Wayne Rooney has said that he is "absolutely delighted" after being voted Nationwide England Player of the Year 2008.
Rooney is the first forward to win the award, which is voted for by fans on the Football Association's official website, after playing in eight of England's 10 games in 2008 and scoring five goals, all in competitive matches.
Gareth Barry, who was the only outfield player to play in all 10 matches, maintaining a sequence of 19 consecutive games for his country, came second while Theo Walcott was third on a list compiled after thousands of England fans logged on to thefa.com to register their votes.
"I am absolutely delighted to win this award, especially as it has been voted for by the England fans," Rooney said. "Having said that, it would not have been possible without the help and support of my England team-mates, Fabio Capello and his coaching staff.
"It's an amazing feeling, playing for your country. So to be voted player of the year is a great feeling and I'd like to thank all the fans who voted for me.
"Since the manager came in the routine has changed and the team has started playing a lot better football. The main aim was to get the wins in those qualifying games and we did that, and thankfully I was able to score some goals as well. So overall I think 2008 was a good year for England."
"The results on the road last year have put us in a good position and now we have some massive games coming up at Wembley. If the fans can show the same level of support and commitment they showed last year – and again on Saturday – it will be a big help to the players. To play at Wembley with the fans and country behind us is amazing and I can't stress enough how important their support and encouragement is."
Rooney had a good 2008 at club level – he scored the winning goal in Tokyo as Manchester United won the World Club Cup after collecting his second Premier League and first Champions League winners' medals. Now the Liverpool-born striker is hoping to earn international honours.
"Of course, it's something that hasn't happened in many decades now and it's every player's aim to win a trophy with England. If we could do that in the next few years I'm sure everyone from the fans, the players and the staff involved would be absolutely delighted."
Rooney is set to win his 50th cap against Ukraine on Wednesday. He was recently tipped by England's captain, John Terry, to win as many as 150 caps and he boasts a goal ratio approaching one in every two games for England. But success has not quelled the 23-year-old's hunger.
"It's not really something I look at, to be honest," he said. "Obviously I want to win more trophies, earn more caps and score more goals. When I finish my career I can look back then on those kind of things, but while I'm still playing I don't want to be looking back. I want to only look forward to the achievements I can get in the future.
"After [Manchester United] won the Champions League last season we were thinking about the start of the next season straight away. The manager [Sir Alex Ferguson] said straight after the game: 'Make sure we're ready for next season'. It's something that you have to do. You can enjoy the night when you win trophies but after that you're looking forward to winning them again."
Nationwide England players of the year
2007: Steven Gerrard
2006: Owen Hargreaves
2005: Frank Lampard
2004: Frank Lampard
2003: David Beckham
2008 top three
1 Wayne Rooney 22.2%
2 Gareth Barry 19.1%
3 Theo Walcott 15.9%
