naming of the Most Valuable Player and Young Player of the Year.

And the future of the two individual awards must now be in serious doubt with long-time sponsors Ex-Artillerymen's Association having "washed its hands'' of the awards and the BFA apparently not keen on taking it over.

The `Ex', who were the sponsors of the MVP award for 27 years with the Young Player of the Year award later being incorporated into the ceremonies, pulled out after last year's awards never took place. Over the years the club become discouraged because of a poor turn-out on the night by the players themselves who were to be honoured.

The selection process was handled by the Island's sports journalists who met at the club at the end of last season to vote in secret ballot for the two most outstanding players for the 1991-92 season. To this day no one knows who the successful nominees were, though Kyle Lightbourne, with his 33 goals, was probably the leading contender for the major award.

"Last year we got involved and set up a committee to go ahead and select the MVP and Young Player of the Year,'' said Ex-Artillerymen's Association president Leslie Lowe. "Everything was supposed to tie in with the BFA presentation but they decided not to have one.

"We decided last year that we would withdraw our trophies because we were just not getting the response from the football fraternity. The Ex is not a club involved in football ourselves but we thought we would honour the footballers of the year.'' Lowe says the BFA has known of its position since last year. "The last person I was in contact with was Joe Brown and I haven't been in contact with anybody since,'' said Lowe.

"We haven't taken any steps this year to set up a committee to nominate the MVP and Young Player of the Year. We were trying to get sponsorship for the various prizes but when you get the players themselves not turning out on the actual night it's quite dismal so we just decided to leave it alone.'' Leave it alone also seems to be the BFA's position, as Richard Thompson, chairman of the prize presentation committee, confirmed yesterday that the BFA was reluctant to take over the two awards.

"All the association does is give it our blessing,'' Thompson said yesterday.

"I feel it's unfortunate that there isn't any organisation to have the MVP award because I feel we should have an MVP. It gives the players something to strive for.

"Our position is we don't want to get caught up into having the MVP because we could be seen as having favourites.'' BFA president Charlie Marshall said he is not aware that the Ex will not be hosting the MVP award this year. "I haven't been informed, though Richard may have been in receipt of something as the chairman of the prize presentation committee,'' he stated.

"To my knowledge the MVP was something they (Ex-Artillerymen's Association) started and I don't think the BFA was involved in it at all.'' Marshall stated that lack of participation from the affiliates and the players caused the association to cancel its own prize presentation last year, though he said plans are in the works to stage a 1992-93 prize presentation sometime in May when not only the major team awards will be presented but also some acknowledgements being made for assistance given to the World Cup campaign.

"We're trying to look at the whole business of the presentation of awards,'' said Marshall. "It's never been attended well from the affiliates' point of view.

"We don't have the support of the players or the clubs. The last time we had one at Warwick Workman's Club the turn-out was embarrassing.''