Ranking the 11 best EFL League One players this season | OneFootball

FLW ranks the best of the best in the third tier this season

The 2025/26 League One campaign is winding down, and with that comes the conversations surrounding who the best player in the third tier has been this year.

The EFL released their four-man shortlist for Player of the Season, and there were conversations about the absence of certain stars and the inclusion of others, outlining how difficult a job it must be to whittle things down to just four stars.

So, Football League World has taken a little more leniency and expanded our list to 11. But even then, deciding who has been the cream of the crop in League One has been more than challenging for all the right reasons.

The quality in the third tier this year has been there to be seen, and here are the 11 best players within it.

11 ? ? Lorent Tolaj - Plymouth Argyle

Kicking off the list at 11 is Lorent Tolaj, and if that doesn't lay down the foundations for what will be a high-quality ranking, not much will, as the Siwssman has been one of the best goal getters in the league this season.

Plymouth Argyle have had a season of two halves, propping up the division at the end of November to banging on the door of the play-offs a mere five months later.

During that disastrous first half of the campaign, Tolaj was the only positive at Home Park, and the Pilgrims could have been even further adrift at the bottom at times if not for his efforts at the top end of the pitch.

Unfortunately, an injury-riddled 2026 thus far has stopped him from really kicking on in the second half of the season, but he's seemingly returning at just the right time to help Tom Cleverley's side push into the top six.

10 ? ? Carl Piergianni - Stevenage

A lot has been said about Stevenage's impressive defensive displays in League One under Steve Evans and, now, Alex Revell, but this year has arguably been the best out of the three seasons back defensively, and Carl Piergianni has been at the heart of it all.

The gritty centre half has been imperious at times this season, winning the most duels out of anyone in his position both in the air and on the floor, and, as always, has been a threat to score from set pieces, too.

The 33-year-old may not be the most aesthetic player on this list, but Stevenage are far from the most aesthetic team in the EFL. But they're effective at what they do, and Piergianni is a big reason why the Boro are in the driver's seat for a place in the top six this year.

9 ? ? Perry NG - Cardiff City

Cardiff City haven't been outside the top six since the third game of the season, and haven't fallen any lower than second since November. All the superlatives have been used up when describing Brian Barry-Murphy's side, to the point where this current rare slump in form is being taken rather negatively.

However, there's no doubting the quality that the Bluebirds have exhibited across the year, and one of the more consistent players in the side has been Perry NG.

One of the more experienced players in this young Cardiff squad at the grand old age of 29, NG would've likely had Championship suitors when the Bluebirds went down to League One, but he's used this year in the third tier to bounce back, nearly equalling his goal involvement tally of 10 from two seasons ago, with games to spare.

And, despite the excitement that 18-year-old Ronan Kpakio brings at full-back, NG has been one of the first names on the teamsheet, and has been a big part of the early stages of the Barry-Murphy project in the Welsh capital.

8 ? ? Jack Marriott - Reading

There hasn't been a more clinical goalscorer in League One this season than Reading's Jack Marriott, and if it wasn't for his hamstrings, he'd easily be landing in the top three of the Player of the Season rankings this year.

The 31-year-old is currently enduring his second spell on the sidelines with a hamstring injury that he picked up at Port Vale in February. Earlier in the year, he missed close to two months with a similar problem.

Outside that, though, Marriott has 16 goals in 23 games, 20 of them being starts. His name would be on the Golden Boot if not for these injuries, and Reading will be praying for his return before the end of the season so he can reignite some late play-off hopes, too.

7 ? ? Ollie Norwood - Stockport County

It's almost a given that Ollie Norwood will appear on these lists in some capacity, and the majority of EFL fans are still wondering how Stockport County, let alone any League One side, managed to secure his services nearly two years on from the move.

The 34-year-old has even managed to find a new, improved, goalscoring knack this year, too. He's scored more goals in the third tier this year than in any single league campaign in his career, and he's only managed to beat his current assist tally twice before.

Everything that Stockport does goes through Norwood. He's made the most passes, created the most chances and is nearing the top of the most big chances created as well, per Fotmob.

