Habana scores a double - again
Bryan Habana - Pure gold
The Springboks' record-breaking flyer, Bryan Habana, already the International Rugby Board (IRB) Player of the Year, added another string to his already impressive bow when he walked away with two of the major prizes at the annual Absa South African rugby Awards banquet in Sandton on Wednesday night.
Habana, the leading try-scorer at the 2007 World Cup, was named Player of the Year - easily beating off the challenges of fellow RWC stars Victor Matfield, Fourie du Preez, Juan Smith and Percy Montgomery.
He also won two major awards in 2005; when he was named both Player of the Year and Super 12 Player of the Year.
Du Preez was the 2006 Player of the Year, other previous winners of the main category include Springboks André Vos, André Venter, Breyton Paulse, Joe van Niekerk, Ashwin Willemse and Schalk Burger.
Habana's amazing match-winning score for the Bulls in their 20-19 victory over the Sharks in the Super 14 Final was voted as the Try of the Year.
The try came as the Bulls first moved right, went wide left and came back far right where Habana cut inside Bob Skinstad, swept past Tendai 'Beast' Mtawarira and dived into history to score the try that made the victory possible.
Although Habana was up for a third award, that of the Super 14 Player of the Year, that accolade went to his Bulls and Bok team-mate Fourie du Preez.
However, in the two categories that he won, Habana dominated the voting.
In the Player of the Year category he earned 23 out of a possible 25 voting points - well ahead of Matfield in second place (16 points), Du Preez (15), Smith (11) and Montgomery (10).
His Super 14 Final try got a full-house of 25 points, whilst his first of four tries against Samoa in the World Cup Pool A match in France was joint second with Odwa Ndungane's match-winning score against the Crusaders in the Super 14. Habana's chip-'n-chase in the World Cup semi-final against Argentina came in fourth.
Another player who earned full marks on the evening was Springbok midfield sensation Francois Steyn, who won the Most Promising Player Award (with 25 points) ahead of fellow World Cup star JP Pietersen (18) and powerhouse Lions prop Heinke van der Merwe (17).
The Super 14 Player of the Year was the most closely contested category; with Fourie du Preez earning 19 out of a possible 25 points and Matfield second just two points behind, followed by Pietersen and Wikus van Heerden (both 14).
Cheetahs fly-half Willem de Waal, who slotted the match-winning conversion in the Currie Cup Final against the Lions, was named Currie Cup Player of the Year - also getting a full-house of 25 points. Nuggety Sharks scrum-half Rory Kockott was a distant second on 15 points, followed by Cheetahs hooker Richardt Strauss (14) and Cheetahs lock Corniel van Zyl (13).
The Vodacom Cup Player of the Year Award went to Griquas' Zane Kirchner with 24 out of a possible 25 points, followed by team-mates Conrad Barnard (17) and Jacques Burger (14).
THE FULL LIST OF AWARDS:
Player of the Year: Bryan Habana (Bulls)
Players' Player of the Year: Willem de Waal (Cheetahs)
Sevens Player of the Year: Mzwandile Stick
Most Promising Player of the Year: Frans Steyn (Sharks)
Super 14 Player of the Year: Fourie du Preez (Bulls)
Absa Currie Cup Player of the Year: Willem de Waal (Cheetahs)
Vodacom Cup Player of the Year: Zane Kirchner (Griquas)
SuperSport Try of the Year: Bryan Habana (Winning try, Super 14 Final)
Under-19 Player of the Year: Johan van Deventer (Golden Lions)
National Club Championship Player of the Year: Elgar Watts (Stellenbosch)
Women's Player of the Year: Natasha Hoffmeester (Boland)
Referee of the Year: Jonathan Kaplan (SA Rugby)
Craven Week Player of the Year: Wilton Petersen (Free State)
SASOL MEDIA AWARDS:
Sasol Springbok Journalist of the Year: Andy Colquhoun (MWP/SABC)
Sasol Springbok Commentator of the Year: Hugh Bladen (SuperSport)
Sasol Springbok Photographer of the Year: Wessel Oosthuizen (The Citizen)
By Jan de Koning