Bell – 6.5

January signing offered some width, but with the on loan signing of Henderson didn’t get the chance to play on his favoured right side. Crossing was a bit hit or miss but scored a 40 yard cracker against Doncaster. Needs more time to settle and get over a knee injury. Hope to see better things of him next year.

Best – 7

The new Dele Adebola? Started the season on the bench behind Morrison and Eastwood and incurred the boo-boys wrath for his occasionally languid style and inability to stay onside, but became transformed after an injury break in February wearing his ‘Superhero’ mask. Has the makings of a decent enough striker at this level, although needs to up his strike rate a bit and work on his offside problem. Has been ear-marked for a contract extension and hope he continues the progress next year.

Beuzelin – 5

A lot of fans had wanted Stephen Hughes to move on for a number of seasons, then when he’s finally shown the door we somehow manage to find someone worse to replace him! To be fair when he’s given time on the ball he’s got an excellent passing range, but that wasn’t very often. When he wasn’t afforded time he was a liability, often being caught in possession. Also came to light that he suffers from a knee problem which means he can’t play that many consecutive games without it flaring up, so the midfield had to constantly change because of it and couldn’t get settled. Disappointing and I’m surprised that Coleman has taken up the second year option on his contract.

Cain – 7

Made a handful of sub appearances towards the end of the season and looked like the type of player this team is crying out for – someone with pace and willing to run at the opposition and put them on the back foot. Probably not ready for a first team place but we could see a fair bit of him coming off the bench next year.

Dann – 7

Captain and most composed defender, although the mistake he made in the Chelsea game did seem to knock his confidence a bit and led to one or two more. Did all the no nonsense stuff well and another who’ll hopefully sign an extension and come back stronger next year.

Doyle – 6.5

Typical Doyler – willing to run around and make a nuisance of himself, but didn’t really seem to do a lot to actually affect the game. Had a purple patch in February coinciding with the team’s good run and scored 3 in 3, but other than that was largely peripheral. Didn’t seem to be able to step up to the plate when the team weren’t doing so well – not good for a supposed midfield general. Should be nothing more than a squad player now.

Eastwood – 5

Another disappointment after the long chase to get him. Obviously has ability but he’s very much a confidence player and a lack of goals left him without any. Dropped deep in the early part of the season to help link with the midfield but still seemed to be doing this even when it wasn’t necessary. Didn’t seem to show any urgency to get into the box to get onto crosses towards the end of the season meaning he never looked likely to end his scoring drought.

Fox – 8

Solid in defence and with a superb free-kick, scoring four from dead-ball situations and another goal of the season contender after turning a defender inside out. Corners were a bit hit and miss at times but created a few goals. Integral part of the team and hopefully another who’ll sign an extended contract.

Gray – 5.5

Played a few games at the start of the season before Fulham inexplicably signed him and looked the same as usual – capable on the ball but went missing the second the challenges came flying in

Gunnarsson – 8.5

Easily Young Player of the Season and ran Westwood close for Player of the Season. A fan’s favourite due to his friendly (possibly slightly naïve) demeanour, at the start of the season he looked a battler with a long throw up his sleeve but progressed into a midfield playmaker with a passing touch allied to good work-rate. Clearly determined and ambitious, he’s a potential future captain, but he needs to gain a bit more self discipline to cut out the bookings. If he can do that he looks like he could be the complete midfielder in time. I hope he signs the contract extension and stays for a number of years

Hall – 6

Time is catching up with Marcus and a number of times his body just wouldn’t do what he wanted it to. Never shirked his duties when called upon and gave his all as always. Played well at left back during Fox’s absence towards the end of the season but looked susceptible when played elsewhere in defence. Is being offered another year, mainly due to his experience in the dressing room, but surely it will be the last before he’s put out to pasture after so many years of faithful service?

Henderson – 7.5

Loanee from Sunderland gave us some much needed width on the right and his introduction coincided with the good run in February as the service to the strikers improved. Willing to run at defenders, he could do with a bit more pace and his crossing was a bit hit and miss, but worthy of a phone call from CC regarding his long-term availability.

Ireland – 6.5

Deputised for the Aldershot cup game and did alright. Didn’t look nervous but it wasn’t exactly the most testing of opposition though. Apparently signed a two-year contract extension to 2011 and may become second choice next year.

McKenzie – 6.5

Became first choice left winger after Gray’s departure and looked dangerous trying to take on defenders. Suffers from O’Neill-McNamee Syndrome though and can’t seem to stay off the treatment table for more than 5 minutes, and is currently out for six months with a snapped Achilles. Shame, as fully fit he’s useful to have around. A new contract has been mooted but if he can’t stay fit then its money we could be spending elsewhere.

McPake – 6

Another January signing, highly rated by Livingston fans, but looked a bit overawed at times and caught out by strikers with good movement. Another who’s still settling in and will hopefully prove his worth next term.

