The players have voted behind closed doors, and we're pleased to announce the five finalists to win the Australian Women's Rugby Sevens team's most prestigious honour, the 2019 Players' Player of the Year.
All players who featured in official World Rugby Sevens Series tournaments were asked to vote on a 3-2-1 basis, with eleven players highlighted due to the number of tournaments they appeared in. The award’s previous winners are Emilee Cherry (2013 & 2014), Charlotte Caslick (2015 & 2016), Chloe Dalton (2017) and Evania Pelite (2018).
The 2019 Finalists are:
Evania Pelite:
Evania Pelite continued to excel for the Australian Women's Rugby Sevens team in 2018-19, playing all six World Series tournaments and earning Dream Team selection in both Dubai and Sydney.
Passing 100 career matches and 300 career points last year, the 24-year-old also averaged a career-high 2.88 points per match and moved into the Top 5 in all-time Australian try scoring.
Ellia Green:
Ellia Green's 2018-19 World Rugby Sevens series campaign was outstanding, playing all six tournaments and earning selection in the tournament Dream Team in Sydney and Canada.
She played a key role in helping Australia to qualify for next year's Olympic Games in Tokyo, finishing as Australia's top try scorer with 27 and reaching 600 career points, seeing her enter the all-time top 10 for the World Series, and move to second behind Emilee Cherry as Australia's all-time leading scorer.
Charlotte Caslick:
Playmaker Charlotte Caslick, a two-time winner of this award, played five tournaments this year, missing her home tournament in Sydney through injury.
Named in the Tournament Dream Team in Canada, Charlotte averaged four tries per tournament as she drew ever closer to 100 career tries and 200 career matches, while also dominating defensively and securing her spot at the top of the stats charts for tackles made in World Series history.
Emma Tonegato:
In 2018-19, Emma Tonegato made up for lost time when she starred in her four tournament appearances, having missed Colorado and Dubai through injury.
Named in the Tournament Dream Team in Canada alongside Caslick and Green, Tonegato moved past 100 career tries and into the World Series' all-time top ten, as well as continuing to make clean breaks seemingly at will and feature in plenty of highlight reels with her outrageous finishing skills.
Sharni Williams:
Inspirational Co-Captain Sharni Williams had a brilliant 2018-19 season, playing all six tournaments and earning Dream Team selection in front of friends and family in Sydney.
Passing 150 career matches to move into the all-time top ten in World Series history, Sharni reaped the rewards of her disciplined rehab of injuries in recent years to be back at her peak, an exciting prospect less than twelve months from the Olympic Games in Tokyo.
The 2019 Australian Women’s Rugby Sevens Players’ Player will be announced at the 2019 BDO Rugby Players Lunch in Sydney, on Wednesday December 11, with the Award presented by RUPA’s Official Banking Partner, NAB Private.
