Press food and pub pints - Alternative Blackburn awards

Player of the Season

Had to be Sondre Tronstad. It looked like a two-horse race between him and his midfielder partner in the first half of the season.

Callum Brittain's performances made him another strong contender but Tronstad is the clear winner. His consistency in the last two seasons has been fantastic. When he's not there, or not at his best, you really notice it.

He sets the tempo from midfield and he's a clever passer of the ball. He's been skipper a few times this season and leads in a different way, always setting the standards.

Goal of the Season

Has to be Andi Weimann against Burnley, both for the strike and the significance of the moment.

That said, some very worth honourable mentions. Tronstad's second against Millwall and Yuki Ohashi's left-footed curler against Bristol City immediately spring to mind. Then there's the 42-passing move at Cardiff, tapped in by Weimann.

Unsung hero

Danny Batth gets this award for me. His consistency of performance for a 34-year-old was outstanding. His injury record was pretty exemplary too.

His regular centre-back partner, Dom Hyam, deserves a shout-out here too. To play every game in a Championship season is some effort and that side of his game is often underappreciated.

Favourite game

The matches against Leeds United were fun last year. A 1-0 win in front of a 7K Darwen away end and then a late equaliser at Elland Road, having conceded moments before.

The 2-0 win away at West Brom stands out too given the emotion on the night. Rovers produced a performance for their fans to be proud of and really galvanised when many thought they might sink.

Millwall at home on Good Friday was their best display under Ismael; everything seemed to click. Likewise, Sheffield United on the final day was full of drama but ultimately ended in disappointment.

It's a niche choice but Luton Town (H) always sticks out. It was an utterly dominant performance from start to finish, exuding all the qualities that made Rovers so good under John Eustace.

Amario Cozier-Duberry made his debut and scored. Tronstad was magnificent in midfield. We didn't realise how poor Luton would become at that point either so it didn't take anything away from the victory, which was their sixth in a row.

Worst moment of the season

Has to be that hat-trick of defeats to Derby, Stoke and Cardiff, all in a week. Filling a paper is tough enough during the international break but when you've just lost three games to bottom six clubs, it's a nightmare.

That was the week where many will say Rovers' top-six hopes were lost. It was a nightmare start under Ismael and that was an awful week for the club.

Middlesbrough stands out as the most toxic, by a distance. It was the height of the protests against Venky's and the board, Rovers were 2-0 down in eight minutes and there were calls for Ismael to be sacked. All live in front of the Sky cameras. Ouch.

Best interviewee

There are a few decent talkers at Rovers. Tronstad is usually brutally honest, Hyam speaks with a lot of sense and is often one that puts his hand up to talk to the media when few fancy it.

Todd Cantwell is perhaps the most interesting. He's quite honest about his career and certain perceptions around his demeanour. Pound, for pound, he's probably the best.

A word for the lads where English is not their first language too. Many of them are a bit nervous at first and very self-deprecating but always do better than they expect they will.

Balazs Toth would certainly fall under that category. Yuki Ohashi did amazingly well in his first interview too, considering he didn't speak a word of English before he moved halfway across the world.

I still think it can go under the radar how well he's done on and off the pitch. A complete random export who has adapted so well to the Championship and life in England. Plus, he only cost a few hundred grand.

Player you'd most like to have a pint with

Tyrhys Dolan is a really lovely lad and would qualify for this if you're going for one or two after a nice meal. Cantwell would be the pick if you just wanted to talk football and pick someone's brains.

I reckon Tronstad is a good laugh on a night out along with captain Lewis Travis. They'd be the life and soul of the party.

Best opposition performance

Victor Johansson was fantastic in both of Stoke's games against Rovers and a huge reason why they took six points. His display at Ewood Park was as good as any I've seen.

He made about three wonder saves on top of a string of very good ones too. There was simply no beating him that night, a sublime display.

Best and worst press food

Every year, I say I'll make a definite list, take pictures and rank the 23 away grounds. By the second or third away game, I've forgotten and that's another year missed.

There are plenty of usual contenders for this award. It's of course subjective, it depends on what you like. As a very stereotypical Northerner, anything with gravy is a huge winner as far as I'm concerned. Bigger portions score you more points too.

Hull City is always good. Every year, I say I'll try the street food and end up with beef brisket pie, chips and peas. Stoke City is always a good feed, as is Bristol City who let you help yourself. Big brownie points for that. Middlesbrough and Leeds United are usually certainties for a play-off slot as well.

Millwall were a big contender this year after a banging Shephard's pie and plenty of it too. I think I'd go with that as my winner for this year which probably says as much about me as anything else. I'm excited to go back to Leicester which is probably my favourite yet, even amongst some top-end Premier League clubs.

Always feels harsh stating worst as I appreciate we're in a privileged position. Yet, Watford's cold-packed sandwiches for a 12:30pm kick-off were very uninspiring. Cardiff is always quite a small offering too, as was Oxford, though the former won't be an issue next season.

Best and worst away ground for media

If I could relegate one club now it'd be Swansea City. To be clear, I have nothing against the area, the stadium or even the media facilities. It's all fine and they're very welcoming. But it's a logistical nightmare.

It takes forever on the train, or you face a 10-hour drive in one day. I tend to take the train for anything over two hours so I'm not faced with a mountain of work when I get home after a long one.

The train station is a good 30 minutes away, which makes it difficult when you're trying to catch one of the last trains home at around 6pm. It feels like the third world trying to get a taxi or even public transport between the station and the ground.

On my last two trips to the Swans, I've got stuck coming home and had to be driven home by friends or family. Suffice to say, it's my least favourite trip by a distance.

I have to be honest, I wasn't a fan of Oxford's Kassam Stadium on my first visit either. That was more from a football aesthetics standpoint than anything media-related. Any ground with three stands is going to stick out at Championship level.

Ewood Park is very good from a media facility view. Everything is located very close together which is always a big tick. The post-match media theatre is as nice as any other.

West Brom's glass view of the pitch from the press room always wins admirers. I quite like trips to Pride Park too which is pretty well laid out for the press.

Best and worst signing

It's a three-man shortlist for the best. Batth, Weimann and Ohashi. I think for the factors I spoke about earlier, Ohashi would get the nod. That was out-of-the-box recruitment and he looks a steal. I reckon he'll be even better next season too.

Emmanuel Dennis was easily the worst considering what he cost, the timing of his arrival and his contribution. That looked like a huge risk at the time and it certainly didn't pay off.

Most memorable press conference

Has to be Eustace addressing the Derby speculation after losing to Wolves, which was exactly one year to the day since he'd taken over. Like Jon Dahl Tomasson before him, when he walked out of the Rovers media theatre it felt clear that he wouldn't be coming back, even if he was far more subtle in his media comments.