Underrated Geall 'so deserving' of GFC players' player of the year award

In what was the Green Lions' fifth season in existence, there were new names on each of the three players' awards up for grabs at the Duke of Richmond Hotel.

Spanish midfielder Guille Fernandez completed his spell on the island by picking up the fans' player of the year, after playing more than anybody else in his debut – and only – season.

Craig Young was also a first-time recipient, as he was honoured by Tony Vance and his coaching team with the coaches' player of the year.

But it was Geall who was the big winner as he was chosen by his team-mates as the players' player of the season after a campaign where he has played 33 times at right-back.

Despite admitting in his acceptance speech that he felt 'embarrassed' to have won, his manager Vance was full of praise for the 33-year-old.

'I am pleased for Simon and he fully deserves an award like that because he is one of the most under-rated players you will ever come across,' he said.

'Unless you are a team-mate of his or extremely close to Simon, you won't realise how good a footballer he is and just how dependable he is.

'You know what you get from Simon every game and that is an extremely intelligent footballer who gets the best from himself and is somebody that all of his team-mates trust totally.

'When you come to naming a team, having players in the mould of Simon Geall is vital.'

The night's other awards saw Josh Steel win goal of the season for his strike at Walton Casuals, striker Ross Allen pick up the Golden Boot for scoring 34 goals, while club official David Packman received the award for outstanding contribution.