Diego Castro is in line for a second player-voted accolade following consecutive nominations for the Player of the Month award.
Castro, who was voted as February Player of Month by his peers, joins in-form strikers David Williams of Wellington Phoenix and Western Sydney Wanderers’ Mitchell Duke for the March honour.
Castro collected the award after receiving the highest number of votes of February’s four nominees, which included teammate Chris Ikonomidis, Adelaide United’s Isaias and Sydney FC’s Milos Ninkovic.
The Spaniard has continued his eye-catching form in March, earning consecutive nominations from the PFA Panel as the 36-year-old former La Liga forward helps Perth edges ever closer to the A-League title.
In a shortened month of fixtures due to a FIFA international break, each A-League team played just three matches during March.
To kick-start the month, Castro continued his February form by unleashing an incredible long-range strike to salvage an injury-time draw with Melbourne City, before scoring against Adelaide – squeezing a deflected effort past Paul Izzo.
Despite finishing on the losing side against Victory in the final match of March, Castro remained influential against Victory, rattling the crossbar and proving a handful for the visitors.
Since his return to the A-League following three seasons in the Hungarian top flight, David Williams has been a revelation at Wellington Phoenix. Alongside the equally prolific Roy Krishna, Williams scored five of his 11-goal tally this season in the month of March.
Scoring in the 8-2 dismantling of the Mariners, Williams added to his tally with a strike against the Wanderers, before capping off the month with a second career hat-trick against the Newcastle Jets in Round 23.
Williams’ treble reminded A-League fans of the 31-year-old’s lethal ability, scoring after just 30 seconds against the Jets, before converting a penalty and then executing one of the goals of the season; a fantastic cut in from the left before smashing a curling, dipping effort in off the upright.
Williams is one part of the A-League’s most prolific partnership with PFA January Player of the Month Roy Krisnha, who sits equal first on the A-League goal-scoring charts with 15 goals this season. The pair have bagged a combined 26 goals for the Phoenix; over half of the team’s tally of 41 goals this campaign.
Another player who most recently returned to the A-League was also a standout during March for the Wanderers. Following five years in Japan, Mitchell Duke has been a welcome addition to the Wanderers’ attack.
Duke has scored in three successive games and now has four goals in seven, despite only starting three times since joining Wanderers during the January transfer window.
In a period where the Wanderers have experienced a mini resurrection, Duke scored in Wanderers’ 4-1 win over Brisbane Roar with a searing long-range strike.
On target in the Wanderers’ 3-0 thrashing of Melbourne City, Duke side-footed home Raul Llorente’s second-half cross, while the former Mariner also netted a consolation in the Wanderers’ only loss against the Phoenix earlier in the month.
PFA A-League members will vote on the nominees this week.
