Stormers lock Ruben van Heerden is an URC Award Winner: The big second-rower has won the the 2024/25 Tackle Machine category. He made 171 tackles, with a 98% accuracy.
Ioan Lloyd, Harri Millard, Ruben van Heerden, Cam Winnett, and Tom Farrell have added their names to the United Rugby Championship Awards roll of honour by collecting the Gilbert Golden Boot, OFX Top Try Scorer, Tackle Machine, Ironman, and Playmaker prizes respectively.
They become the first award winners of the 2024/25 season as we celebrate the league’s best in class ahead of the Semi-Finals, with the Elite XV, Next-Gen Player of the Season, Innovation Award, Try of the Season powered by URC.tv, South African Vodacom URC Player of the Season, BKT Coach of the Season, and Players’ Player of the Season winners all set to be announced this week.
A breakdown of the winners so far:
Gilbert Golden Boot: Ioan Lloyd (Scarlets) – 124 points
The Gilbert Golden Boot is awarded in recognition of the player who kicks the most points in the regular season.
Scarlets playmaker Ioan Llyod tops the charts this season with 124 points. 46 of those came from try conversions, with the remaining 78 points coming from successful penalty kicks.
He finishes ahead of Hollywoodbets Sharks star Jordan Hendrikse (108 points), and Edinburgh’s Ross Thompson (105 points).
OFX Top Try Scorer: Harri Millard (Cardiff Rugby) – 9 tries
Millard finished the regular season with 9 tries, level with DHL Stormers winger, Leolin Zas, and Munster centre, Tom Farrell.
But the Cardiff star takes the award having scored his tries in the least amount of time, bagging his 9 tries in just 796 minutes across 13 appearances this season.
Previous winners of this award include Glasgow Warriors hooker Johnny Matthews last season, and Ulster’s Tom Stewart back in 2022/23.
Tackle Machine: Ruben van Heerden (DHL Stormers) – 171 tackles, 98% accuracy
This award is given to the player who boasts the best tackle success rate among those who have attempted 150 or more over the course of the campaign.
Van Heerden takes home the prize having made 171 tackles at a success rate of 98%.
The 27-year-old edged Glasgow Warriors forward Rory Darge who made 160 tackles with an accuracy of 97%, as well as Hollywoodbets Sharks star Phepsi Buthelezi in third place, with 157 tackles, and a tackle accuracy of 96.82%.
Ironman: Cam Winnett (Cardiff Rugby) – 1427 minutes
Cam Winnett takes home the award which recognises the player who has racked up the most minutes over the 18 rounds of the Vodacom URC.
Winnett started all 18 rounds of the regular season for Cardiff, missing just 13 minutes all season.
He finished ahead of Munster’s Tom Farrell (1371 minutes) and Dragons RFC forward, Shane Lewis-Hughes (1353 minutes).
Playmaker: Tom Farrell (Munster Rugby) – 158 points
Playmaker is a brand new award for the 2024/25 season, with Munster centre Tom Farrell named as the inaugural winner.
Adaptability, creativity and composure under pressure define a true playmaker. The Playmaker Award is given to the player who creates chances and tries for his team, with three key metrics used to decide the winner – try assists for his team, successfully completed offloads, and defenders beaten on the pitch.
A player is awarded three points for each try assist, 2 points for each offload, and 1 point for each defender beaten.
Farrell’s tally of 158 points comes from 5 try assists (15 points), 41 offloads (82 points) and 61 defenders beaten (61 points).
He finishes ahead of DHL Stormers fullback, Warrick Gelant (118 points), and Emirates Lions star, Quan Horn (111 points).
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Be sure to follow all the URC Awards announcements using the hashtag #URCAwards
Gilbert Golden Boot: Ioan Lloyd (Scarlets)
OFX Top Try Scorer: Harri Millard (Cardiff Rugby)
Tackle Machine: Ruben van Heerden (DHL Stormers)
Ironman: Cam Winnett (Cardiff Rugby)
Playmaker: Tom Farrell (Munster Rugby)
Src: keo.co.za
