Rugby Championship awards: Springboks’ Rassie Erasmus ‘innovation’, an ‘all-time’ Pablo Matera shift and THAT ‘f***ing amazing’ interview
Eben Etzebeth, Rassie Erasmus and Santiago Chocobares.
Just like that the 2024 Rugby Championship has come and gone in what was the most competitive edition the tournament has seen since its inception in 2012.
With the dust beginning to settle we put our heads together and came up with Planet Rugby’s awards for the Southern Hemisphere tournament.
Planet Rugby Awards
Best player: Pieter-Steph du Toit (South Africa)
Where to start? The Springbok flanker added serious attacking intent to his game this campaign, finishing with a team-high 57 carries and three tries in his five performances.
The addition of attacking impetus did not hamper his defensive efforts as Du Toit delivered trademark defensive shifts typified by his tireless work-rate. The value he brings to the Springboks was so clearly evident when they left him behind for the Test in Argentina.
Du Toit, who even slotted into the second-row during times of crisis, is surely in the running for Men’s World Player of the Year award. Ultra reliable and ultra consistent. What a player.
Springboks player ratings: ‘Brilliant Boks’ blow Argentina off the park
Best forward: Ox Nche (South Africa)
Honourable mention for the ever-impressive Los Pumas star Juan Martin Gonzalez, but this one had to go to the Springbok loosehead. Nche is having arguably the best year of his Test career as he destroyed anyone in front of him at scrum time while elevating his carry and offload game in the process.
It’s crazy to think how he grew with each performance and even crazier when considering just how good he could get. Nche is about to enter his prime years as a prop so his stock is only set to go up in the debate for the world’s best loosehead.
Best back: Santiago Chocobares (Argentina)
Los Pumas looked venomous under Felipe Contepomi’s guidance and central to that is Chocobares who had a campaign for the ages. The midfielder has so much to offer from strength in the tackle to his turn of pace getting him on the outside shoulder and then the micro-skills to glue it all together.
His confidence was sky-high throughout the tournament on the back of a trophy-laden season with Toulouse and he does not look like stopping. There were many contenders for this award, underlining just how good the Argentine was.
Best coach: Rassie Erasmus (South Africa)
It may be a cliche to have the tournament-winning coach win this award and Contepomi was a close second but no one can touch Erasmus’ constant push for innovation and development.
The Boks are the champions and not by sticking to what they knew but rather pushing the boundaries with a completely new attack and giving chances to a boatload of fringe players and rookies alike. Not every decision made worked perfectly but Erasmus’ ability to balance risk, results, development and innovation is second to none. It would be madness to argue that Erasmus is not in the conversation for greatest coaches of all-time.
Granted there is a heap of work to do but there is no better chance for any team to achieve the World Cup three-peat than the Springboks now with Doctor Rassie Erasmus at the helm.
Breakout players of the tournament: Three players
There was meant to be one but we picked three because we can. In the Springboks camp, the emergence of Sacha Feinberg-Mngomzeulu was sensational. The young fly-half was born for Test rugby and took over the general role with aplomb, stamping his mark on the shirt. His skill-set is obvious, temperament beyond his years and it’s very, very clear we will be seeing a lot more of him in green and gold. Keep an eye on this man.
Another to keep an eye on is Wallace Sititi who quite frankly strong-armed his way into a starting role for the All Blacks. The immense power he has in the carry has shades of a young Ardie Savea, as is his ability in the tackle and over the ball. The wild bit is he is not even playing his preferred position for New Zealand. Get used to the 22-year-old because he will be in the black jersey for years to come.
Finally, Tomas Albornoz. We have said several times he is the regen of Juan Martin Hernandez or ‘El Mago’. Albornoz has it all, from an outstanding kicking game to no fear on attack or defence to the composure of a seasoned veteran. By the end of the tournament, he had forced Santi Carreras out of his starting position and fighting for full-back. A player with the skills he has under Contepomi could absolutely explode.
A very special mention to number eight Joaquin Oviedo who had a brilliant campaign.
Best match: Springboks v All Blacks (Round Three)
What more could a fan ask for than the greatest rivalry meeting in the iconic Ellis Park Stadium and it certainly produced.
It was the first meeting between the sides since the World Cup final and the teams traded blows in the opening half with the All Blacks eventually taking a 12-11 lead into the break.
An early Jordie Barrett try in the second half was a dagger to the Springbok hearts as the under-pressure All Blacks took a strong position in the game. After trading penalties, Caleb Clarke went over with just more than a quarter to go, giving the All Blacks a 10-point lead.
There were certainly nerves in the crowd but then came the inevitable, the Bomb Squad. As South Africa have done before they snatch victory right from under their opponents’ noses with Kwagga Smith and Grant Williams scoring the decisive tries.
It was a beautiful Test worthy of such a famous rivalry.
Best individual performance: Pablo Matera v All Blacks (Round One)
There is nothing Matera loves more than playing for his country and he has a knack for standing up in the biggest of games and that’s what happened in Round One. The flanker earned full marks in our player ratings for an all-time shift in an historic win.
Matera was a monster on both sides of the ball with 16 carries and 11 tackles in a game he captained Argentina in. Whenever his team needed something he put them on his back and always moved forward.
One of those performances we will recall for a very long time.
