Alex Woodyard

Genuinely hard to look past woodyard and Bozzie. But Butch holds a special place in everyone’s heart for obvious reasons. Gain out on the left, without question.

— Ben Ward (@winstano) April 20, 2018

It is testament to the quality of Danny Colwey’s signings that players from the current era have featured extensively on this poll and another of the current squad to receive numerous nominations is Alex Woodyard.

He followed his mentor from Concord to Lincoln via Braintree, and arrived at Sincil Bank after winning National League Young Player of the Year. Within twelve months he’d added a National League title to his trophy cabinet, as well as all of our Player of the Season awards. He was a revelation, a midfield dynamo who worked harder than anyone we’d seen before. He typified industry and has picked up this campaign where he left off last.

Woodyard is a workhorse, he does all the donkey work and unseen work that players like David Batty had to do at the top-level. He plays passes simple, but he is always willing to get the ball and move it on. When we’re playing well he sits in the middle of the park dictating play and breaking up opposition attacks. When we’re playing badly he chases, harasses and harries every single opposition player, and he always makes himself available for a pass. He wants the ball so much, even in training he has a ball at his feet during talks or warm down sessions. I imagine his Mum had to tie a ball on a rope and leave it in the bath just to get him to clean himself.

He eats, lives and breathes football and he has that special something that you only see once or twice in a generation. He’s no fancy-dan with lots of flicks and feints, but he’s comfortable on the ball, comfortable moving it about and comfortable getting stuck into hard 50/50 challenges.

We’ve almost lost him to Luton Town this season and he’s also been linked with Scunthorpe United, neither move would be fitting for his talents. He could play Championship football with ease and, in my opinion, if Jon Nolan is being touted as a Leeds or Sheffield Wednesday player then Alex Woodyard deserves exactly the same level of attention.

THERE IS NO POLL YET – all of the nominations will get a focus before we finally go to the poll. Keep an eye out tomorrow for another wave of great midfielders.