Charles Monro accolade to highlight community rugby at NZRU awards

Above: Beauden Barrett adding to his 199 points this year for the Hurricanes.

The Charles Monro Rugby Volunteer of the Year Award will lead the community accolades at next Thursday's annual New Zealand Rugby awards at a swanky inner city Auckland venue.

The Charles Monro award - named after the man who introduced rugby to New Zealand in 1870 - recognises club rugby's volunteers. This year's three nominees are from Auckland, Manawatu and Wellington. Suburbs Rugby Club stalwart Gary Donovan, Manawatu junior rugby advocate Mark Andersen, and dedicated Petone Rugby Club loyalist Mike Wollett were all nominated by their respective provincial unions for their long and outstanding contributions to rugby for their club and community.

Meanwhile, the Barrett family table will be humming at the event, with older brother Beauden and sibling Jordie nominated for major awards.

This year’s World Rugby Player of the Year Beauden Barrett, World Rugby Player of the Year nominee and Hurricanes Captain Dane Coles and 84-Test veteran Sam Whitelock are all nominated for the Kelvin R Tremain Player of the Year Award.

Super Rugby’s top points scorer, Beauden Barrett, is also up for Investec Super Rugby Player of the Year along with Hurricanes team mate, and 2016 All Blacks debutant, Ardie Savea and Chiefs versatile play maker Damian McKenzie who ran in 10 tries and notched up 199 points in this year’s competition.

Jordie Barrett, who is heading home to Taranaki in 2017 and to join Beauden at the Hurricanes, is a nominee for the Men's NPC Player of the Year for his deeds playing for winners Canterbury. Jordie hs also in contention to win the New Zealand Rugby Age Grade Player of the Year accolade.

At the community level, the Charles Monro Rugby Volunteer of the Year Award is a tribute to the backbone of club structures – the volunteers – sees nominations for Suburbs Rugby Club (Auckland Rugby) stalwart Gary Donovan, Manawatu junior rugby advocate Mark Andersen, and dedicated Petone Rugby Club loyalist Mike Wollett. All three were nominated by their clubs for their long and outstanding contributions to rugby for their club and community.

The Team of the Year nominees are the All Blacks, the Black Ferns and the Hurricanes.

The captains of the World No. 1-ranked Black Ferns (Fiao’o Fa’amausili) and Olympic medal-winning Black Ferns Sevens (Sarah Goss) teams have been nominated for the women’s player and women's sevens player of the year awards.

New Zealand Rugby Chief Executive Steve Tew said that 2016 has been another standout year for rugby, in particular, for the All Blacks who have secured every trophy they contested.

“From the All Blacks setting a world record for consecutive tier one victories and retaining the Bledisloe Cup and Rugby Championship, the Black Ferns remaining unbeaten in 2016 to reclaim their top world ranking, to the Black Ferns Sevens winning their first ever medal at the Olympics, through to the Hurricanes winning the Super Rugby Championship - New Zealand teams have been in dominant form.

The Rugby Coach of the Year award will be hotly contested between Chris Boyd who took the Hurricanes to their inaugural Investec Super Rugby title in just his second year in the job, Steve Hansen who coached the All Blacks to Bledisloe and Rugby Championship titles and a world record 18 tier one victories, North Harbour coach Steve Jackson whose team took out the Men's NPC Championship and promotion into next year’s Premiership – the first time his side has won a provincial title in 29 years; and three-time Men's NPC Premiership winning Canterbury coach, Scott Robertson, who will head the Crusaders’ campaign in 2017. Hansen has previously won the coach award for the last four consecutive years.

The Tom French Memorial Maori Player of the Year will be battled out between Wellingtonian of the Year Dane Coles, 19-year-old All Blacks Northern Tour rookie Rieko Ioane and All Blacks and Hurricanes halfback TJ Perenara.

