Brisbane Roar (Australia)
Brett Emerton, Blackburn Rovers (England) Oliver Bozanic, Central Coast Mariners (Australia)
Harry Kewell, Galatasaray (Turkey) KeremBulut, FK MladaBoleslav (Czech Republic)
Matt McKay, Brisbane Roar (Australia) Luke Devere, Brisbane Roar (Australia)
Lucas Neill, Galatasaray (Turkey) Robbie Kruse, Melbourne Victory (Australia)
Marcos Flores, Adelaide United (Australia) Matthew Leckie, Adelaide United (Australia)
Brett Holman, AZ Alkmaar (The Netherlands) Tommy Oar, FC Utrecht (The Netherlands)
Josh Kennedy, Nagoya Grampus (Japan) Nikita Rukuvytsya, Hertha BSC (Germany)
SasaOgnenovski, SeongnamChunma (South Korea) Matt Ryan, Central Coast Mariners (Australia)
Mark Schwarzer, Fulham FC (England) –
Luke Wilkshire, Dinamo Moscow (Russia) –

There is no shortlist for the PFA Women’s Footballer of the Year Award, with all Matildas being asked to vote for their most outstanding peer on a 3-2-1 basis.

The PFA Footballer of the Year Awards

Throughout the football world, the most prestigious individual honour a professional footballer can attain is to be acknowledged as the best by his or her peers. With the support of LUCRF Super – the PFA’s superannuation fund of choice – Professional Footballers Australia is again delighted to launch the nominees and voting for the PFA Footballer of the Year, the PFA Harry Kewell Medal for Australia’s best male player under the age of 23 and the PFA Women’s Footballer of the Year. The criteria are simple: outstanding performances for club and/or country. Eligibility is confined to A-League and W-League players (including foreigners) and Australians playing professionally overseas.

PREVIOUS WINNERS:

PFA Footballer of the Year:

Mark Schwarzer, Fulham FC (2010), Tim Cahill, Everton FC (2009)

PFA Harry Kewell Medal:

Mitch Langerak, Melbourne Victory FC (2010), Nikita Rukavytsya, Perth Glory FC (2009)

PFA Women’s Footballer of the Year:

ServetUzunlar, Sydney FC (2010)

PFA AWARDS COMMITTEE

The PFA Awards Committee meets regularly throughout the season to consider player performances for club and country and provide nominees for the PFA Footballer of the Year Award and the PFA Harry Kewell Medal.  The PFA Awards Committee comprises:

Paul Okon Stan Lazaridis Tony Vidmar Andy Harper
Mark Bosnich Craig Moore ZeljkoKalac David Zdrilic
Paul Trimboli Francis Awaritefe Dave Davutovic Michael Lynch
Andrew Orsatti Brendan Schwab (non-voting chair)

Please refer to the attached brochure for the statistics and details on the PFA Footballer of the Year Awards and the nominated players.