Krysten Cottrell named Farah Palmer Cup player of the year at NZ Rugby Awards

Tui star Krysten Cottrell converts a trademark penalty. Photo / Ian Cooper

The Hawke’s Bay Tui’s climb to the Farah Palmer Cup national women’s rugby semifinals this year in their first season back in the top grade has produced possibly its biggest success - captain Krysten Cottrell being named the competition’s Player of the Year.

But the accolade in the ASB national rugby awards last Thursday was more than just a surprise for the 31-year-old goal-kicking first five, who was aware she was a finalist but thought a clip of herself screening during the televised-only awards was the preliminary profile of the three candidates before the announcement.

She said that while watching with family in Napier, it all “happened so fast” she missed the announcement and they had to “wind back” to learn that she had pipped fellow finalists Laura Bayfield of Canterbury and Manawatū Cyclones player Kaipo Olsen-Baker.

As it happens, the actual award, the Fiao’o Faamausili Medal, is being sent “in the mail” and she’s been told she should receive it after Christmas, with the rugby world wondering why there was none of the anticipated ceremonial marking of rugby year’s end in NZ.

Cottrell and her Tui teammates enjoyed some glitz and glamour when they were named Team of the Year at the Hawke’s Bay Sports Awards at the Pettigrew Green Arena in Taradale at the end of October.Their season kicked off with a return to the top division and included a win over eventual champions Auckland Storm.

She had been a previous FPC player of the year nominee in 2018, when the honour went to women’s rugby legend Kendra Cocksedge.

She’s now looking forward to a Super Rugby Aupiki women’s competition stint with Auckland-based the Blues in March and April and, even more keenly to the Hawke’s Bay season. In the Bay, more players have taken to high-performance training and there are signs of much-needed growth in the women’s club competition ahead of a new FPC season expected to start in July.

A 2018-2019 Black Ferns player, Cottrell has scored 514 points in a career of more than 100 NPC matches since 2007, with 84 matches for Hawke’s Bay, in two stints – in 2007-2012 and since 2017 - for a total of 394 points for the union.

The winning of the medal the women’s rugby equivalent of the men’s NPC Duane Monkley medal was one of three Hawke’s Bay-linked successes in awards.

Auckland-based international, former Tui and ex-Hastings Girls’ High School student Liana Mikaele-Tu’u was named Black Ferns Player of the Year, and rising Hawke’s Bay Magpies and Hurricanes Super Rugby player and NZ Under 20 Rugby World Cup representative Harry Godfrey was named Age-Grade Player of the Year.

Hastings’ Tamatea Rugby Sports Club was one of three finalists in the Club of the Year category, in which the award went to Auckland University Rugby Football Club.

The Monkley medal went to Counties Manukau player Etene Nanai-Seturo, and among other key award winners was All Blacks loose forward Ardie Savea as the Kelvin R Tremain Memorial New Zealand Rugby Player of the Year.

Other awards were: New Zealand Rugby Referee of the Year, Ben O’Keeffe; Charles Monro Rugby Volunteer of the Year, Allen Grainger (Waikato); Te Hāpai New Zealand Rugby Community Impact Award, Steven Li (Asian Non-Contact Rugby Programme); Ian Kirkpatrick Medal (Heartland Player of the Year), Siu Kakala (South Canterbury); ASB National Men’s Coach of the Year, Neil Barnes (Taranaki); ASB National Women’s Coach of the Year, Rawinia Everitt (Northland); ASB New Zealand Coach of the Year, Cory Sweeney (Black Ferns Sevens); DHL Super Rugby Pacific Player of the Year, Scott Barrett (Crusaders); Sky Super Rugby Aupiki Player of the Year, Lucy Jenkins (Matatū); Tom French Memorial Māori Player of the Year, Aaron Smith (Ngāti Kahungunu, Manawatū); Richard Crawshaw Memorial All Blacks Sevens Player of the Year, Akuila Rokolisoa; Black Ferns Sevens Player of the Year, Stacey Waaka; adidas National Men’s Team of the Year, South Canterbury; adidas National Women’s Team of the Year, Auckland Storm; adidas New Zealand Team of the Year, All Blacks Sevens.

Doug Laing is a senior reporter based in Napier with Hawke’s Bay Today, with 50 years of journalism experience in news gathering, including breaking news, sports, local events, issues, and personalities. He first covered rugby in Hawke’s Bay in 1973.