Coming off a tremendous championship season with Thorns FC, forward Christine Sinclair and goalkeeper Karina LeBlanc are both nominees for the BMO Canadian Player of the Year.
The annual award is given to one men’s player and one women’s player from the Canada National Team. Voting for the 2013 BMO Canadian Players of the Year will be split evenly by Canadian media and Canadian coaches from across the country. The award winners will be announced during the week of Dec. 9-13.
Sinclair, who finished the inaugural NWSL season with eight goals and was awarded the club’s MVP honors, also recorded three goals in nine appearances for the Canada Women’s National Team during a down year that featured no significant tournaments for teams in the CONCACAF region.
LeBlanc, who twice earned NWSL Player of the Week honors and made seven saves in the NWSL championship game to help guide Thorns FC to a 2-0 shutout over the top-seeded Western New York Flash, was included in nearly every Canada Women’s National Team camp during 2013. LeBlanc made three appearances (2 starts) for Canada during the year.
Other nominees for the award are: Kadeisha Buchanan, Adriana Leon, Diana Matheson, Erin McLeod, Sophie Schmidt, Desiree Scott and Lauren Sesselmann. Additionally, Portland Timbers midfielder Will Johnson is up for the award on the men’s side.
