Tonight we celebrated the first night of the Canterbury Rugby Annual Awards for 2021, with a shift online opening up the awards for our Whanau to view and celebrate the great people that make up our rugby community. Read below for a full recap of tonight’s festivities, with six awards on offer tonight across the Representative and Community pathways.

Volunteer of the Year

Tonight’s first Award was the Volunteer of the Year, presented to a person in our community who puts their heart and soul into making their club a better place.

Presented by 2020’s Volunteer of the Year Winner Di Livingstone, of Merivale Papanui Rugby Football Club, this year’s winner Jayson McRoberts is the embodiment of that ethos, providing countless hours on and off the pitch to his beloved Suburbs Club.

From coaching the Club’s U17 women’s side and setting up the Club’s home ground Hoon Hay Park, Jayson is always on hand at Suburbs helping out, volunteering his time to Waitaha Rugby as well.

While Jayson being awarded the Volunteer of the Year should come as no surprise to those around him, it caught the man himself off guard.

“It’s a big surprise but I am very grateful to be recognised in this way” said McRoberts. “There are lots of volunteers out there worthy of this award, so I certainly don’t take the honour lightly.”

“(For me) It’s just about participation, everything that you can gain from the game, from meeting new people all the time and (from his time coaching the club’s U17 women’s side) the progress you see are the sort of rewards for your effort.”

Jayson, alongside other finalists Sharlene Wiseman (West Melton) and Pete Chaplin (HSOB/Tri Rugby), are the perfect examples of those that invest so much time and effort to support and enable our great game. Awards such as this one only go so far in saying thanks for their work on and off the field. Congratulations Jayson, and all finalists!

Tom Doocey Cup for Canterbury’s No.1 Referee

An integral part of our Club game, we thank the Canterbury Rugby Referees Association for the time they invest in volunteering to help run our game.

In this year’s Awards, we were pleased to be able to announce the winner of the Tom Doocey Cup, awarded each year to Canterbury’s No.1 Referee. This Award is presented to the referee who both referees to the highest level in the region and nation, but also to one that makes himself available off the field too.

This year’s winner, George Haswell, has done just that this season, following his appointment to the Canstaff Metro Premier final up with appointments at the national level too, referee in both the Heartland Championship and Farah Palmer Cup competitions this season.

For George, being recognised alongside the names of the past is an honour for the young referee. “It’s evident the importance of this trophy in the region, and it means a lot to be added to that strong list.” said Haswell.

Dennis Young Men’s U19 Player of the Year

Despite a shortened representative season, the Canterbury U19’s were able to produce a series of impressive results, toppling Tasman in their two match series, before beating Otago in their last game by just two points to give them claim to the South Island title for 2021.

While there were a number of players who put in a number of impressive performances, it was Joe Brial of Lincoln University who picked up the 2021 Player of the Year Award.

Leading from the front, Joe backed up his strong club campaign on the field with the U19’s, a deserved winner of potentially the most impressive trophy in Canterbury.

“We had a really good campaign and a great support crew for the whole team so I really enjoyed it.” Biral said. “I’m also pretty lucky to get the final tick. It’s very special to have your name amongst so many that have gone before.”

Women’s U19 Player of the Year

With both an U19 Red and an U19 Black side taking the field this year in the women’s space, it is only fitting that this year’s Women’s U19 Player of the Year trophy be awarded to two players!

Hannah King and Holly Wratt-Groeneweg will share this year’s Award, as standouts for their respective teams in 2021.

At first five, Hannah King led her U19 Red team on and off the field, displaying a great deal of leadership in a side that went unbeaten in this year’s representative season.

“It’s been great to be wearing the red and black colours again after a year away with Covid and it’s a great honour to receive this Award with Holly” said King.

Holly Wratt-Groeneweg set a similar standard in the U19 Black team, bringing her love to the game to fore as she captained her side to an impressive representative record.

“It’s awesome to be acknowledged for the efforts you put in. While we didn’t quite get what we would have liked out of the season, having the two even teams was an awesome experience to be a part of and I can’t wait to get back into it next year” Wratt-Groeneweg said.

For both King and Wratt-Groeneweg, this Award provides worthy recognition of their efforts this season and can’t wait for them both to keep excelling on the field.

Stan ‘Tiny’ Hill Men’s B Player of the Year

A good week keeps getting even better for Dominic Gardiner, who picked up this year’s Stan ‘Tiny’ Hill Men’s B Player of the Year to follow up his selection in the 2022 Crusaders squad.

Alongside making his debut for Canterbury this season and achieving Man of the Match honours in the Canstaff Metro Premier Final, Dom has certainly had a year to remember on the field.

In his time with the B’s, Dom showed a different class, putting in performances to be proud of against the likes of Tasman and Otago that ultimately saw him make the jump to the first-class level in 2021 following an injury disrupted 2020 season.

“I’m incredibly honoured to receive this award.” said Gardiner.

“You set yourself some goals at the start of the season and you put in some hard work to achieve them, so to get some recognition is quite nice!”

“I was also grateful to be back out there playing rugby, I spent a bit of time on the sideline last year with an injury and had a bit of itchy feet, but it’s nice to get back out there with your mates and enjoy playing rugby again”

As an incredible 2021 comes to a close for Gardiner, we certainly can’t wait to see him make the jump next year as a young career goes from strength to strength, earning himself a contract in Crusaders.

Canterbury Māori Player of the Year

As this year’s winner of the Canterbury Māori Player of the Year, Stephanie Te Ohaere-Fox is the perfect embodiment of a player who demonstrates all the values of Rangatiratanga, Manaakitanga and Whanaungatanga.

Whilst taking a year off last year for the birth of her second child, Steph stayed connected to the team and worked her way back in to the side for 2021, becoming the first Wahine to bring up 100 games for Canterbury. 

In the absence of the Black Ferns at the end of the FPC season, Steph stepped up in to the Captain’s role, leading the side on and off the field to a fifth consecutive final.

“It means a lot to me (to win the Māori Player of the Year), this year was very hard coming back after my baby but it was a goal of mine to come back. To play with the girls, it’s always a culture that draws me back to the side and it’s a huge honour to win this award this year” Te Ohaere-Fox said.

It’s fair to say that Steph is an asset to both the FPC team and the wider Waitaha community, a deserved winner of Canterbury Māori Player of the Year for 2021.

Article added: Tuesday 23 November 2021