I'm a keen fan of a wide variety of sports and here are my men of the year.
RICKY HATTON: A real shining star, this fellow. He's as tough as they come and has helped put the pride back in British boxing. Ricky is a great guy who deserves every inch of success coming his way. He trains hard, is totally dedicated and extremely talented. He beat Kostya Tszyu, a legend in his own right and then defended his title. Ricky's up with the best and is high on my list for special praise. He's a family man and a credit to his profession.
PAUL JEWELL: He's working wonders managing Wigan Athletic and what a magnificent job he's doing. The pressure was on Paul to take Wigan up into the Premiership and he delivered. Everyone was then quick to write Wigan off, saying they would struggle but not so. They are talented, made of strong stuff, and Wigan are now expected to win. Paul has handled everything that's been thrown at him, what a man and what a manager. His team have been fantastic for football and I'm made up for him and for the club - he deserves a massive pat on the back.
ANDREW FLINTOFF: It's been a very bad year for Australian sport. Losing the Ashes hurt like hell and Freddie was chief destroyer. He's a legend, awesome with bat and ball. He's had a huge impact on the game, just as Ian Botham did. Most importantly, he has made the game interesting to a wider audience. I just wish he was Australian!
COLIN MONTGOMERIE: Big Monty is back in the groove and it's great to see. He's played some fantastic golf and has forced Tiger Woods to raise the bar to even greater heights.
Monty was magnificent in the Open at St Andrews. His well-documented marital problems could well have taken away the focus for any player and one gremlin can destroy even the greatest golfer's game, but Monty has displayed phenomenal mental strength and tremendous skill, good on him.
ROY KEANE (pictured): He's made the right decision joining Celtic after leaving Manchester United. It was either this or retire and hang the boots up and I am convinced he will have a tremendous impact on Scottish football. Roy calls it as he sees it. He's now the aged warrior and if he can accept that there are certain things he can no longer do, then he'll be a fantastic acquisition for Celtic. It's tremendous to think there's still more to come from one of the game's great players.
PAUL CULLEN: It's hats off to the Warrington Wolves coach because he can be mighty proud of his efforts in Super League at the Halliwell Jones Stadium. Warrington started the season poorly, Paul was under pressure but came good and certainly earned his spurs.
Warrington turned in some great performances, they enticed the great Andrew Johns to play for them and they are a club on the up.
BRIAN NOBLE also deserves enormous praise for the way that he helped his Bradford Bulls club recover from their own indifferent start and then won the Grand Final at Old Trafford. You have to salute him for this.
Playing wise, let's give special mention to JAMIE LYON at St Helens, he'll be back in Australia in 2007 but he took up the challenge brilliantly, showed his world-class quality and played in some fantastic games.
I must also take this opportunity to point out how the organic porridge made by RONNIE RUTTER at Wigan has proved an early Christmas treat for the lads.
We start training at 7am and Ronnie's mouth-watering porridge is greatly appreciated, especially when the lads add honey and banana to it.
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