The year of 2016 will go down into the history books for East Staffordshire based outfit Burton Albion.

With last season being their first time in League One, they then gained instant promotion to the second tier which was an even more spectacular achievement.

For a team who have a rather small fan base compared to the likes of Derby County and Nottingham Forest, and located near Stoke City as well, the Brewers have more than held their own this year despite the club's frightening league position.

Burton Albion, under the guidance of Nigel Clough, are currently looking over their shoulders with just three points separating them and the relegation zone - and Blackburn Rovers even have a game in hand to possibly equal their points tally.

Despite it looking grim at the Pirelli Stadium at the moment, if they do happen to go down then they still have the memory of a fabulous campaign of Championship football to look back on, but there are still plenty of games to be played and points to pick up.

Burton's squad have impressed many doubters who thought they would struggle to even get out of the drop zone, but here are two who have exceeded any expectations for the Brewers this term...

Lucas Akins

Lucas Akins went into the 2016/17 season as Burton Albion's top goal scorer for the previous two years with ten and eleven respectively.

His primary position is as a winger but boss Nigel Clough has pushed the 27 year-old further back into more of a wing-back role as the former Derby and Sheffield United manager has played a defensive five-at-the-back formation.

As a result, Akins has only bagged three goals this season but it's not that stat which matters to a lot of supporters.

He has surprised a few with just how well he has adapted to the position change, somewhere he hadn't played when Burton were in the bottom two divisions.

Matty Palmer

Since making his debut in the FA Cup over four years ago, Matty Palmer has become an established midfielder at the Pirelli Stadium and was welcomed into the team as previous manager Gary Rowett saw potential in the player.

Specifically this season, the 21-year-old has made 30 appearances for the Brewers with one goal and two assists, although it's not his attacking threat that has got him into this list.

Palmer has more than held his own in the Championship this year and possibly been one of Burton Albion's most promising youngsters in their recent history.

Also being a local man, having been born just up the road in Derby, Matty Palmer knows the club inside-out and that has probably helped him in becoming a success this season under Clough.

 

Burton Albion supporters, do you agree that Lucas Akins and Matt Palmer deserve all the credit they receive? Who else should have been in this list?

Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!