Four players nominated for PFA Scotland's 2026 Premiership award

Four forwards from Hearts and Motherwell lead the nominees for PFA Scotland's Premiership player of the year.

Nominees for top Premiership award The four contenders for PFA Scotland's Premiership player of the year are Hearts forwards Claudio Braga and Lawrence Shankland along with Motherwell attackers Elijah Just and Tawanda Maswanhise. Braga and Shankland have combined for 34 goals this season while leading Hearts in the league table. Maswanhise tops the division's scoring chart with 17 league goals and has 23 across all competitions. Just, a New Zealand winger, has contributed seven goals and seven assists during the campaign. ## SWPL player of the year candidates In the SWPL player of the year category, the nominees include Georgia Timms of league leaders Hearts, Rangers striker Katie Wilkinson, Glasgow City goalkeeper Lee Gibson, and attacker Nicole Kozlova. The winners will be selected through a vote by fellow professionals, with the awards ceremony scheduled for May 3. ## Young talent up for Premiership award Nominees for the SPFL young player of the year are Dundee's Luke Graham, Arbroath's Findlay Marshall, Rangers loanee Tottenham winger Mikey Moore, and Falkirk's Barney Stewart. The shortlist also features two Rangers players, Laura Berry and May Cruft, alongside Glasgow City's Lisa Forrest and Hibernian's Rosie Livingstone. ## Last year's award winners Celtic players Emma Lawton and Daizen Maeda claimed the SWPL and Premiership player of the year awards in the previous season. Their performances helped secure their respective accolades during that campaign. ## Championship and League 1 nominees St Johnstone has two players, Jamie Gullan and Josh McPake, nominated for the Scottish Championship player of the year, along with Dunfermline Athletic's Andrew Tod and Partick Thistle's Ben Stanway. For League 1 player of the year, Inverness Caledonian Thistle's Alfie Stewart, Peterhead's Kieran Shanks, Hamilton Academical's Oliver Shaw, and Stenhousemuir's Ross Taylor are in contention. ## League 2 candidates announced Annan Athletic's Wullie Gibson, Spartans' Mark Stowe, Stranraer's Lewis Reid, and East Kilbride's John Robertson are the nominees for League 2 player of the year. The finalists reflect strong performances across the lower divisions this season.