The Sports Deck’s National League Team Of The Season – Opinion

The 2023/24 National League season has ended and The Sports Deck team have been voting on which players we feel have made our respective team of the season.

After a busy campaign full of twists and turns, Paul Cook’s Chesterfield stormed to the league title after a thrilling campaign, whilst Andy Woodman’s Bromley defeated Solihull Moors on penalties to reach the EFL for the first time in their history.

Alternatively, Oxford City, Dorking Wanderers, Kidderminster Harriers and Boreham Wood all suffered relegations to the National League North/South in what was a thrilling final day at both ends of the table.

Following the conclusion of the play-off final, here are the eleven players we have voted on to make our official team of the season for the 2023/24 campaign.

Let’s begin…

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Goalkeeper: Grant Smith

Between the sticks is Bromley goalkeeper Grant Smith who became even more of a hero during the play-off final shootout as he won his side a place in the EFL for the first ever time.

The 30-year-old made 43 appearances for Bromley, averaging a 74% save success rate (2.9 per game) and kept an impressive 12 clean sheets for Andy Woodman’s men throughout the season.

Smith won our vote with 46.2% of the votes, narrowly beating Halifax’s Sam Johnson to the number one spot in our squad.

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Right-Back: Liam Mandeville

Moving to the defence, Chesterfield’s assist king Liam Mandeville is the next entry to the squad, after playing a crucial role in helping the Spireites to lift the National League title.

The 27-year-old has taken up a full-back spot for Chesterfield this season, making 45 appearances for the club, netting eight goals and providing 16 assists. He also managed 1.9 key passes per 90 and an 84% pass completion rate.

After close competition from Southend’s Guss Scott-Morriss, Mandeville takes our spot with 53.8% of the votes.

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Centre-Back: James Clarke

Beginning our centre-back partnership is Solihull Moors star James Clarke, who played a crucial defensive role in helping the Moors to reach both the play-off final and FA Trophy final.

The 24-year-old began the campaign as a right-back but adjusted to centre-back following a series of injuries, making a total of 48 appearances, contributing to six goals and making 11 (yes eleven) goal-line clearances over the course of the campaign.

Clarke made the squad with 38.5% of the votes, narrowly beating two other options to take the first spot in our eleven.

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Centre-Back: Callum Reynolds

Partnering James Clarke is Bromley’s Callum Reynolds who helped his side to clinch promotion to the EFL at Wembley Stadium last weekend.

The 34-year-old has been ever present for Andy Woodman’s side, making 40 appearances, scoring three goals. He has also averaged 15.8 ball recoveries per 90 minutes as well as 6.3 interceptions and four clearances.

Reynolds narrowly beat Barnet’s Danny Collinge by a single vote to take the final centre-back spot in this squad.

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Left-Back: Luke Hannant

Completing the back four is Gateshead’s Luke Hannant, who helped his side to reach the FA Trophy final as well as securing the play-offs until the club were thrown out.

In total, Hannant made 44 appearances for Rob Elliott’s side, scoring nine goals and averaging a passing success rate of 79% throughout the season.

It was a close battle between Hannant and Aldershot’s Ollie Harfield who featured in every match for the club throughout the season.

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Central Midfield: Tom Naylor

Beginning the midfield is Chesterfield star Tom Naylor who played a vital role for the Spireites in their quest to lift the National League title last season.

After arriving from Wigan Athletic, Naylor made 44 appearances for Paul Cook’s side, contributing to 17 goals from midfield. He has also established a passing success rate of 86% and despite his obvious qualities, he’s had a major influence on his teammates.

Unsurprisingly, the 32-year-old dominated the vote, earning 38.5%, which was much higher than his two closest competitors and in my opinion, his inclusion was a ‘no-brainer’.

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Central Midfield: Jamey Osborne

Partnering Naylor in midfield is Solihull’s Jamey Osborne who has massively flown under the radar this season and scored a superb goal during last weekend’s play-off final.

In total, the 31-year-old made 40 appearances for Solihull Moors last season, scoring six goals and assisting an additional nine, forming a strong relationship with Callum Maycock. He also managed 1.5 key passes per game and a passing success rate of 82%.

In total, Osborne earned 23.1% of the votes, narrowly beating Barnet loanee Anthony Hartigan and Gateshead’s Ed Francis.

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Attacking Midfield: Chris Conn-Clarke

Comfortably a ‘no-brainer’, Altrincham’s Chris Conn-Clarke takes the attacking midfield position in this squad following his eye-catching campaign.

After arriving from Fleetwood Town in the summer, Conn-Clarke made 47 appearances for Phil Parkinson’s side, scoring 23 goals and providing 12 assists, averaging a goal contribution every 1.3 matches and has already caught the eye of several EFL sides.

Unsurprisingly, Conn-Clarke was the clear winner from a category that contained the likes of Nick Haughton (AFC Fylde), Zak Brunt (Barnet) and Josh Stokes (Aldershot Town).

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Right Winger: Ben Krauhaus

After playing an important role under Andy Woodman this season, it is no surprise to see Brentford-bound winger Ben Krauhaus make our team of the season squad.

The 19-year-old made 44 appearances for Bromley over the course of the campaign, contributing to ten goals in the process. Krauhaus also managed a pass completion rate of 83% as well as a 73% dribbling success rate and 51% crossing rate, which attracted Premier League Brentford to sign him.

Krauhaus narrowly beat Chesterfield’s Armando Dobra and Altrincham’s Alex Newby to make our team with 38.5% of the votes in this category.

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Left Winger: Jack Bridge

Although he isn’t a winger, Southend United’s Jack Bridge has made our team of the season, following an outstanding campaign under manager Kevin Maher.

Despite featuring for over half of the season as a ‘non-contracted player’, Bridge made 46 appearances for Southend, scoring seven goals and providing 11 assists, averaging a goal contribution every 2.5 matches. He also managed 2.1 key passes per 90 minutes and 26 accurate passes per appearance.

Bridge managed more votes in his category than any of the other wingers (except Krauhaus), which is why we had no choice but to include him even though he is out of position.

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Striker: Paul McCallum

Completing our National League squad is the golden boot winner Paul McCallum, who played a starring role for Eastleigh despite missing out on a place in the play-offs.

After arriving on a free transfer last summer, McCallum managed 31 goals in 38 appearances for the Spitfires, which works out at a goal every 1.2 matches. He also managed 2.4 shots per game of which 1.5 of them were on target, meaning almost every chance he had was on target.

Due to our formation, McCallum faced strong competition from Chesterfield’s Will Grigg and Bromley’s play-off hero Michael Cheek, but with 38.5% of the votes, McCallum completed our squad.

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Manager of the Season: Andy Woodman

We also did a vote for manager of the season in the National League, which was contested between Chesterfield’s Paul Cook following their title triumph, Bromley’s Andy Woodman following their promotion, Southend’s Kevin Maher for the impressive nature of their campaign and Solihull’s Andy Whing for a double Wembley trip.

However, Bromley’s Andy Woodman cruised to victory in our vote, commanding over 46% of the total votes in this category and will now take his place as an EFL manager heading into the 2024/25 campaign.

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Readers, what are your thoughts on our team of the season? Let us know on Twitter @NonLeagueDeck.