Right from the Blogger.com days of the 24th Minute, I have been giving out year end awards to honour the best in Canadian soccer. At the start it was just me giving my opinion, but since 2010 those awards have evolved into a collective discussion amongst the writers at CSN.
As December rolls around each year, we start the debate -- generally over email, occasionally over pints -- that leads to the awards being "handed out" in the week between Christmas and New Year's Day.
The awards have evolved a little since 2008, but they have remained mostly the same. They are:
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]Villain of the year: The person that most made Canadian soccer fans lose their mind during the previous calendar year. The award does not have to go to a Canadian. Last year the award went to Tom Soehn.
The Bruce Wilson Award (formally the what if soccer were played on ice award): The award recognizes that as Canadians we value certain aspects and characteristics in our players -- things that make us relate to them. Those values might be different for every person, but it's interesting that each year the CSN writers generally come up with the same nominee. The award is being re-named to reflect the man who most resembles what we're talking about (and if you're old enough to remember Wilson play you'll instantly understand what that means). Last year's winner was Eduardo Sebrango.
The World Performance of the year: Canadian soccer does not exist in a vacuum. Therefore we take a moment to reflect on the individual that has had the biggest impact on the game worldwide. Last year's winner was collectively FC Barcelona.
The Canadian club goals of the year: Pretty straight forward. What were the best goals (we try and balance aesthetic value and the importance of the goal) of each of the Voyageurs Cup eligible teams in 2012. Last year's winners were Shaun Saiko, Ali Gerba, Eric Hassli and Joao Plata.
The Canadian team of the year: Goes to the national team (senior or youth) or club team (based in Canada) that was judged to have the best overall season. Last year's winner as the Canadian men's u-17 team.
The Canadian goal of the year: The best by a Canadian playing anywhere in the world. Like the club goals we try and balance aesthetic value and the importance of the goal. Last year's winner was Christine Sinclair.
The Canadian player of the year: Goes to the Canadian player that had the best overall year (we try and balance club and country). Last year's winner was Dwayne de Rosario.
The Person of the Year: This is the big one. The person deemed to have the biggest positive impact on Canadian soccer over the calendar year -- it can be a player, but it isn't necessarily going to be one (their influence must extend beyond the playing surface in a significant way). Last year's winner was Jason deVos.
Let us know in the comments who your picks are and come back on Boxing Day to find out who was the Villain of the Year.