Top ten up for sports award (From Basingstoke Gazette)

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Who do you think deserves to be the winner?

10:40am Sunday 19th February 2012 in Headlines By John Boyman

Basingstoke and North Hants bowler Martyn James.

THERE are 10 north Hampshire stars in the running for the 2011 Gazette Sports Personality of the Year award – but who is your favourite?

The winner will be picked from the shortlist below by a judging panel – but Gazette readers can play their part in the process by putting the case for their choice in the comment box for this article.

The winner will be announced at the Basingstoke and Deane Sports Awards 2011, which will be held at the Apollo Hotel, in Basingstoke, on Friday, March 2.

The judges will make their final decision on February 20, so you need to get your comments on to the website by then in order to strengthen the case for your choice.

There is plenty of competition from a wide range of local stars and the shortlisted sportspeople, in alphabetical order, are:

Sam Goodall

Black Dam powerlifter Goodall had an exceptional year, winning British, European and World titles, breaking a host of records in the process.

The 20-year-old broke three world records on route to the under-20 British Unequipped Powerlifting title, having only taken up the sport a few months earlier.

Another gold followed at the European Championships, while he had to move up to the under-23 category for the World Championships but still claimed the title, breaking six European records along the way.

Andrew Humberstone

The 2010-11 season was not a great one for Basingstoke RFC – but the performances of fly-half Humberstone showed that there was hope for the future.

His team may have been relegated but last season was the 21-year-old’s breakthrough year and he has built on that by playing a key role as Basingstoke made a strong start to life in London One South.

Martyn James

Cricketer James had a remarkable season, taking 54 wickets in 15 games as Basingstoke and North Hants finished joint top of Thames Valley League Division One.

The seam bowler was the mainstay of the Basingstoke attack, taking 40 per cent of his team’s wickets and claiming five victims on five occasions, with his wickets coming at an average of 13.48 runs.

Stuart Lake

Midfielder Lake is a real personality, with his performances on the pitch and likable demeanour off of it making him a real crowd favourite at Basingstoke Town.

The 32-year-old was named fans’ player of the year at the end of the 2010-11 season, while he helped Town to a 14-match unbeaten run earlier this term and was outstanding as Basingstoke ran Brentford close in the FA Cup.

Cristy Nash

Karate expert Nash is a world champion, having won the WJKA World Karate title in Belgium last year.

The 13-year-old, from Old Basing, is a black belt in her sport and claimed the world crown after winning the European title a year earlier.

Marcel Petran

Slovakian defenceman Petran became an instant hit with Basingstoke Bison fans after joining the club in the summer.

The 25-year-old is best known for his bullet shots from the blue line and scored 12 goals before the turn of the year, including a hat-trick against Slough.

Charlie Purdue

The Hook runner made a fantastic start to 2012, finishing 14th at the World Cross Country Championships in Spain.

Despite the race being her first major one as a senior athlete, the 20-year-old was the first European home, finishing just over a minute behind the winner.

Neville Roach

Hartley Wintney manager Roach makes the shortlist after leading the village side to a pair of excellent FA Cup victories.

Shock wins over Bashley, who play their league football three divisions above Hartley, and Bideford, who are two leagues higher than the village side, saw Roach’s men reach the third qualifying round of the competition for the first time.

Justin Rose

The Hook golfer was back to his best in 2011, finishing fifth in the American Tour’s FedEx Cup standings.

The highlight of the year was undoubtedly a brilliant win at the BMW Championship, which put him in contention for overall FedEx Cup victory.

But Rose also finished 11th at the Masters and seventh at World Golf Championship event the HSBC Championship.

Darryl Still

South Ham welterweight boxer Still put himself into contention for a British title fight after winning all three of his bouts in 2011.

The 31-year-old boxer comfortably beat Bheki Moyo, Billy Smith and Gavin Putney to extend his winning run to six fights and push forward his claims for a title shot.

Comments(26)

Basing Chris says...
11:41am Thu 26 Jan 12

Cristy Nash deserves to be the 2011 Gazette Sports Personality of the Year award.

A lovely girl who works hard in all she does. It would be a very worth reward for her hard work.