Five fantastic strikes in the running for the Mitre Goal of the Year award at the tenth Football League Awards next month have been revealed on Soccer AM this morning.
The shortlist, decided by the votes of Sky viewers, will now be presented at the awards ceremony at The Brewery in London on 19th April and a winner will be chosen following a vote by guests on the night.Among the finishes that made it to the final five are goals scored in the Sky Bet Football League, the Capital One Cup, the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy and the end-of-season Sky Bet Play-Offs.
Yann Kermorgant - AFC Bournemouth
French striker Yann Kermorgant sealed his place in the running for Mitre Goal of the Year with a perfectly executed scissor-kick in a 2-2 draw against Ipswich Town.
Bournemouth were piling on the pressure in the opening minutes of the Sky Bet Championship fixture but the visitors were standing firm - until a cross from the right byline was met in acrobatic fashion by Kermorgant, whose flying volley left Ipswich keeper Bartosz Białkowski with no chance.
Rohan Ince - Brighton & Hove Albion
Albion midfielder Rohan Ince put himself in contention for the Mitre Goal of the Year with a beautifully-hit volley against Swindon Town in the Capital One Cup.
The sweet strike opened the scoring at the County Ground in a game the Sussex side would go on to win 4-2. The goal followed an attacking Swindon throw-in whose threat Ince himself snuffed out on the edge of his own box before running the length of the pitch to join the counter-attack and meet the ball on the edge of the Town box, burying the volley past Wes Foderingham in the Swindon goal.
Craig Westcarr - Portsmouth
Pompey striker Craig Westcarr earned his place among the Mitre Goal of the Year final five with a fine finish which helped his side to a 3-1 win away at Yeovil Town in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy.
With Portsmouth attacking down the left, a ball was lofted into the Yeovil box where Westcarr showed a wonderful touch to bring the ball down and under control before delicately chipping the ball over Glovers keeper Chris Weale and into the net.
Joe Garner - Preston North End
North End forward Joe Garner drew his side level with Rotherham United in the first leg of their 2014 Sky Bet League 1 Play-Off Semi-Final with a volley some have described as the best ever scored at Deepdale.
With Preston trailing to an Alex Revell goal, Tom Clarke lofted a ball forward from halfway. With two Millers defenders in close company Garner took the ball on his chest before a second touch helped him evade the challenge of a third opponent. Now in space and with the ball dropping perfectly, he unleashed a 25-yard volley which flew into the far corner past a despairing Adam Collin in the Rotherham net.
Andy Mangan - Shrewsbury Town
Shrews were down a goal and down to 10 men when striker Andy Mangan hit a well-placed volley to help inspire his side to a 2-1 win away at Dagenham & Redbridge and earn himself a place on the Mitre Goal of the Year shortlist.
Mangan made a darting run into the right-hand channel to get in behind the Daggers defence, where a through-ball bounced once before sitting up nicely for the striker to dispatch a well-executed volley over the head of a back-pedalling Mark Cousins and into the far corner of the net.
Past winners of the Mitre Goal of the Year include Franck Moussa for Coventry City, Simon Cox for Nottingham Forest and Peter Whittingham for Cardiff City.
Now in its tenth year, The Football League Awards is an annual event which celebrates excellence both on and off pitch across The League’s 72 clubs. To celebrate ten years of the Awards, this year will see prizes awarded in ten categories.