Sport Times writers select their Player of the Year

Victor Wanyama as been the outstanding performer in Scottish football this season.

Which is why clubs in England are jostling for position to engage in a bidding war – start at £10million, please gentlemen – for the 21-year-old Kenyan.

Wanyama really grew up on the Champions League stage this season, going toe-to-toe with some of the biggest names in the game, and never yielding an inch.

The greatest tribute which could be paid to him is that he did not look out of place against the likes of Barcelona.

Wanyama's form has waned a little since Celtic exited the Champions League, but he still remains the classiest act operating in this country.

He has not completely eradicated the rashness which has brought him a few suspensions, but he is learning to harness his natural aggression.

After just two seasons in Scotland, Wanyama looks ready to step straight into an English top-flight side.

LEIGH GRIFFITHS says MATTHEW LINDSAY

I am surprised there is even a debate over Player of the Year.

Leigh Griffiths has scored 27 goals for a decidedly average Hibs team in all competitions.

Without him, the Easter Road club would have been sucked into a battle for survival. As things stand, they are only ahead of bottom-placed Dundee by 13 points.

The 22-year-old has helped Pat Fenlon's team into the final of the Scottish Cup almost single-handedly.

Several Celtic players have performed well. If the award was handed out at Christmas I would have given it to their goalkeeper Fraser Forster.

But, for me, none of the Hoops players have maintained their high level of performances for the entire term in the way that Griffiths has.

I would, then, have no hesitation in naming him Player of the Year. Hopefully he gets the Scotland call-up he richly deserves soon.

KRIS COMMONS says ALISON McCONNELL

Kris Commons has been a Celtic mainstay, chalking up 43 appearances and netting 18 goals in the process.

The Scotland international had to endure a difficult campaign last year when he failed to make any kind of impact until the latter stages of the season, but this term he has been hugely influential for Neil Lennon's side in all competitions.

This season has seen him return to the kind of form that he displayed in his early days with the club and throughout this term he was heavily involved in the success that Celtic enjoyed, particularly on the European front.

An eye for a pass, an ability to score and his versatility have made him a valuable member of the Hoops and it is fair to say that he has been one of the main performers in a Celtic side that reached the last 16 of the Uefa Champions League, won the title and could yet with the Scottish Cup.

MICHAEL HIGDON says BERT MITCHELL

Michael Higdon gets my vote for Player of the Year and he does so for two main reasons.

First of all the Scouser is the complete finisher in that he can, and does, score with either foot and also his head.

If you look through the 27-goal back catalogue of Higdon strikes this term you will also find that he scores every kind of goal from the point blank tap-in to the 20-yard drive.

The pick of the bunch for me was the cushioned instep back-post volley against Celtic, which set Well on the eight-game unbeaten run that has clinched second place in the SPL and Europa League qualification.

Yet the ultimate proof of Higdon's class is the fact he has just broken Willie Pettigrew's 36-year-old league scoring record at Motherwell.

His goal haul is normally the preserve of Old Firm predators and just why his peers voted him top man.

LEIGH GRIFFITHS says Hugh MacDonalD

My choice of player of the season is Leigh Griffiths of Hibernian. Firstly, without his goals his side would not be in the Scottish Cup final and would be in an SPL relegation battle.

But secondly he is a player of explosive gifts who embroiders any match with an inventive run or a magnificent shot.

He has given me some of the most dramatic moments of the season, most particularly a performance against Dundee United at Tannadice where he was almost unplayable, scoring with a shot that brought back the heyday of the scorcher.

It was typical, too, that Griffiths could even find some magic dust to sprinkle on the barren waste that was the Edinburgh derby in March.

His free-kick from 35 yards replicated dunted the bar before dropping far over the line. The ref waved play on.

He has, though, had a season of unimpeachable prowess and potency. No one can take that away from him.

CHRIS ERSKINE says Chris Jack

Any Partick Thistle fan who doesn't appreciate what they have got will soon find out when Chris Erskine leaves for Dundee United.

He may have bowed out as a Jag during a mundane goalless draw with Dumbarton on Saturday, but he has lit up the Irn-Bru First Division this season, his 16 goals and stunning form crucial to their title success.

He admits he has idiosyncrasies and inconsistencies in his game but it is that unpredictably that makes him stand out. His style is unorthodox but he captivates crowds with his direct running and moments of magic.

Erskine deserves his chance to terrorise top flight defenders next season and there is little doubt he has the flair and quality to make the step up.

It may take a season in the SPL for his talents to be widely noticed but the time has come for Scotland's most eye-catching performer.

KRIS COMMONS says STEWART FISHER

It is a mystery that this guy didn't make the shortlist for the PFA Scotland awards.

The 29-year-old entered the season with much to prove, his most notable contribution to the injury-affected campaign which preceded it larking about with a plaster cast.

But 12 months later, not only has he emerged as Celtic's most consistent creative force, all those doubts about his attitude and defensive diligence have been well and truly dispelled.

Really came into his own on the Champions League stage, where he endured a trial by tracking back to blunt the attacking thrusts of Barcelona's Jordi Alba, then was brave enough to step up to take the clinching penalty which secured the club's progress into the last 16 against Spartak Moscow.

Celtic fans have cause to regard the player, plucked from Derby for a bargain basement £300,000 in January 2011, as a gift which keeps on giving.

VICTOR WANYAMA says THOMAS JORDAN

Celtic's Victor Wanyama has been overlooked for the top accolade this campaign.

The midfielder was in devastating form during the first half of the term when he helped Neil Lennon's side assume pole position in the SPL race and produce great displays in their incredible Champions League exploits.

His performances might not have been as strong during the last couple of months as Celtic have gone through the motions, but he has been one of many strong contenders for this award from within the Parkhead ranks.

Kris Commons has had a good season as has Fraser Forster. Gary Hooper has bagged plenty of goals but there have been spells when he has been posted missing.

Motherwell's Michael Higdon and Hibs' Leigh Griffiths have been excellent for their respective clubs.

But turning on the style when it mattered most, especially against Barcelona, gives Wanyama the edge.

DO YOU AGREE? WHO IS YOUR PLAYER OF THE YEAR? LET US KNOW IN THE COMMENTS SECTION!