Dolan Warren Awards: Joel King named Young Footballer of the Year

Emerging Sydney FC full-back Joel King has beaten four other strong candidates to win A-League Young Footballer of the Year for 2021.

The award is drawn from the monthly nominees voted on by technical experts and the media, with the overall winner selected by them and a fan vote. King beat Ramy Najjarine, Alou Kuol, Nathaniel Atkinson and Ben Waine to the top honour awarded to the best young player in the A-League for 2021.

20-year-old King contributed to four clean sheets across seven games throughout May and June, when he earned his nomination for the award.

King has featured 27 times for the Sky Blues this season after making 26 appearances in the last campaign, in a consistent start to his burgeoning professional career. Playing on the left of a defensive unit featuring the likes of Alex Wilkinson, Ryan McGowan, Rhyan Grant and goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne has helped King flourish into one of the brightest young stars in Australia.

From May to June 2021, King made six 90-minute appearances and put on one 75-minute shift in a 4-1 win over Adelaide United on the road. King had an average of 77.71 touches throughout those seven games, playing just over 54 passes per game at an average accuracy of 85.76%.

The four shut-outs along the seven-game stretch came against Western United, Melbourne Victory, Western Sydney Wanderers and Brisbane Roar. The Roar clash was Sydney’s last of the A-League campaign, and Steve Corica’s side came into the fixture without Redmayne, Grand and McGowan who had departed for Socceroos duty. King, however, excelled in a makeshift Sky Blues defence, as his side won 2-0 away from home to head into the Finals Series full of confidence.

King contributed to his side’s 2-1 Semi Final win over Adelaide United to progress to the A-League Grand Final. The young defender will hope to win his second A-League Championship in as many seasons after featuring for 120 minutes in Sydney’s 1-0 Grand Final triumph over Melbourne City last season.

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