CHRIS SHIELDS TOOK home the top award at the 2022 NI Football Awards, with the Linfield midfielder named Danske Bank Footballer of the Year.

The former Dundalk man played a key role for the Blues this season as they landed a fourth Premiership title in a row.

Shields, 31, joined Linfield last summer following a decorated nine-and-a-half year spell with Dundalk, a club he represented almost 350 times.

Shields has had a big impact since moving north, and has netted seven goals in 40 appearances across all competitions as Linfield pipped Cliftonville to the league title.

“It’s a great honour for me to win this award,” Shields said.

“This is obviously my first year at Linfield, so I’m delighted that I have been recognised in this way.

“But really, this is just an added bonus. I came here to win the league and that’s exactly what (we’ve achieved).

“I must give a lot of credit to David Healy, who put faith in me. He’s a top class manager, and I’m glad I’ve been able to repay him. It was incredibly tough, with Cliftonville pushing us all the way, but I think we deserved the title.”

The awards were voted for by the members of the Northern Ireland Football Writers’ Association and the 12 Danske Bank Premiership managers.

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