Andrew Cohen is the MFA Player of the Year for season 2004-2005.
Confirmation that the 24-year-old Cohen has topped the Player of the Year award shortlist came yesterday evening as the winners of the MFA's individual honours in all divisions were spelt out during a meeting of the association's council.
The Hibernians forward finished ahead of Valletta's Gilbert Agius and Brian Said of Sliema Wanderers.
Cohen's coronation as the country's best performer last season caps an amazing transformation from a marginal figure in the Hibernians squad to a key member of their first XI and the national squad.
His success also represents a deviation from the modern trend of having the Player of the Year Award bestowed on a member of the championship-winning team.
This had been the case in each of the previous four seasons when the honour was collected by Valletta's Gilbert Agius (2000-2001), Sliema striker Adrian Mifsud, then with Hibs, (2001-2002), and Wanderers midfielders Noel Turner (2002-2003) and Stefan Giglio (2003-2004).
Hibernians could only finish third last season behind champions Sliema Wanderers and runners-up Birkirkara, but that did not prevent Cohen gaining the recognition his stellar contribution deserved.
Initial forecasts had Cohen, the top marksman in the Premier League with 21 goals, and Ivan Woods, winner of a championship medal with Sliema and a close second in the scoring charts with 20 goals, as favourites to succeed Giglio as MFA Player of the Year. However, the Hibs striker's route became much more straightforward once it became known that Sliema had inadvertently failed to propose Woods for the award.
Cohen's status as leading favourite to land the award was confirmed when he topped the first round of voting by a panel consisting of a selection of football journalists, MFA council members and officials.
The Hibernians striker held on to top spot after the five candidates for the award had their tally of points revised according to a complex formula which, among other things, gives weighting to the players' disciplinary record, number of matches played and appearances for the national team.
"This award must rank as the biggest achievement of my career so far," a thrilled Cohen told The Times.
"The season could not have gone better for me. It was the first time in my career that I began the season as a regular player in the Hibs senior team and to finish it as top-scorer of the Premier League and MFA Player of the Year is just amazing."
At 24, Cohen has yet to reach his peak but his impressive performances last season coupled with his new status as MFA Player of the Year will definitely heighten people's expectations about him.
Some might also argue that his elevation as the country's best player for last season could undermine his focus and determination to improve but Cohen insists that he has plenty other ambitions to fulfil in his career.
"This award gives me renewed motivation to work harder and improve myself as a player," Cohen said.
"I want to take my game to a new level in the next few seasons. Winning another Premier League title with Hibs is also uppermost in my mind."
Cohen's crafty work and exquisite finishing are two main reasons why Hibs finished third last season but it could have been so different had their talented striker not been given his overdue chance to play first-team football on a regular basis.
So big was his frustration at his lack of first-team opportunities with Hibs that Cohen gave serious consideration to the possibility of joining another club in the close season.
Modest expectations
"At the start of the Premier League campaign, I tried not to raise my expectations as to the prospect of gaining a regular place in the team," Cohen admitted.
"I had even approached club president Mr Tony Bezzina to allow me to join a new club but he assured me that I was in the coach's plans for the season. He was correct and my priority after getting into the team for the first few matches was to do my best to hold down a regular berth."
The MFA Player of the Year award was like a speck on the horizon in Cohen's mind in the early months but he admits to thinking more about it as the season progressed.
"In the first few months, the MFA Player of the Year award did not figure in my plans. It was only at the end of the second round of matches that I began to believe in my chances of winning it," he said.
Cohen admitted to being as surprised as everyone that Woods's name was missing from the list of candidates for the MFA Player of the Year.
"I was surprised to learn that Ivan Woods had not been nominated for the award," Cohen remarked.
"Woods had a very good season, helping Sliema Wanderers to win the league and finishing just one goal behind me in the scoring charts. He would definitely have made a strong contender for the award and the race would have been closer. Woods definitely deserves credit for his excellent campaign."
Critics have been hard pressed to earmark one main reason for Cohen's sudden rise. The unassuming Hibs player lists patience, hard work and consistency as the three main attributes which helped him break into the local game's elite.
"Maintaining a high degree of consistency throughout the league campaign put me in contention for this award," Cohen said.
"People have expressed surprise at my immediate impact on the Premier League after spending a few seasons on the fringe of the first team but I suppose this owes to my determination and the patience I showed in waiting for my chance to come."
Cohen's growing confidence also benefited from his call-up to Horst Heese's national squad last year.
"I would say my call-up to the national squad was the turning point," Cohen reminisced.
"Receiving an invitation from the national coach to join his squad in May last year filled me with confidence.
"It gave me fresh impetus to keep training hard and perform to the maximum of my abilities, week in week out. I want to keep doing that for the rest of my career.
"Getting into the Malta team for the last World Cup qualifiers was a tremendous experience. My ambition now is to establish myself as Michael Mifsud's striking partner for many years to come."
Results
1. A. Cohen (Hibernians) 45.79
2. G. Agius (Valletta) 42.66
3. B. Said (Sliema W.) 40.80
4. W. Camenzuli (Birkirkara) 37.54
5. I. Azzopardi (Floriana) 33.21
MFA honours 2004-2005...
Best Division One player:
1. G. Attard (Senglea A.) 48.28; 2. G. Martin (Marsa) 43.77; 3. V. Bellia (Naxxar Lions) 37.49; 4. M.A. Psaila (Mqabba) 36.80; 5. E. Bartolo (San Gwann) 33.66.
Best Division Two Player:
1. A. Curmi (Tarxien R.) 46.22; 2. M. Farrugia (Zebbug) 39.36; 3. E. Herrera (Melita) 39.10; 4. J. Camilleri (Vittoriosa) 38.20; 5. J. Cachia (Dingli) 36.93.
Best Division Three Player:
1. M. Xerxen (Gudja) 46.38; 2. D. Brincat (Sta Lucija) 43.89; 3. K. Portelli (Luqa SA) 37.56; 4. S. Mizzi (Kirkop) 36.75; 5. A. Cachia (Pembroke) 35.41.
Best Youth Player:
1. M. Montfort (Valletta) 44.92; 2. E. Herrera (Melita) 44.15; 3. D. Zarb (Valletta) 33.66; 4. A. Spiteri (Pietà Hotspurs) 32.67.
Best Female Player:
1. J. Coates (Mosta) 46.66; 2. D. Tonna (Hibs) 41.28; 3. J. Ellul Soler (Melita) 40.40; 4. D. Theuma (Hibs) 37.92; 5. C. Camilleri (Birkirkara) 33.75.