Unsung heroes in Championship XI

[Delima]

Belated, but hey.

 

Teamtalks

 

Unsung heroes in Championship XI

 

Jamie Cureton, Michael Kightly and Chris Brunt are among the stars overlooked by the PFA but named in TEAMtalk's Championship  out

 

In an extraordinary season of thrills and spills in England's second tier, the PFA select XI could only scratch the surface of the division's talent.

 

TEAMtalk's dedicated Championship aficionados have therefore clubbed together to pay tribute to a squad of players who would be more than a match for their peers.

 

GK: Stephen Bywater (Derby County)

 

A summer switch to the Rams saw Bywater joining his eighth club at the age of just 25. But he quickly settled at Pride Park and has impressed hugely between the sticks, with Derby boasting the third best defence in the division. A true commander of the penalty box, Bywater has kept 13 clean sheets in 36 league appearances, conceding just 30 goals in all.

 

RB: Paul McShane (West Brom)

 

It was his team-mate Curtis Davies who made the PFA team but McShane has been a rock for the Baggies this season and has held the defence together since Davies' injury. The Irishman has played at centre-half and full-back this season and has rarely been anything short of superb.

 

CB: Danny Higginbotham (Stoke City)

 

Stoke have the Championship's best defence so it was more than a tad surprising to see their skipper and outstanding performer omitted from the PFA side. After starting the season at left-back Higginbotham has been immense since moving into the middle and is the main reason why the Potters are still in with a chance of promotion.

 

CB: Nyron Nosworthy (Sunderland)

 

Pretty much unsung outside of Wearside, Nosworthy is arguably the greatest beneficiary of the Roy Keane revolution. His switch to central defence by the new boss in January corresponded with the Black Cats' remarkable upturn in form. Recently rewarded with a new three-year deal, the 26-year-old is so hard to beat that Sunderland fans gave him his own chant, to the tune of Amy Winehouse's Rehab: "They try to take the ball past Nyron, he says no, no, no."

 

LB: Mat Sadler (Birmingham)

 

Sadler has managed to hold down a regular place at left-back this season despite pressure from more experienced St Andrews pros. After a catalogue of injury problems in previous campaigns, the 22-year-old has stepped up to the plate and had Steve Bruce recently commenting: "He's grown into a man and he's Blues through and through."

 

RM: Michael Kightly (Wolves)

 

Surely the find of the season in the Championship, Kightly only arrived at Wolves from Conference outfit Grays in early December but has been an integral part of their play-off push ever since. Fleet of foot and with a sharp eye for goal, the 21-year-old has dazzled Molineux and is already being tracked by a host of top-flight clubs.

 

CM: Lilian Nalis (Plymouth Argyle)

 

Every team needs a warhorse, but few midfield veterans are as cultured and committed as Nalis. The Frenchman has oozed class with his tidy passing and bite in the tackle this season, and is fit as a fiddle at the age of 35. Argyle have won plenty of admirers under boss Ian Holloway, who recently admitted Nalis had been their "outstanding" performer.

 

CM: Simon Whaley (Preston)

 

Used in a number of positions by North End, it's easy to forget Whaley is only 21. Picked up from Bury for just £250k, his driving runs, pinpoint passing and six goals have had the Deepdale crowd raving this season and his recent injury has coincided with the Lilywhites' poor run of form. His class on the ball sees him land the 'free role' in the TEAMtalk XI.

 

LM: Chris Brunt (Sheffield Wednesday)

 

Another surprising omission from the PFA team, Brunt's wonder goals have fired Wednesday to the edge of the play-offs. The Championship's outstanding winger, Brunt has scooped the Owls' Player of the Month gong six times. His 10 goals make him one of the division's most free-scoring wingers and Brian Laws faces a battle to keep hold of his star man in the summer.

 

CF: Jamie Cureton (Colchester United)

 

Cureton is the Championship's top scorer this season with 24 goals and that is some feat when you consider he was relegated to League Two with Swindon at the end of last season. He's scored screamers, volleys, headers and tap-ins and is one of the main reasons why the Us have climbed to the edge of the top six.

 

CF: Grzegorz Rasiak (Southampton)

 

With Saints threatening to nudge their way into the final promotion picture, the contribution of Rasiak in the first half of the season cannot be underestimated. Fifteen of his 18 league goals came before the turn of the year, and although his recent return has been disappointing, Rasiak gets the nod ahead of Derby's Steve Howard as our Championship target man.

 

Substitutes:

 

GK: Steve Simonsen (Stoke City)

 

Simonsen has been an ever-present for City this season and went over 630 minutes without conceding in November and December. A very experienced and capable 'keeper, his shot stopping has helped the Potters grind out a number of valuable 1-0 victories this term.

 

DEF: Lee Bullen (Sheffield Wednesday)

 

Like midfield pick Nalis, age has not wearied Bullen in 2006/7 - in fact, he has gone from strength to strength under Brian Laws at Hillsborough as the Owls have mounted a dynamic charge for the top six. Has given everything for the cause, with Laws recently saying: "He may lack the attributes that some other Championship defenders have, but he makes up for that with tremendous heart."

 

DEF: Chris Baird (Southampton)

 

Overshadowed by his more well-known team-mate Gareth Bale, Baird's exploits at full-back have not gone unnoticed at TEAMtalk. A virtual ever-present for Saints, Baird has rarely put a foot wrong and only narrowly missed out on our XI.

 

MID: Giles Barnes (Derby)

 

Billy Davies has made a point of easing Barnes into the first-team but the 18-year-old's eight goals and countless scintlilating performances will make it very hard for Davies to ignore him next season, regardless of what division the Rams are in. A future superstar.

 

CF: Darren Huckerby (Norwich)

 

The Canaries have largely disappointed this season, but Huckerby remains a shining light at Carrow Road. Took on the goalscoring mantle after injury struck Rob Earnshaw, who had hit the net 17 times in the first half of the campaign. Huckerby's guile and speed of thought continues to wow the Norwich faithful and he is the ideal provider of a bit of magic from the bench for our Championship XI.

[Guest graemeh72]

Giles Barnes....

 

unsung? ..... sheeesh! 

[Guest Morph]

My mates been banging on about 'Nozza' since he's switched to centre back like, but I'm just looking forward to seeing him up against Didier Drogba or Dimi Berbatov, I'll be on the fucking floor, rofling all the way through Motd.  And Kightly, didn't he used to play for someone (of importance)?

[Delima]

My mates been banging on about 'Nozza' since he's switched to centre back like, but I'm just looking forward to seeing him up against Didier Drogba or Dimi Berbatov, I'll be on the f****** floor, rofling all the way through Motd.  And Kightly, didn't he used to play for someone (of importance)?

 

What's your point though?