Sheffield Wednesday heroics to Neil Warnock's rescue act and Leeds United's one good signing - Yorkshire football's winners and losers

It was a hectic one for Yorkshire's league clubs with only Hull City and Doncaster Rovers sure of what division they would be playing next season in as late as mid-April.

The two Sheffield clubs, United and Wednesday, won promotion - the first time they have both done that since 1984 - but Middlesbrough, Bradford City and most excruciatingly for them, Barnsley, missed out in the play-offs.

Leeds United were the only club relegated, the optimism of August's 3-0 win over Chelsea a cruel false dawn. Given the resources they are working with, for Rotherham United and Harrogate Town to consolidate their positions was a big achievement, and for Huddersfield Town to stave off relegation after sacking two coaches was big too.

So to try and sum it all up, I've handed out some end-of-season awards to recognise some of the highlights of the campaign.

Players of the Season

Iliman Ndiaye (Sheffield United), Andy Cook (Bradford), Chuba Akpom (Middlesbrough)

Blades striker Ndiaye built on an excellent debut season in 2021-22 to help his team back into the Premier League. An encouraging World Cup which saw him start for African champions Senegal against England in the knock-out stages raised both his confidence and his price, and it was credit to a Sheffield United board that too often did not cover themselves with glory that they kept him in January.

Cook and Akpom's goalscoring exploits cannot pass without mention, and Leeds United's Tyler Adams deserves an honourable mention - the American midfielder's worth was painfully highlighted when he missed the run-in through injury.

Yorkshire-born player

Erling Haaland

With Kavlin Phillips and Harry Maguire having miserable club seasons in Manchester, we cling to Leeds-born Haaland for reflective glory after a remarkable goalscoring campaign. His Manchester City team-mate John Stones, from Barnsley, has been outstanding too.

Young players of the Season

Hayden Hackney (Middlesbrough), Jack Rudoni (Huddersfield), Cameron Archer (Middlesbrough)

Discounting Ndiaye (22 in the season), gives Middlesbrough two nominees and it says a lot for Michael Carrick that he nurtured Hackney and attracted and developed Aston Villa loanee Archer in January.

Rudoni was excellent in Huddersfield's midfield all season apart from his goalscoring, finally breaking his duck in April.

Unsung heroes of the Season

Liam Palmer (Sheffield Wednesday), Lee Peltier (Rotherham), Jack Robinson (Sheffield United)

Barry Bannan rightly gets a lot of praise at Hillsborough but 31-year-old Palmer was crucial to the Owls success too, playing most defensive positions during the season, and holding midfield in the play-offs.

Peltier assisted Richard Wood as Rotherham's caretaker manager and was a vital cog defensively and Robinson established himself in the left-sided centre-back slot Ciaran Clark was loaned to play at Bramall Lane.

Huddersfield's Matty Pearson would have got a shout too, but four goals in three April games disqualified him as unsung.

Best signings

Anel Ahmedhodzic (Sheffield United, summer), Willy Gnonto (Leeds, summer), Sam Stubbs (Bradford, January)

The Blades only paid money for one player all summer, and apparently not on time either, but rampaging centre-back Ahmedhodzic was a wonderful throwback to the Chris Wilder days.

Gnonto's first season fizzled out but Leeds will make a huge profit on their £4m investment, and Stubbs was vital defensively for the Bantams.

Managers of the Year

Michael Duff (Barnsley), Paul Heckingbottom (Sheffield United), Matt Taylor (Rotherham)

The Reds were at rock bottom when they were relegated from the Championship 12 months ago but Duff has transformed them, first sorting them out at the back, then adding more goals as the season went on.

Heckingbottom's similarly no-nonsense approach overcome so many behind-the-scenes hurdles to get his club promoted to the Premier League and taking over from someone as well established as Paul Warne in October and ending Rotherham's yo-yoing was huge by Taylor.

Rescue act

Sheffield Wednesday v Peterborough United, Neil Warnock (Huddersfield), Michael Duff (Barnsley)

Four-nil down from the away leg and you win the tie on penalties - we might never see a second-leg comeback like Sheffield Wednesday's Hillsborough game against the Posh again as Darren Moore got his players to believe in the impossible - then do it.

Warnock produced all the old magic despite going five winless matches after victory on his return to Huddersfield and Duff's task has already been outlined.

Game of the Season

Sheffield Wednesday 5 Peterborough 1 (aet, Wednesday win 5-3 on penalties)

Barnsley 4 Sheffield Wednesday 2

Sheffield United 5 Burnley 2

Barnsley's stunning win over the Owls was a brilliant advert for League One, only for Darren Moore's side to produce a game which was the talk of English football. Sheffield United's home win over Burnley showed them at their best.

Best Chairman

Acun Ilicali (Hull City)

Ilicali must take his blame for a Championship Manager-style summer transfer window but the credit he deserves for Hull's gates this season, and for paying for free coach travel for the last three months of away games far outweighs it. He took his time but appears to haven chosen well in Liam Rosenior as Shota Arveladze's replacement.

A mention too for Huddersfield managing director Dave Baldwin who had a job on his hands just keeping the Terriers operating but also attracted Warnock back to keep them in the Championship.