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Cape Town - Dillyn Leyds was the big winner at the 2017 WPRFU Awards evening, claiming three awards at a ceremony held at the Cape Sun on Tuesday.
The versatile Leyds, who came back from injury this year to star for the Stormers in three different positions before going on to make his Springbok debut, was named the Most Valuable Player, Senior Player of the Year, as well as claiming the Composure and Capability Award.
Lock JD Schickerling walked away with the coveted Players' Player of the year award.
The other senior awards saw Stormers captain Siya Kolisi take the Above and Beyond Award, with Schickerling the WP Best Forward, Jano Vermaak the WP Best Back, Jaco Coetzee the WP Most Promising Senior Forward and Damian Willemse the WP Most Promising Senior Back.
In the table-topping Western Province U19 team, WP U19 Best Forward was lock BJ Dixon and WP U19 Best Back was centre Lyle Hendricks, with wing Christian Ambadiang named the WP U19 Most Promising Player.
The WP U21 Best Forward was captain Ernst van Rhyn and WP U21 Best Back was flyhalf Tiaan Swanepoel, with centre Michaine Fick handed the WP U21 Most Promising Player award.
The U19 Player of the Year was captain Salmaan Moerat and the U21 Player of the Year was wing Duncan Saal.
Both Western Province U19 and Western Province U21 will contest semi-finals on October 21, with the senior Western Province team requiring a win against Sharks this weekend to secure a home Currie Cup semi-final.
Of course Western Province went through the SuperSport Rugby Challenge unbeaten to claim the inaugural title earlier in the year, while there was also success for the Western Province Women's team as they claimed the national title and had 12 players named in the SA Select squad to tour England.
The other individual awards saw Felicia Jacobs named WP Women’s Player of the Year, Henco Martins the WP School’s Player of the Year, Marius van der Westhuizen the WP Referee of the Year and Tapiwa Tsomondo of False Bay the Club Rugby Player of the Year.
There were also certificates awarded to a number of amateur coaches who have come through the WPRFU High Performance coaching programme this year.
It has also been a vibrant year of club rugby, with quality rugby across the province drawing massive crowds in the different communities.
Maties have had the perfect season, going through Super League A and the Totalsports President's Cup unbeaten to take both titles, while False Bay and Tygerberg have both booked their spots in the Gold Cup quarterfinals this weekend.
WPRFU president, Thelo Wakefield, commented: “Congratulations to all of tonight’s winners - it was a privilege to be able to pay tribute to everyone, from the clubs right up to the professional players and all of whom have worked so hard and deserve their rewards.
“Tonight’s awards showcase the efforts that are being made to ensure that WP Rugby remains top across all levels and we wish our teams the best of luck in their respective competitions, as they all chase national titles.”
The event was well attended on the night with the WP Currie Cup team present, along with other key sponsors, players (seniors, juniors and club players), administrators and the local rugby media.
All the 2017 individual award winners:
WP U19 Best Forward: BJ Dixon
WP U19 Best Back: Lyle Hendricks
WP U19 Most Promising Player: Christian Ambadiang
WP U21 Best Forward: Ernst van Rhyn
WP U21 Best Back: Tiaan Swanepoel
WP U21 Most Promising Player: Michaine Fick
Composure and Capability Award: Dillyn Leyds
Above and Beyond Award: Siya Kolisi
U19 Player of the Year: Salmaan Moerat
U21 Player of the Year: Duncan Saal
Senior Player of the Year: Dillyn Leyds
MVP Award: Dillyn Leyds
WP Best Forward: JD Schickerling
WP Best Back: Jano Vermaak
WP Most Promising Senior Forward: Jaco Coetzee
WP Most Promising Senior Back: Damian Willemse
WP Women’s Player of the Year: Felicia Jacobs
WP School’s Player of the Year: Henco Martins
WP Referee of the Year: Marius van der Westhuizen
Club Rugby Player of the Year: Tapiwa Tsomondo
Players Player of the Year: JD Schickerling
* Not only were WP Rugby’s professional players awarded individual trophies based on their performances throughout the 2016 season, but the Western Province Rugby Football Union also recognised all club, junior, female and referees’ performances within the union this past year.
The 2017 WPRFU club awards:
Super League A: Maties
Super League B: St Georges
Super League C: Vineyards
Promotion League: Blue Jets
City League (First round): Manenberg Rangers
Northern League (First round): Blue Jets
Southern League (First round): Young Wesleys
Paarl League Winner: Allandale
Simonsberg League Winner: Morning Star
Sunday League: Tyume Stars
Women’s League: Union-Milnerton Women
City League (Second round): Silvertree
Northern League (Second round): Eersterivier
Southern League (Second round): Atlantis
Paarl Knockout: Riverstones
Super League A Under-20: Maties
Super League B Under-20: Helderberg
Super League C Under-20: Scottsdene Central
Presidents Cup (Super League A): Maties
Presidents Cup (Super League B): Hamlets
Presidents Cup (Super League C): Vineyards
