PORTLAND, Ore. – The Portland Timbers today announced their club awards for the 2015 Major League Soccer season. In total, eight major awards were announced as the club recognized achievements, performances and moments from the team’s historic 2015 season in which they won their first MLS Cup.
Additionally, the Timbers and Portland Thorns FC announced the recipients of academy and Olympic Development Program (ODP) player and coach awards. The Timbers Community Player of the Year (Adam Kwarasey) and Up-and-Coming Player of the Year (George Fochive) awards originally were presented during the club’s Stand Together Banquet in October.
Players’ Player of the Year – Diego Chara
Voted on by the players, midfielder Diego Chara was named the 2015 Players’ Player of the Year following a campaign that saw him register two goals and one assist in 28 appearances (all starts). Known throughout the league for his tireless and imposing work in the midfield, Chara logged the full 90 minutes in 26 of his 28 regular-season appearances and was named to the MLS Team of the Week for Week 33 of the regular season after tallying a goal in Portland’s pivotal, late-season road win against the LA Galaxy. This marks the second time in his five seasons in Portland that Chara has been named Players’ Player of the Year (2012).
Supporters’ Player of the Year – Diego Chara
Voted on by supporters and presented at the regular-season home finale on Oct. 25, Chara was named the Supporters’ Player of the Year for the second time in his five seasons with the Timbers. The hard-working defensive midfielder, who also earned the award in 2012, is a fan favorite for his willingness to put in the dirty work to support the team and has made 146 career MLS appearances for the Timbers since 2011 – which ranks sixth all-time across all eras.
Golden Boot – Fanendo Adi
Forward Fanendo Adi was awarded the Golden Boot as the club’s leading goal-scorer in 2015. The striker set a new Timbers MLS-club record mark for goals in a single season, tallying 16 during the regular season and adding two more goals during postseason play for a total of 18 across all competitions. Adi’s goal-scoring total ranked seventh among all players in MLS.
Unsung Hero – Nat Borchers
Defender Nat Borchers was named the Timbers’ Unsung Hero for the 2015 campaign. In his first season with the team, the center back started 31 matches, tallying an MLS-career-high-tying three goals during the regular season and finishing with a league-best 32 blocks. Borchers played an important role in Portland finishing with a league-high 13 shutouts during the regular season, while also tallying the game-winning goal in a 1-0 win against Real Salt Lake on the road on Aug. 15 at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah.
Play of the Year – Portland Timbers lifting their first MLS Cup vs. Columbus, Dec. 6
The 2015 Timbers’ Play of the Year was awarded to the team lifting its first MLS Cup trophy following a 2-1 win against Columbus Crew SC in the league’s championship match on Dec. 6 at MAPFRE Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. Midfielder Diego Valeri tallied the go-ahead goal just 27 seconds into the match against Crew SC, while midfielder Rodney Wallace netted the game-winning goal in the seventh minute with a well-placed diving header off assists from Darlington Nagbe and Lucas Melano to give Portland the win. The Timbers utilized a nine-game unbeaten run at the end of the regular season and through the postseason to capture their first league title in just their fifth MLS season, beating FC Dallas (conference championship), Vancouver Whitecaps FC (conference semifinals) and Sporting Kansas City (knockout round) in the playoffs. Portland finished the postseason with a total of nine different goal-scorers, the most of any team in the playoffs. Forward Maximiliano Urruti and Wallace each tallied goals in Portland’s dramatic, 7-6 penalty kick win in an MLS-record long 11-rounds of penalty kicks during the Knockout Round. In the conference semifinals, forward Fanendo Adi and midfielder Diego Chara tallied goals in the decisive second leg against Vancouver. Defenders Liam Ridgewell, Nat Borchers and midfielder Dairon Asprilla netted goals in the opening leg of the conference championship against FC Dallas, while Adi and Melano scored goals in the second leg to send Portland to MLS Cup. The Timbers finished the regular-season with an MLS-club record 15 wins and a league-best 13 shutouts, adding two more clean sheets during the postseason.
Defender of the Year – Liam Ridgewell
Defender Liam Ridgewell was awarded the team’s Defender of the Year award for a second consecutive season in 2015. Captaining the squad to an MLS Cup title, Ridgewell appeared in 32 games (all starts) during the regular season, helping the Timbers register a league-best 13 clean sheets. The dependable defender also tallied a goal in the postseason, scoring in the first leg of the Western Conference Championship series against FC Dallas at Providence Park on Nov. 22.