Mifsud – 5

The diminutive Malteser unfortunately kept up his scoring rate from the second half of last season rather than the first, and even his pace and trickery that excited the fans the previous year seemed to have deserted him – maybe he’d been ‘found out’? Worse aspect was his unprofessional attitude off the pitch, seemingly believing he was more important than the club, creating a sideshow that affected the team. Turned down Bristol City (incurring the wrath of manager Gary Johnson for his antics) and Barnsley, before finally joining the latter on loan after effectively being told to b****r off. Out of contract at the end of the season and won’t be missed a great deal.

Marshall – 6.5

Had the difficult task of being number two to Westwood and filling in when necessary, but did so ably when called upon. Being released at the end of the season to allow him to get more first team football, I wish Mash all the best for the future.

Morrison – 6.5

Top scorer, but owed most of that to a purple patch before Christmas, and I expected a few more goals from him. I was pleasantly surprised by his willingness to chase and how much he got stuck in as a targetman despite not being physically designed for it. Gives experience up front, but had a tendency to blame everyone around him even for his own mistakes, which surely can’t help team morale. More of a whingeing mentality than a winning one.

Osbourne – 6

Another frustrating season for Ossie. Again, had to fill in at right back due to injuries (which he did reasonably well, though you wouldn’t want him there permanently) before getting injured himself just as the opportunity to play in his favoured midfield role arose, before once again being pushed back into the defence for the end of the season following another Wright injury. If we don’t sign another central midfielder in the summer I’d have him as the holding midfielder ahead of Beuzelin and Doyle. Next season could be make-or-break for him.

Sawyer – 5

Youngster from Chelsea was on loan for a month but had a bit of a ‘mare of a debut, looking out of his depth and making a mistake resulting in a goal. Went back after a month, but I’m sure we didn’t see him playing to his full potential.

Simpson – 6

Becoming the new Andy Morrell. Was never likely to get much of a chance up front with the options available, so when he did play he was mostly out wide. His attitude was exemplary, he scored a few goals against lower league opposition in the cups and his crossing was good, but not been given enough time against decent opposition in his favoured position to see how he copes. A potential summer casualty.

Tabb – 6.5

Last season’s Player of the Year never got close to the same standards, and was often found drifting inside from his position on the wing to try and have more of an influence. Not pacy or a good enough crosser of the ball to realistically play on the wing, but his attitude and work-rate couldn’t be faulted. Eventually left for Reading due to homesickness, with Ranson decide to cash in before his contract expired.

Thornton – 5.5

Another season wasted for the talented but flawed maestro. Hardly played for the Sky Blues and generally looked unfit, although he did apparently manage to beat a bleep test! Had a short stint at Brighton where he impressed the fans but seemingly not the management who only played him sporadically. Has made the usually noises about next season being vital to him and has knuckled down, but we’ll have to wait until next year to see if he’s truly taken it on board.

Turner – 7

Most improved player of the season. Looked a lot more assured and confident, and if the opposition lump high balls at our back four I’m more than happy for Ben to be at the heart of it. I’m not so confident with people running at him though, but his improvement this year shows his willingness to learn so I’m confident he’ll be even better next year. He cut out a lot of the errors that littered his game last year but the occasional one still crept in and unfortunately always seemed to be punished.

Walker – 6

Had a short run out for some match experience. Very slightly built so may not be best suited to blood-and-thunder games, but looked willing to collect the ball and look for passes, so it doesn’t seem like he’ll be over-awed by the step-up.

Ward – 7

Was in and out of the team and seemed to be struggling to impress Coleman due to his tendency to switch off at times, Ward is very gifted but seems to believe he’s a bit better than he actually is. Impressive when he stuck to the basics and easily good enough for this division. Rumoured to possibly be on his way in the summer due to being one of the higher earners and possible disenchantment at the club’s failure to get close to promotion, his departure would be unwelcome but not disastrous.

Westwood – 9

Player of the Season. Excellent shot stopper responsible for more of City’s points this season than any other player. Good at taking crosses and commanding his area, his distribution was good 80% of the time. Well worthy of the contract extension currently on the table.

Wright – 7

Picked up three injuries over the course of the year causing him to miss a number of matches, which hasn’t helped allay the fears of another McNamee situation and makes the need for a back-up right back quite important.  Wright looked relatively assured and gave a young defence some much needed experience. Looked good covering in the centre but occasionally looked a bit susceptible on the flanks, meaning he didn’t always offer as much support going forward as I like.

Wynter – 7

Youngster who filled in on a couple of occasions at right back after Wright and Osbourne got injured. Didn’t look over-awed and kept things simple, but needs more time to acclimatise to the Championship.

Coleman – 7

Managed to steady a sinking ship by making it a relatively solid unit, although not necessarily the best to watch at times. Signings were a bit hit and miss and for me question marks remain about his motivational abilities given the number of winnable games we failed to even turn up at. However, this season has seen a steady improvement and with a more positive, attacking ethos next season a top ten finish is within our grasp

PLAYER OF THE SEASON – Keiren Westwood

YOUNG PLAYER OF THE SEASON – Aron Gunnarsson

GOAL OF THE SEASON – Daniel Fox (take your pick out of the five he scored – they were all beaut’s) & David Bell (Doncaster (H))

MOST IMPROVED PLAYER – Ben Turner

YOUTH TEAM PLAYER OF THE YEAR – Ashley Cain

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