Best team performance: Los Pumas beat All Blacks (38-30, Round One)
It was a toss up between two Argentina wins and the away victory against New Zealand only just pips the record win over Australia.
One only has to go back to 2022 to find their last win in New Zealand, showcasing just how rapidly the team is developing. In this one, the All Blacks started well and got out to a 20-8 lead until Argentina crucially scored either side of half-time to throw themselves back into the contest.
Los Pumas were a joy to watch as they were disciplined in defence and measured on attack, keeping themselves in striking distance. At the end of the day Carreras’ boot proved crucial in a Rugby Championship clash.
Biggest disappointment: Poor coverage from official Rugby Championship accounts
New Zealand-based content creator Ella Ferguson spent the whole tournament calling out the poor social media presence of the Rugby Championship and she was spot on.
The Rugby Championship has the three most decorated teams in the game’s history by a long way and a fourth that is rapidly developing yet there is very little effort to market and push narratives that it is the best tournament in the world. The social posts were bland, riddled with errors and made no effort to engage fans and build the tournament’s global influence. There is not even an award for player of the championship…
The difference between how it is run compared to that of the Six Nations is night and day. There is a constant push by the Six Nations to frame the competition as rugby’s greatest championship and there is a consistent effort to engage fans (even out of competition dates).
Like it or not, it is an online world and if you want to grow the game you HAVE to engage fans online. It is criminal to have so much potential wasted, like a tree full of fruit being left to rot in the sun.
It’s time to be better than this.
Best tackle: Tomas Albornoz try saver v Wallabies (Round Four)
It came in the record win over Australia from Argentina’s new superstar Albornoz. The Wallabies run a clever switch play off a lineout in opposition territory with the ball ending up in the hands of Marika Koroibete who guns it for the corner.
He looked for all money as if he was going to score only for Albornoz to expertly take him into touch. Crucially the tackle was ball and all, giving the Wallaby no chance.
Best moment: Eben Etzebeth makes history
For years and years, Springboks have looked up to Victor Matfield’s appearance record but now the great Eben Etzebeth looks down on it from his own record 128 caps.
The second-row is a legend of the game and does not look like stopping. He was aptly celebrated in front of a packed Mbombela crowd where his present was the Rugby Championship title.
Etzebeth’s record speaks for itself and every time he touches the pitch in Springboks colours from now he rewrites his own history. One of the greatest ever to play the beautiful game.
🇿🇦👏 IT'S OFFICIAL! Eben Etzebeth is the most capped Springbok in history. What a moment for the South African enforcer! #RSAvARG #RugbyChampionship pic.twitter.com/bi7s4NCZsH
— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) September 28, 2024
Best try: Siya Kolisi with double lineout
Erasmus is always up to something and in Round One the Springboks unleashed a double lineout play where one pod shifted the ball to another. The maul was then set where the defenders were less concentrated and skipper Kolisi crashed over.
It was a classic moment from the Springboks under Erasmus and it was not the only time they tried a move of that nature.
Rassie Erasmus reacts to the Springboks double lineout jumpers that lead to Siya Kolisi try. pic.twitter.com/1bTUxBJGMp
— Mapantsula a Rugby Show (@MapantsulaRugby) August 10, 2024
Selection award: Erasmus backing Manie Libbok after blowout
After Round Five, Libbok took a battering online for his missed kick that lost the Boks the Test in Santiago. Many would have thought Erasmus would turn to the safety of Pollard for the final round but instead he threw Libbok back in the deep end and gave him a shot at redemption.
Jaden Hendrikse took on the kicking duties and “liberated” Libbok ran riot in Brown’s wide-ranging attacking structures. In fact, it was the best display of where the attack is going. In the end, Libbok won many hearts back and credit to Erasmus for an expert bit of management.
Siya Kolisi: ‘Manie Libbok is my general’ and the ‘most important guy’ in the Springboks team
Best interview: Agustin Creevy after beating the All Blacks
The Los Pumas great came out of retirement to help out a hooker crisis and got the reward with a win over the All Blacks in New Zealand.
Creevy, who holds the record for most games as captain of Argentina, could not hide his joy after the game, saying: “We work a lot and it’s tough sometimes and now this game for us is f***ing amazing.
“Now, thinking, calm down, I want to win next week. That’s the most important, two games in a row, we’ve never done it and we hope for that.”
He has since retired again from Test rugby and will forever be recognised as a legend in Argentina.
Feel good moment: Argentina’s entire campaign
There were many firsts in this campaign for Argentina; the first time beating all three opponents in one season and notably the first time being in a position to claim the title in the final round.
Unfortunately, it was not to be, however, it’s impossible not to be excited about Argentina who are flourishing under Contepomi, one of their own. The famous win in New Zealand to scoring 64 points in 48 minutes to edging out the world champions at home, what a campaign.
This was the tournament everyone has been waiting for when Los Pumas were added to the Tri-Nations, which became the Rugby Championship back in 2012. This development is a testament to the good work going on in South America and it’s only a matter of time before the trophy is covered in blue and white.
Unsung hero: Angus Bell
Let’s begin this by reminding readers that Bell had surgery to reshape his foot so he could continue to play. Now he is one of the most valuable forwards for the Wallabies, so much so that even on the day James Slipper broke Australia’s appearance record it was Bell who started.
There is no fuss to the prop who is brilliant in every facet of the game and consistently produces when on the park. He is a deserved winner of this award.