Ultimately, that's what EFL fans have come to expect from the 34-year-old, but that doesn't make it any less impressive.

6 ? ? Owen Bailey - Doncaster Rovers

There was some discourse online about Owen Bailey's inclusion in the four-man shortlist for Player of the Season, but there's no denying that Doncaster Rovers' defensive midfielder / centre-back / right back hasn't been one of the standout players in the third tier this year.

12 goals for a man who has spent the majority of the season playing in defensive positions is absurd, especially taking into account that none of them are penalties. He shows great effort to get on the end of crosses, and even greater composure to finish the chances when they come.

When added to the fact that the 27-year-old is on track to start every game in a league campaign for the third straight season at Doncaster, and play every minute of this season, too, it's been an incredible campaign for Bailey, and Grant McCann's side would be in a lot more relegation danger if not for him.

It's been a great first third-tier season for the Newcastle United academy product, and you get the feeling that it won't be long before a Championship team picks him up.

5 ? ? Sonny Bradley - Lincoln City

Like Norwood, a lot of EFL fans know what to expect from Sonny Bradley when playing for a side at the top end of League One. At Lincoln City, he's shown that, at 34, he still has what it takes to be a dominant centre-back in the third tier.

A lot of the plaudits sent the Imps' way this year, and especially during this mammoth unbeaten run, have come for the fluid attacking football, but Michael Skubala's side also has the best defensive record in the division, too.

It's a very experienced back-line, and Bradley has led the way in it. He's been dominant in the air, thrown his body at everything and has scored some important goals, too, including the winner against Cardiff in December, which really began the belief that a promotion could be on their way.

At the end of the campaign, he'll be celebrating a third promotion into the Championship, and likely his second third-tier title, too.

4 ? ? Jack Moylan - Lincoln City

And just ahead of Bradley in the top four is teammate Jack Moylan, and while that December win over Cardiff was a catalyst for their eventual promotion charge, the Irish attacking midfielder's presence back in the squad has helped tenfold, too.

Moylan missed over three months with an ankle injury in the early stages of the season. At that time, he was just a solid starter who had scored only twice in 28 games the year before. No one expected him to blossom into the superstar he has become since his return in November.

His goalscoring ventures have coincided with the Imps putting three's, four's and even five's past other teams, and that culminated in the winning goal off the bench in the promotion-clinching matchup at Reading.

If it wasn't for that injury, he'd likely be even higher than this respectable fourth place, but nevertheless, a lot of fans are excited to see what he can do in the Championship next season.

3 ? ? Kyle Wootton - Stockport County

Taking the bronze medal this year in League One is Kyle Wootton, who is in the midst of his best scoring season at Edgeley Park, and just needs one more goal, as of writing, to make it 20 for the campaign, marking his best.

Starting the season with no Louie Barry or Tanto Olaofe, the 29-year-old had to roll up his sleeves a bit more and shoulder more of the goalscoring load. And while he has done that successfully, he's also still been one of the best off-ball frontmen in the division, too.

He may not be setting up as many of his teammates as he has done in the past, but he's still right up there for the amount of defensive contributions a striker has made this year, and he's difficult for anyone to beat in the air.

It'll be a tight race for the Golden Boot this year, and Stockport will be hoping that it can go to their man, as they feel that he deserves it more than anyone.

2 ? ? Lewis Wing - Reading

A lot of discourse surrounding disgruntled Reading fans is that poor team performances are often bailed out by high-performing individuals. And if it wasn't Jack Marriott saving them, Lewis Wing often was.

Everyone knows what the 30-year-old brings to the table going forward, and that's a threat from long range. He's still scored his fair share of worldies, but he's also in the midst of his best assisting campaign. Currently, Wing is the only player in League One to record double-digit goals and assists.

All of Reading's attacks go through him, whether that be him dropping deep to pick the ball up and carry forward, or whether he's found in pockets of space in the opposition's half, and given that he's been ever-present under both Noel Hunt and Leam Richardson, he's had his hands on everything.