Smith is joined by two newcomers to the post-season party, midfielder Leonard Hypolite of Devonshire Colts and St. George's goalkeeper Troy Hall, while Ellington Weldon returns to the spotlight in keeping with his consistent form the past few seasons.

Devonshire Colts, in fact, have a chance to sweep the inaugural awards banquet, scheduled for April 16 at Sonesta Beach Hotel (8 p.m.), as they also have nominations in the short-lists for Young Player of the Year and Coach of the Year.

Jahmah Samuels and Quincey Aberdeen have been rewarded for strong seasons while Lorenzo Symonds, who resisted the urge to step onto the field again, is in the running for the coach's award.

Samuels and Aberdeen are in competition with St. George's full-back Dean Bailey and teenager Keith Jennings of North Village, who saw limited action on the senior level.

Mark Trott is the irresistible favourite to be named top coach as his Dandy Town go in search of a fourth title on Sunday in the FA Cup final against Vasco.

His counterpart John Rebello, on the other hand, would be a sentimental choice. After Danny Seymour was fired in mid-season, Rebello not only guided relegation-threatened Vasco to a Martonmere Cup place, but also led them into the Friendship Trophy and FA Cup finals.

Symonds and Devonshire Cougars' Brian Anderson are the other candidates, though the latter's chances were clearly hurt by Sunday's disappointing loss to BAA in the Second Division Shield final.

Nevertheless, the highlight of next Saturday night will be who walks away with the most cherished individual prize of them all -- Player of the Year.

Supporters of Smith will point to Town's domination of local soccer this season. He is second in the scoring race to Weldon with 16 goals.

Hypolite's fine play earned him a call-up to the national team against United States `B', where his performance was lauded by coach Burkhard Ziese.

Weldon has been a steady influence at the heart of the Colts attack, his 18 goals for now looking like making him the top scorer for the second successive season.

St. George's two seasons in the top flight have unearthed a fine goalkeeping talent in Troy Hall who has played in all his club's 42 league and cup matches in the two seasons they have been back in the First Division.

With Dwayne Adams in the picture, it can be said that Hall was overlooked for the national set-up.

But Adams' controversial suspension opened the door for him to make his debut and he did not let Ziese down.

The National Football Awards Committee revived the end-of-season awards after two years' absence. The ceremony is being sponsored by Kempe and Whittle accounting firm.

Spokesman Mark Wade yesterday also confirmed that additional prizes will be donated by Sports Aware (Coach of the Year), Champion Sports (Player of the Year) and Pro Shop (Young Player of the Year).

LEONARD HYPOLITE.

TROY HALL.