Community Player of the Year – Adam Kwarasey
Goalkeeper Adam Kwarasey was an integral part of the Timbers’ efforts in the community during the 2015 season and was named Timbers Community Player of the Year. Taking an active role in the community through the club’s Stand Together platform, Kwarasey was engaged and dedicated to making a positive impact in the community as he participated in Stand Together Week with Playworks, worked with Special Olympics Oregon, interacting with athletes participating in the Cascadia Unified Challenge and visited the Children’s Cancer Association.
Up-and-Coming Player of the Year – George Fochive
Midfielder George Fochive was named the Timbers Up-and-Coming Player of the Year for 2015. Playing in his second season for the Timbers, Fochive made his MLS regular-season debut, starting in the club’s home opener against Real Salt Lake on March 7, logging 86 minutes. During the 2015 season, Fochive played in 11 games (8 starts) in regular-season play. He recorded his first career MLS assist on Oct. 25 in a 4-1 win over Colorado. In addition, Fochive started and played in eight games for T2, scoring four goals in the team’s inaugural season.
Timbers U-23s Player of the Year – Todd Wharton
Timbers Academy Player of the Year (2014-15) – Terrell Lowe
Timbers ODP Boys Coach of the Year – Dave Peterson
Timbers ODP Boys Player of the Year – Nico Lopez
Timbers/Thorns FC ODP Girls Coach of the Year – Keith Bleyer
Timbers/Thorns FC ODP Girls Player of the Year – Katie Duong
Timbers Camp Girls Coach of the Year – Rayssa Lira
Timbers Camp Boys Coach of the Year – Max von Rabenau
Portland Timbers Club Award Winners
Players’ Player of the Year
2015: Diego Chara
2014: Diego Valeri
2013: Darlington Nagbe
2012: Diego Chara
2011: Jack Jewsbury
Supporters’ Player of the Year
2015: Diego Chara
2014: Diego Valeri
2013: Will Johnson
2012: Diego Chara
2011: Troy Perkins
Golden Boot
2015: Fanendo Adi (16 goals)
2014: Diego Valeri (11 goals)
2013: Diego Valeri (10 goals)
2012: Kris Boyd (7 goals)
2011: Kenny Cooper (8 goals)
Unsung Hero
2015: Nat Borchers
2014: Diego Chara
2013: Jack Jewsbury
2012: Eric Alexander
Play of the Year
2015: Timbers lifting MLS Cup Dec. 6 at Columbus
2014: Diego Valeri’s volley Sept. 20 vs. Vancouver
2013: Darlington Nagbe’s turnaround, game-winning goal June 15 vs. FC Dallas.
2012: Jack Jewsbury’s game-winner Oct. 21 at Vancouver
2011: Darlington Nagbe’s juggling volley July 2 vs. Sporting KC
Defender of the Year
2015: Liam Ridgewell
2014: Liam Ridgewell
2013: Donovan Ricketts
Community Player of the Year
2015: Adam Kwarasey
2014: Diego Chara
2013: Steven Evans
2012: David Horst
2011: Jake Gleeson
Up-and-Coming Player of the Year
2015: George Fochive
2014: Alvas Powell
2013: Alvas Powell
2012: Brent Richards
2011: Kalif Alhassan
Timbers U-23s Player of the Year
2015: Todd Wharton
2014: Kharlton Belmar
2013: Bryan Gallego
2012: Steven Evans
2011: Brent Richards
Timbers Academy Player of the Year
2015: Terrell Lowe
2014: Jesse Garcia-Aguilar
2013: Foster Langsdorf
Timbers ODP Boys Coach of the Year
2015: Dave Peterson
2014: Brett Jacobs
2013: Sorin Popovici
2012: Oscar Monteblanco
2011: Joe Sottile
Timbers ODP Boys Player of the Year
2015: Nico Lopez
2014: Adrian Villegas
2013: Kevyn Lo
2012: Jose Benavides
2011: Rubio Rubin
Timbers/Thorns FC ODP Girls Coach of the Year
2015: Keith Bleyer
2014: Kevin Plechl
2013: Rochelle Hearns
2012: Janine Sparza
2011: Mac Wilson
Timbers/Thorns FC ODP Girls Player of the Year
2015: Katie Duong
2014: Katie Duong
2013: Sarah Jean Edwards
2012: Adrianna Hudson
2011: Ellie Boon
Timbers Camp Boys Coach of the Year
2015: Max von Rabenau
2014: Luis Silva-Lara
2013: Fabio Rodriguez
2012: Sabi Sudy
Timbers Camp Girls Coach of the Year
2015: Rayssa Lira
