Let the debate begin! It’s time to pick the strikers for the 2016/17 Hyundai A-League Fans Team of the Year.
We’ve chosen 8 attackers who impressed throughout the recent campaign but it’s up to you to decide who earns a spot in the fans’ team of the season.
And with our 4-3-3 formation – only three strikers can be selected in the starting XI.
Hyundai A-League fans XI: Goalkeepers
Hyundai A-League fans XI: Defenders
Hyundai A-League fans XI: Midfielders
You can submit your vote at the bottom of the page.
Besart Berisha (Melbourne Victory)
Ability is one thing, but single-minded desire is quite another and it’s here that the Kosovo international sets himself apart from his peers. His drive for success is utterly voracious and a seemingly unquenchable thirst for goals drives him to unmatched consistency.
For a sixth straight season he reached a double-figure goal tally, eventually leading all scorers with 21 and becoming the first player to score 100 Hyundai A-League goals. While opposition fans like to target him, they would all dearly love to have him on their side.
Bobo (Sydney FC)
In his debut Hyundai A-League season, the Brazilian front-man led all scorers for the all-conquering Sky Blues. He opened his account less than an hour into his Australian career, scoring the crucial second in the round one Sydney derby and never seemed to be in a goal-drought, eventually scoring 15 times.
Over a decade of experience playing in Brazil and Turkey showed constantly as Bobo played a massive part in Sydney FC’s championship campaign.
Diego Castro (Perth Glory)
It’s hard to find new adjectives to describe the football played by Glory’s Spanish talisman this season. In combination with Adam Taggart and Andy Keogh, he formed a frankly frightening front three and the trio combined for 37 goals in a memorable campaign.
As well as his 13 goals, Castro provided a further seven assists and was at the heart of many of his side’s most exciting and effective front-third moves. One interesting feature was that all of Castro’s goals came from his lethal right-foot, but he was a constant threat, regardless of how opposition sides set out to quell his influence.
Bruno Fornaroli (Melbourne City)
There was no second-season syndrome for the Uruguayan master, following up the 25 goals he scored in his debut year with a further 17 this campaign. His goals-to-games ratio is absolutely splendid, with 42 in just 56 outings. He took on the added responsibility of captaincy this season, leading his side to an FFA Cup victory.
It was no surprise that when his goals dried up slightly later in the season, City’s form and results suffered as a consequence. Regardless of that, he belongs right at the beginning of any conversation about the competition’s best strikers.
Roy Krishna (Wellington Phoenix)
The Fijian flier is now one of the Hyundai A-League’s most dangerous forwards. His pace is well-known but for a relatively small man, he’s also deceptively strong and able to effectively hold off opposition defenders and retain the ball.
Krishna is also a tireless worker and can often be seen tracking opponents on their attacking runs late in games. He scored a dozen goals in his fourth season with Wellington and is closing in on Paul Ifill’s club record of 33 goals.
Jamie Maclaren (Brisbane Roar)
But for a missed penalty in their round 27 win over Wellington, ‘Macca’ would have won the regular season Golden Boot. Instead he shared it with Besart Berisha, but when he scored in week one of the finals, he achieved something even Berisha hasn’t managed, becoming the first player in Hyundai A-League history to score 20 goals in successive seasons.
After a mid-season period where he was curiously left out of the starting eleven in consecutive weeks, he returned with a bang and hit a purple patch, netting ten times in seven games to reinforce his claims as one of the country’s premier marksmen.
Marco Rojas (Melbourne Victory)
After three injury-ravaged seasons plying his trade in Europe, the ‘Kiwi Messi’ returned to the Hyundai A-League and picked up where he left off, having won the Johnny Warren Medal in 2012/13.
Linking superbly with Besart Berisha and James Troisi, he supplied both goals and assists, scoring a dozen times and laying on a further 11 goals for his team-mates. Some of his goals were particularly eye-catching, as was the skill he used to create space where there seemed to be none, leaving many a hapless defender trailing in his wake.
Brendon Santalab (Western Sydney Wanderers)
The evergreen striker had his best ever Hyundai A-League season, scoring 14 goals and leading the line superbly for the Wanderers. He constantly belied his 34 years, vigorously chasing defenders and lost causes to create chances for himself and his team-mates.
Without his strikes, Western Sydney would have been in somewhat of a hole, with the next best goalscorer netting just four. His round 24 hat-trick against Melbourne City at Spotless Stadium was the highlight of a quite excellent season, following which ‘Santa’ was deservedly named his club’s player of the season.
