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ComeOnBoro.com MAN OF THE YEAR AWARDS PART II 2006
Stuart Ward, Toby Higgins & James Bassett
Here is the final part of the ComeOnBoro Man Of The Year Awards, continuing on from part one, published earlier this week...
Hit this link to go to part one and be sure to join us on the New Holgate Message Board to discuss our choices.
5. Andrew Taylor
The new Queudrue
Beginning the year on loan at Bradford City, it says something about Andrew Taylor's quality that he managed to make his debut in a 7-0 thrashing by Arsenal and still came out of the game with immense credit, having dealt with the tricky Robert Pires and the lethal Freddy Ljunberg with maturity well beyond his years.
Taylor has since firmly established himself as the club's first-choice left back, and has even forced his way into the England Under-21 squad, proving an able deputy for first-choice Leighton Baines.
Nonetheless, having waved goodbye to Franck Queudrue, Taylor began the season looking unlikely to get a game, finding himself behind new boy Julio Arca and Emmanuel Pogatetz in the queue for a left back berth. However, with Arca soon succumbing to injury and with Gareth Southgate identifying Pogatetz's best position as centre half, Taylor has found himself with the opportunity to impress, and he hasn't disappointed.
With a style reminiscent of Gary Neville, Taylor is dogged in defence and has the nous to get forward and support in attack. Whether at left back or left wing-back, Taylor has proved his excellent tackling ability and an acute ability to read the game.
If he continues to improve at his current rate, then full England honours are surely not far away.
4. Stewart Downing
Boro's man in Germany
It's been a hell of a year for Boro's most identifiable player. January saw the young winger missing from action with a long-standing knee injury. Stewart Downing returned in time to spearhead the club's remarkable Uefa Cup run, his lethal crosses providing key goals including three of the four against Steaua Bucharest, and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink's priceless header in Rome.
Downing's performances earned him a place in Sven Goran Eriksson's World Cup squad, but found himself mainly on the bench, as Joe Cole began as England's first-choice left-winger. This would change after the tournament, however, as Joe Cole's suffered a long-term injury. But with Steve McClaren's England failing to impress, new boy Downing was made the scapegoat, while the four assists he provided on his full debut were roundly ignored.
Downing returned to Teesside intent on proving his doubters wrong and his form has been one of the highlights in Boro's otherwise poor league campaign. Rumours of a move to Spurs during the January transfer window have reared their head again, but Downing appears to be happy to stay and help his hometown club out of the mire they currently find themselves in.
3. Emmanuel Pogatetz
God Dam
Usurping perennial favourite Franck Queudrue was always going to make for an uneasy relationship between Emmanuel Pogatetz and the vast majority of Boro fans. Much as we now admire Pogatetz, he wasn't fit to replace the Frenchman at left-back. Furthermore, some unfair quotes were attributed to Pogatetz in the press, which did nothing to enhance his reputation with the fans.
All along, the player protested that he was really a centre-half and we should only judge him once he was playing in his true position. Southgate - who knows a little something about defending himself - was quick to make Pogatetz part of his centre-back setup, and the Austrian has since out-performed both Jonathan Woodgate and Robert Huth.
The two abiding images of Pogatetz from this year both concern his willingness to put his body on the line. Squaring up to Kevin Davies during Boro's clash with Bolton in March with blood seeping from his forehead was entertaining enough, but having clashed with the fat-necked Bolton no-mark earlier in the game, Pogatetz sought revenge as the final whistle blew. Four coaches rushed over to hold the Austrian back. Had it not been for their intervention, Pogatetz would have set to Davies like a doberman mauling a poodle.
Four days later, Pogatetz clashed heads with FC Basel's Martin Petric and broke his nose and cheekbone, an injury that forced him to suffer the indignity of shagging the St. Jakob Park turf.
Tough, uncompromising and just a little bit insane, Pogatetz is the bloke you definitely want on your side and easily Boro's player of the season so far.
2. Mark Schwarzer
Aussie rules
As Mark Schwarzer continues to regularly prove himself as one of the Premiership's best goalkeepers, it's worth remembering that he very nearly left the club in January. With Boro's dressing room splintering, Schwarzer stunned the club by making a transfer request. However, despite interest from a number of top European clubs, the big Aussie ended up staying at the Riverside and playing some of the best football of his career.
Three world-class saves against Wigan just last week are the latest evidence of his ability, but they're merely the kind of stops that Schwarzer has been making at Boro for the last decade. In addition to his shot-stopping ability, Schwarzer appears to have worked on his distribution - formerly the weakest part of his game - and he now has a decent kick to go with his agility and keen instincts.
Like much of Boro's squad, Schwarzer's year was marred by a serious injury, as he had his cheekbone broken by Dean Ashton in the FA Cup semi-final. However, having made a series of fantastic saves in Rome and Bucharest, Schwarzer did manage to return for the Uefa Cup final, though his presence could do little to prevent the Sevilla onslaught.
Schwarzer was also the number one goalkeeper in Guus Hiddink's Australia World Cup squad, who were unlucky to lose to the tournament's eventual winners, Italy.
Now aged 34, Schwarzer presumably doesn't have too many seasons ahead of him at The Riverside, but it'll be an exceedingly hard task for anyone who attempts to fill his gloves.
1. Massimo Maccarone
El Gladiatorrrrreeeeeeeee!
How could it be anyone else?
For two nights in the spring, Massimo Maccarone turned the often dour Riverside into his own personal coliseum.
Introduced as a 67th minute substitute in the Uefa Cup Quarter Final against FC Basel, Maccarone seized the initiative gathered by Mark Viduka's exceptional brace and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink's stunning third, and blew the roof of the Riverside with his injury time, scuffed side-foot effort like no other goal had before it.
Exactly three weeks later, Maccarone did it all over again. This time introduced in the 26th minute to replace injured skipper Gareth Southgate, with Boro already two down on the night and requiring four goals to win, Maccarone sprinted up the right wing in the 33rd minute and cracked home a wonderful right-foot strike. Viduka and Riggott added one each, but it was Maccarone who planted home the header in the 89th minute that sent Boro to their first ever European final.
It seems increasingly likely that we've seen the last of Maccarone in a Boro shirt, and indeed it is all too easy to dismiss Maccarone as an over-priced, under-performing flop. But think back to those nights in April when, by epitomising the spirit that we so badly needed, he made our dreams come true for two nights.
For this, Massimo Maccarone has to be the ComeOnBoro.com Man of the Year.
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