Women’s rugby also enjoyed a stellar year. The Black Ferns were unbeaten in their five Test outings in 2016, including a home series against the Australians. The New Zealand Women’s Sevens team won silver at the Rio Olympics and were runners-up in the 2015/2016 World Rugby Sevens Series.

Black Ferns power hooker and captain, and 2016 World Rugby Women’s Player of the Year nominee Fiao'o Fa'amausili is up against last year’s award winner, and top points-scorer, halfback Kendra Cocksedge with 48 points in her international season, and pocket rocket Selica Winiata who ran in nine tries in the black jersey.

In Women’s Sevens, team captain Sarah Goss is up against fellow Rio silver medallists Niall Williams, and world-leading try scorer Portia Woodman.

The Richard Crawshaw All Blacks Sevens Player of the Year Award will be contested by Rio teammates Rieko Ioane, Sam Dickson and Tim Mikkelson.

Fans have been able to vote on 10 of the best tries in 2016 to determine the Sky Television Fans Try of the Year. The shortlisted nominees were the top three tries selected after over 5000 fan votes were cast.

The Steinlager Salver Award in recognition of an individual’s exceptional contribution to rugby in New Zealand.

The New Zealand Rugby Players Association (NZRPA) Kirk Award will be presented for the first time at the Rugby Awards. The Award, which was first presented in 2005, recognises players who have made outstanding contributions on behalf of fellow professional players, on and off the field. It is named for Rugby World Cup 1987-winning All Blacks Captain and founding Chairman of the NZRPA David Kirk.

The All Blacks, Ma’a Nonu and Steve Hansen picked up the major honours in 2015.

2016 Rugby Awards nominations

New Zealand Rugby Age Grade Player of the Year
Jordie Barrett (Canterbury)
Luke Jacobson (Waikato)
Shaun Stevenson (Waikato)

Charles Monro Rugby Volunteer of the Year
Mark Andersen (Manawatu)
Gary Donovan (Auckland)
Mike Woollett (Wellington)

New Zealand Rugby Referee of the Year
Glen Jackson (Bay of Plenty)
Richard Kelly (Taranaki)
Rebecca Mahoney (Wairarapa Bush)

Heartland Championship Player of the Year
James Lash (Buller)
Willie Paia'aua (Horowhenua/Kapiti)
Te Rangatira Waitokia (Wanganui)

Men's NPC Player of the Year
Jordie Barrett (Canterbury)
Rieko Ioane (Auckland)
Michael Little (North Harbour)

Richard Crawshaw Memorial All Blacks Sevens Player of the Year
Sam Dickson (Canterbury)
Rieko Ioane (Auckland)
Tim Mikkelson (Waikato)

Sky Television Fans Try of the Year
Dan Pryor (Highlanders)
Isaiah Punivai (Christ's College)
Selica Winiata (Black Ferns)

Black Ferns Sevens Player of the Year
Sarah Goss (Manawatu)
Niall Williams (Auckland)
Portia Woodman (Counties Manukau)

Super Rugby Player of the Year
Beauden Barrett (Hurricanes)
Damian McKenzie (Chiefs)
Ardie Savea (Hurricanes)

Tom French Memorial Maori Player of the Year
Dane Coles (Ngati Porou)
Rieko Ioane (Ngapuhi / Te Whanau a Apanui))
TJ Perenara (Te Arawa)

New Zealand Rugby Women’s Player of the Year
Kendra Cocksedge (Canterbury)
Fiao’o Faamausili (Auckland)
Selica Winiata (Manawatu)

Rugby Coach of the Year
Chris Boyd (Hurricanes)
Steve Hansen (All Blacks)
Steve Jackson (North Harbour)
Scott Robertson (Canterbury)

Team of the Year
All Blacks
Black Ferns
Hurricanes

Kelvin Tremain Memorial Player of the Year
Beauden Barrett (Taranaki/Hurricanes)
Dane Coles (Wellington/Hurricanes)
Sam Whitelock (Canterbury/Crusaders)