Norwich City F.C. Player of the Season
The Norwich City Player of the Season award is voted for annually by Norwich City's supporters, in recognition of the best overall performance by an individual player throughout the football season.[1] As a mark of respect, the trophy is named The Barry Butler memorial trophy after the club captain who was killed in a car accident on 9 April 1966.[2]
This is the more prestigious of just two awards made by Norwich City itself each year to its players, the other being the 'Young Player of the Year' accolade.[3] The 2003–04 winner Craig Fleming made clear just how important this award is to Norwich City players, "It is something you dream of winning... it is such a prestigious award".[4] Other awards available are awarded by other bodies, namely the Capital Canaries, Norwich City Independent Supporters Association and the "Ambassador Club".[5]
Since the inaugural award was made to Terry Allcock, eight players have won the award twice and one three times, Grant Holt in 2010, 2011 and 2012.[6] World Cup winner Martin Peters was the first to win the trophy in consecutive seasons, a feat since emulated by strikers Kevin Drinkell and Iwan Roberts, as well as Holt.[7] Just two winners have gone on to manage the club, Dave Stringer,[8] the 1972 winner, and double-winner Bryan Gunn.
Voting mechanism
This award is voted for by the fans of the club. Toward the end of the season, fans are invited to vote, either by submitting a paper slip to the club's Carrow Road offices, or by email or text message, with the winner being the player that polls the most votes.[9] A percentage of the votes from the 'Player of the Month' awards throughout the season also count towards the final votes for Player of the year.[9]
List of winners
Norwich City F.C. Hall of Fame inductee[10]
Player name in bold text represents players still on the playing staff of the club
Summary of wins by playing position
| Position[nb 8] | Number of winners[nb 9] |
|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | 6 |
| Defender | 17 |
| Midfielder | 8 |
| Forward[nb 10] | 14 |
Summary of wins by country
| country | Number of winners[nb 9] |
|---|---|
 England |
33 |
 Republic of Ireland |
1 |
 Scotland |
8 |
 Wales |
3 |
 Cameroon |
1 |
Footnotes
- ^ The official "Level" of competition in the structure of the English league system.
- ^ For a full description of positions see Football Positions.
- ^ If blank, uncapped at full international level.
- ^ By this point in his career, the former forward was playing at "half-back".
- ^ Keelan was born in India, of English parents.
- ^ Played some games in defence, but scored 28 goals in all competitions and was then sold to Blackburn Rovers for a then national record fee of £5million.
- ^ Also played some games as a striker.
- ^ Doherty has been classed as a defender, Sutton as a striker, Allcock as a defender.
- ^ a b Multiple winners are counted multiple times.
- ^ Includes strikers and wingers.
References
- ^ "Player of the Year". canaries.co.uk. 27 April 2007. Retrieved 3 October 2007.
- ^ Eastwood, John; Mike Davage (1986). Canary Citizens. Almeida Books. p. 107. ISBN 0-7117-2020-7.
As a mark of permanent respect...
- ^ "Roll up for the end of the year show". The Pink 'Un. 5 May 2007. Retrieved 3 October 2007.
Top honour, of course, was the Barry Butler Memorial Trophy for player of the year.
- ^ "FLEMING HONOURED TO WIN AWARD". canaries.co.uk. 7 November 2004. Retrieved 3 October 2007.
- ^ "HUCKS ON A HAT-TRICK". canaries.co.uk. 4 May 2007. Retrieved 3 October 2007.
- ^ Grant Holt – My Norwich City achievements will take some time to sink in, Eastern Daily Press, 2012-05-14. Retrieved 2012-05-14.
- ^ "Player of the Season – The Barry Butler Memorial Trophy". On The Ball, City. Retrieved 11 September 2007.
- ^ "Dave Stringer's managerial career". Soccerbase. Retrieved 15 October 2007.
- ^ a b "Race is on for Barry Butler trophy". The Pink 'Un. 16 March 2006. Retrieved 3 October 2007.
- ^ "Canary stats – Norwich City Hall of Fame". Eastern Daily Press. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 9 October 2007.
- ^ "Player of the Season 1967–2007". canaries.co.uk. Retrieved 12 October 2007.
- ^ "Dave Stringer's managerial career". soccerbase.com. Retrieved 15 October 2007.
- ^ "Tearful Dublin in Carrow farewell". BBC Online. 28 April 2008. Retrieved 5 January 2008.
- ^ "Bassong Named Player of the Season". Norwich City FC. Retrieved 17 May 2013.
- ^ "Carlo Nash favourite to be Norwich City's Player of the Season (despite not playing a game) as fans hijack voting system". Daily Mail. Retrieved 13 May 2014.