Ox Nché’s omission continues the lack of recognition for props in World Rugby’s top individual award – Getty Images/Patrick Khachfe
There are no props on this year’s shortlist for men’s player of the year. You might remember how well Ox Nché has played for the Springboks and quite justifiably find this to be a bit of an surprise, which is why you should probably sit down ahead of this next bit of information – no prop has ever been nominated for men’s player of the year. Ever!
This seems flat-out ridiculous when you consider how many Rugby World Cups or British and Irish Lions series have hinged on the scrum, not to mention how props have developed over the past decade to become attacking threats with their distribution, and improved fitness to get about in defence. Wilco Louw, for example, was the leading tackler at half-time at Twickenham on Saturday, tied on 11 with England’s Jamie George.
Nché would have been a worthy nominee. Eben Etzebeth, Cheslin Kolbe and Pieter-Steph du Toit have all had excellent years but there’s an argument for Nché edging out Du Toit, a winner in 2019. Four Springboks on the shortlist might have finally satisfied South African rugby Twitter for the first time, while also riling up the rest of the world, but who could really object to Nché being on there? He has ruined scrums all year long for the Sharks and Springboks.
Even if you can accept Nché missing out, how on earth given this award has been going since 2001, with sometimes up to seven players nominated in a year, have we never had a men’s prop in contention? Fortunately the women’s game has at least acknowledged that props deserve recognition, although Sarah Bern’s nomination for women’s player of the year back in 2019 remains the only representation.
Five men’s hookers have been nominated, including the first-ever winner of the award in Ireland’s Keith Wood, although you could even argue that position is beginning to be overlooked given the last nominee was the USA’s Joe Taufeteʻe back in 2019.
Go through the years and there are enough extraordinary efforts from props to make you wonder how they could not have been considered. Carl Hayman in 2005, even though he did miss two Lions Tests. Andrew Sheridan in 2007 after his demolition of Australia. Gethin Jenkins around 2008 and 2009 was arguably the world’s best loosehead. How was Owen Franks never nominated, especially after the 2011 World Cup? Or what about Alex Corbisiero in 2013 after excelling for the Lions?
There are two cases in recent years which feel particularly egregious; Tadhg Furlong after the Lions tour of 2017 when he was just sensational, and Frans Malherbe, billed recently as the best tighthead of all time by Tendai Mtawarira, following his huge contribution to each of South Africa’s Rugby World Cup titles in 2019 and 2023.
You start to wonder what else props need to do to be considered. Perhaps chew through two opposing props and send the scrums uncontested while also knocking over a drop goal off their wrong foot. It shouldn’t come to that; the graft and craft of props at the scrum combined with how they now play in the loose, particularly Furlong, deserves recognition.
No other position has been snubbed like this. Only counting players with multiple nominations once, there have been six full-backs, six wingers (two winners, Bryan Habana and Shane Williams), 13 centres, nine fly-halves (four winners, Jonny Wilkinson, Dan Carter (x3), Beauden Barrett (x2) and Johnny Sexton), nine scrum-halves (two winners, Fabien Galthié and Antoine Dupont), five hookers, six locks (one winner, Brodie Retallick), 15 flankers (five winners, Schalk Burger, Richie McCaw (x3), Thierry Dusautoir, Du Toit and Josh van der Flier) and 10 number eights (two winners, Kieran Read and Ardie Savea).
Over 23 years there have been 117 nominations for this award, and not even one prop? That seems absurd.
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