Indispensable! That’s how many will feel about Duane Vermeulen ahead of this year’s Rugby World Cup.
The big No8 has been a colossus since getting into the Springbok team in 2012 and after 29 Tests he was last night rightly named South Africa’s Rugby Player of the Year at the annual awards function in Johannesburg.
Vermeulen, who was also among the candidates for the World Player of the Year award last season, has made the Bok No 8 jersey his own. In a matter of three seasons he has become one of the game’s leading eighthmen, up there with the likes of Kieran Read of New Zealand, who’s widely regarded the best in the position.
The 28-year-old Vermeulen follows in the footsteps of national captain Jean de Villiers and teammate Bryan Habana to win the country’s top rugby award. With De Villiers in a race against time to be fit for the World Cup in England, starting in September, Vermeulen will be among the candidates to take charge of the side should De Villiers not recover in time.
Vermeulen, who will lead the Stormers in the Super Rugby competition, won more than just the main award last night. He was also named Players’ Player of the Year – voted for by his fellow professionals – as well as Super Rugby Player of the Year.
“Duane was outstanding in 2014 and these awards are just reward for the excellent form he showed last year, as one of the Springboks’ key performers and for the Stormers,” said Saru President, Mr Oregan Hoskins.
The other big winner, with two awards was young flyhalf hot-shot, Handré Pollard. While he lost out to Vermeulen in the main award, he was named Young Player of the Year as well as U-20 Player of the Year.
The outstanding Springbok Sevens and Women’s Players of the Year were Seabelo Senatla and Fundiswa Plaatjie respectively.
Teboho “Oupa” Mohoje, who earned his first Bok cap last season, was named as scorer of the Supersport Try of the Year for 2014, voted for by their commentators, for his sublime solo-effort against the Crusaders in a highly-entertaining Vodacom Super Rugby Match in Bloemfontein.
DHL Western Province walked away with the award for Absa Team of the Year for their superb Absa Currie Cup Premier Division campaign, while the Golden Lions’ Johan Ackermann was named Absa Coach of the Year for the way in which he galvanised the team from Johannesburg to be a force to be reckoned with.
Other winners were: WP’s Nizaam Carr (Absa Currie Cup Premier Division), the Griffons’ Boela Abrahams (Absa Currie Cup First Division), Renaldo Bothma of the Pumas (Vodacom Cup), Michael Nienaber of Rustenburg Impala (Cell C Community Cup) and Curwin Bosch of Eastern Province (Coca-Cola Craven Week Player of the Year).
“As we prepare for what promises to be a massive year ahead, I would like to congratulate every winner on their awards, but would also like to thank every player, coach, administrator, referee, sponsor and all other role players for making 2014 a season to remember,” said Hoskins. All the winners
SARU Rugby Player of the Year: Duane Vermeulen; Finalists: Nizaam Carr, Marcell Coetzee, Willie le Roux, Handré Pollard
Absa Young Player of the Year: Handré Pollard; Finalists: Nizaam Carr, Cheslin Kolbe, Seabelo Senatla, Jan Serfontein
SARPA Players’ Player of the Year: Duane Vermeulen
Springbok Sevens Player of the Year: Seabelo Senatla; Finalists: Branco du Preez, Frankie Horne
SA Under-20 Player of the Year: Handré Pollard; Finalists: Thomas du Toit, Jesse Kriel
Absa Team of the Year: DHL Western Province (Absa Currie Cup); Finalists: Springboks, Junior Springboks, Springbok Sevens, Xerox Golden Lions (Absa Currie Cup)
Absa Coach of the Year: Johann Ackermann (Xerox Golden Lions); Finalists: Allister Coetzee (DHL Stormers & Western Province), Neil Powell (Springbok Sevens)
Vodacom Super Rugby Player of Year: Duane Vermeulen (DHL Stormers); Finalists: Marcell Coetzee (Cell C Sharks), Warren Whiteley (Emirates Lions)
Vodacom Cup Player of the Year: Renaldo Bothma (Steval Pumas); Finalists: Jonathan Francke (GWK Griquas), Lizo Gqoboka (EP Kings)
Absa Currie Cup Premier Division Player of the Year: Nizaam Carr (DHL Western Province); Finalists: Juan de Jongh (DHL Western Province), Jaco Kriel (Xerox Golden Lions)
Absa Currie Cup First Division Player of the Year: Boela Abrahams (Down Touch Griffons); Finalists: Sylvian Mahuza (Leopards), Dillon Smit (Leopards)
Supersport Try of the Year: Teboho ‘Oupa’ Mohoje (Toyota Cheetahs v Crusaders, Vodacom Super Rugby); Finalists: Cornal Hendricks (Toyota Cheetahs v Blues, Vodacom Super Rugby), Nathan Nel (UCT v Pukke, Varsity Cup Final), Seabelo Senatla (DHL Western Province v Vodacom Blue Bulls, Absa Currie Cup), Juan de Jongh (DHL Western Province v Vodacom Blue Bulls, Absa Currie Cup) and Corné Fourie (Emirates Lions v Toyota Cheetahs, Vodacom Super Rugby)
Marriott Referee Award: Craig Joubert
Women’s Achiever of the Year: Fundiswa Plaatjie
Cell C Community Cup Player of the Tournament: Michael Nienaber (Rustenburg Impala)
Coca-Cola Craven Week Player of the Tournament: Curwin Bosch (Eastern Province) - The Star