Hougaard wins IRPA Try Of The Year award

Francois Hougaard's spectacular score in the Springboks' win over New Zealand in the Castle Lager Rugby Championship has been named as the International Rugby Players' Association (IRPA) Try of the Year, World Rugby announced on Saturday. The Springbok scrum-half, who scored the first try of the match in Johannesburg in early October, is the third South African to win the award after Jacque Fourie in 2009 and Bryan Habana in 2012. Samoa's Seilala Mapusua, former All Black Jeff Wilson, Ireland's Alan Quinlan and Dan Parks of Scotland formed the panel of judges who opted for Hougaard's effort in preference to the four others shortlisted in Jamie Roberts (Wales), team-mate Cornal Hendricks, Magali Harvey (Canada) and Jonny May (England). Hougaard brought the Ellis Park crowd to its feet when, in the 12th minute, he dived under the posts to finish off a move that had begun deep in South Africa's half and involved all of the backline. South Africa won the match 27-25. World Rugby Chairman Bernard Lapasset said: "I'd like to congratulate Francois Hougaard on winning this award. It was a fantastic try... There was wonderful elusive running, lightning passing, rapid recycling, a deft kick ahead, which was expertly gathered and then a well-timed run from Francois finished it off in style. It was a real team effort that demonstrated ambition…” IRPA Executive Director Rob Nichol added: "With so many great international tries during 2014, involving both individual brilliance and collective effort, it is never an easy process to settle on one try. However, when it came down to it, Hougaard's try stood out for the judges due to the high level of skills involved by different players, and, most importantly, the teamwork required to make it happen." Meanwhile, Wales brought an emphatic end to 15 years of hurt at the hands of South Africa when it triumphed 12-6 at Millennium Stadium on Saturday. A crowd roar that threatened to lift the closed roof greeted Wales' first win over the Springboks since 1999, and only the second ever in 108 years. The result saw the Springboks ending their European on a losing note. JOHANNESBURG-NAMPA/SAPA