SPORTING FINGAL manager Liam Buckley last night became the 50th winner of the Aviva-sponsored Soccer Writers Association of Ireland Personality of the Year with the Dubliner edging out the likes of Gary Twigg, Rafaele Cretaro and Pat Fenlon to lift the award.

Buckley’s win is recognition of the remarkable year the former Shamrock Rovers and St Patrick’s Athletic boss has enjoyed with the club he helped to create just a couple of years ago.

In just their second season of football, Sporting won promotion to the league’s top flight via the play-offs and then went on to lift the FAI Cup, beating Sligo in the final after having previously put Shamrock Rovers out of the competition. Apart from contributing so much to the team’s success on the pitch, Buckley also worked tirelessly through the year to help the development of Sporting as a community-based club backed by the its local authority and working with all sections of the local population in a fastest growing part of the capital city.

Amongst those at the function last night where Buckley received his award was Dan McCaffrey, the former Drumcondra striker who was the first to be honoured by the association back in 1961 after a season in which he had scored 29 league goals for the Dublin club. George King, a founder member of the association, was also present.

Ipswich Town’s Brian Murphy won the Goalkeeper of the Year award for the third year running having made another outstanding contribution to Bohemians’ success. And Jim McLaughlin, the former Swansea and Northern Ireland striker who went on to manage the likes of Dundalk, Shamrock Rovers and Derry City so successfully, winning three SWAI personality awards along the way, was presented with the organisation’s special merit award.