ARBROATH’s Michael McKenna has been named star man as the cinch Championship Team of the Season is revealed.
Despite falling short of the league title, the part-time Arbroath outfit had a season they will never forget and put in some spectacular performances.
McKenna’s 15 goals and eight assists after being pushed higher up the park from midfield to attack bagged him individual accolades from both cinch and the PFA, and he has been named in the Team of the Season alongside teammates Ricky Little and Thomas O’Brien.
The centre-half pairing were the beating heart of the surprising rise of Dick Campbell’s side, keeping an impressive number of clean sheets and rightfully being named two of the best defenders in the league.
Third place Inverness take two spots in the team, again in two defenders.
🌟 @ArbroathFC's @Mikey_211991 has been named as Star Man in the @cinchuk Championship #TOTS! Read more 👉 https://t.co/NykMw9dApQ#cinchChamp | #cinchSPFL pic.twitter.com/1Gr0Xl87Xj
— SPFL (@spfl) June 9, 2022
Left/Centre-back Robbie Deas gets a place has been incredible at just 22 years old, an ever-present aerial presence with good ball-playing ability to match.
David Carson blossomed into one of the league’s top right-backs despite being a natural midfielder thanks to his never-stop attitude of running and pressing, but Inverness unfortunately fell just short in the play-off final.
Fourth placed Partick Thistle also have two players selected in the team.
One is Scott Tiffoney, a wide attacker/midfielder whos’ trickery, dribbling, and positioning make him a constant threat, an exciting one-to-watch, and the first name on Ian McCall’s team sheet.
The other is Brian Graham, who at 34 years old was the Jags’ top goal scorer of the season, and despite a blip in form towards the latter half of the season, he will be a crucial part of next year’s efforts and is a fan favourite player.
League champions Kilmarnock fill the remaining four spaces.
Midfielders Fraser Murray and Rory McKenzie claim spots thanks to their consistent ability to create attacking scenarios from the central third, sometimes seemingly from nothing.
Killie’s Zach Hemming takes the sole goalkeeper position due to his 95 saves and 15 clean sheets having played in every single game this season, but unfortunately for the fans he was only on a season-long loan with no news as of yet to a further deal.
The final player is experienced striker Kyle Lafferty.
Despite only signing in the winter window, he played a crucial role in winning the league title with 10 goal contributions in 18 appearances. At the same age as Brian Graham, the Northern Irishman too is still tearing apart defenders so late in his career.
