(Reuters) -South Africa hooker Malcolm Marx was named World Rugby Men’s 15s Player of the Year on Saturday, the fourth Springbok to claim the individual award, his success coming seven years after he was first nominated.
Marx took the award ahead of Springbok teammates Pieter-Steph du Toit, a twice winner, and Ox Nche, as well as French winger Louis Bielle-Biarrey.
Nche was hoping to become the first prop to win the prize and had a strong case.
Marx joined Du Toit (2019 & 2024), Bryan Habana (2007) and Schalk Burger (2004) as South African recipients of the award.
"I don't think it's really sunk in to be honest. To be fair none of this is achieved without the team environment we have, without the management, without the players," Marx told a news conference after a player-of-the-match display against Ireland on Saturday.
"We are tight-knit group and things like this happen when you have a group that we have. So in my opinion this isn't for me just an individual award, I think it's more a team award, because the support and the structures that we have for guys to express themselves is unbelievable."
New Zealand lock Fabian Holland was named World Rugby 15s Breakthrough Player of the Year, while John Mitchell was Coach of the Year after leading England to Women's Rugby World Cup success, though that award was announced in September.
Canada's Sophie de Goede took the World Rugby Women’s 15s Player of the Year, and breakthrough player went to Braxton Sorensen-McGee of New Zealand.
(Reporting by Nick Said and Padraic Halpin, editing by Ed Osmond)
