Phil Littlejohns of St John’s and Peel Cricket Clubs and a member of the victorious Isle of Man squad from the ICC Europe Division Two Championship has been named the third Standard Bank Player of the Month this season.
The initiative, which is in its third season, is an opportunity to recognise individuals who make an outstanding contribution in a match or who display a consistently high level of performance. During the season four awards will be up for grabs by players nominated by the Isle of Man Cricket Association (IoMCA).
The judging panel includes Chris Till, director of Standard Bank, Andy Dalrymple of Isle of Man Newspapers and Gareth Dawson, the IoMCA development officer. Nominations for the period included Bruce Wagstaff, Ollie Webster, Alex Stokoe, Eddie Clague and Joe Rothwell.
Till commented on the announcement: ‘There was an exceptional number of strong nominations for this Player of the Month award and we would like to congratulate each on their achievements. It was especially difficult to select a winner and it was a very close decision.
The fact that the performances were spread across all the competitions that Standard Bank sponsor was particularly impressive. The panel decided on Phil for his excellent performances throughout the period which included three half-centuries (two of which were unbeaten) and 217 runs in total and bowling performance of 2 for 8 in the Standard Bank Cain league.”
He added: ‘As lead sponsor of various cricket competitions in the island we are delighted to also encourage individual excellence within a fantastic team sport and the level of contribution from all the nominees demonstrates the tremendous strength of Manx cricket.
‘The panel and I look forward to having another difficult decision when we judge this month’s nominees.’
The winner of the award will receive a £50 sports voucher, a Standard Bank cricket hat and a certificate.
As well as the Player of the Month initiative, the South African bank is headline sponsor of the Standard Bank Premiership, the Championship, the Twenty/20 leagues, the Knockout Challenge Trophy, the Tinker Cup, the Blincoe Cup and the six-a-side competition.