Motherwell striker Michael Higdon experienced a dramatic reversal of fortunes this morning when he was arrested over an alleged assault - hours after collecting the PFA Scotland player of the year award.
The Clydesdale Bank Premier League top goalscorer was revealed as the winner at an awards dinner at the Glasgow Hilton Hotel around 11pm.
But the 29-year-old was on his way to a police station following an incident two and a half hours later. It is nderstands the incident involved a bouncer at the Corinthian nightlclub in Glasgow city centre.
Higdon was released without being charged about 9am - 30 minutes after he was due to attend a media conference in the Hilton to comment on his prize.
A Police Scotland spokeswoman said: "A 29-year-old man is the subject of a report to the procurator fiscal in connection with an alleged assault at a nightclub in Ingram Street in Glasgow at 1.25am today."
Higdon, who had celebrated his achievement along with his father at the dinner, was reunited with his Motherwell team-mates today when he fulfilled his commitment to attend left-back Stevie Hammell's testimonial golf day.
The arrest threatened to overshadow Higdon's impressive achievement in being voted the best player in Scotland by his fellow professionals.
The Liverpudlian, who began his career at Crewe's acclaimed youth academy, has scored 27 goals so far this season.
His goal record and all-round play saw him beat Hibernian striker Leigh Griffiths, Aberdeen forward Niall McGinn and Inverness playmaker Andrew Shinnie to top a shortlist that contained no players from champions Celtic - an omission that drew an angry reaction from Hoops manager Neil Lennon.
Higdon's tally of 26 league strikes is a club post-war record for top-flight goals in a single season.
The feat saw him overtake Willie Pettigrew's previous record of 23 in 1975-76 and makes him more prolific in claret and amber than previous Fir Park greats such as Ian St John, Joe McBride, Brian McClair and Tommy Coyne.
The powerful striker's previous best tally for a season was the 16 he netted last term in his first campaign with Motherwell - his final goal in a 1-0 win over Hearts securing a place in the Champions League qualifiers.
The former Falkirk and St Mirren player had initially struggled to win over some Motherwell fans following his move in June 2011 and received a one-match ban after the Scottish Football Association deemed one of his goal celebrations as "insulting or offensive".
The arm gesture came after he hit an equaliser in a 1-1 draw at Dundee United in January 2012 after missing several earlier chances.
The incident heralded a change in his relationship with the supporters as he quickly became a cult hero with the fans, who adopted the supposedly offensive gesture when greeting Higdon's subsequent goals.
Higdon is out of contract in the summer and is considering an offer to stay at Motherwell having helped them secure another season of European football.
The club declined to comment on Higdon's arrest today but praised their striker for bringing the award to Fir Park for the first time.
A statement on their website read: "Everyone at Motherwell Football Club would like to congratulate Michael on his award, along with Darren Randolph, Shaun Hutchinson and Nicky Law who were all named in the SPL Team of the Year."
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