Marx powers through Dublin Test to claim Player of the Year

Malcolm Marx must have approached Saturday’s clash – his 87th Test for South Africa – against Ireland at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin with plenty of thoughts running through his mind.

This was, after all, the same Irish team that split a series with the Springboks on South African soil last year — winning in Durban after losing in Pretoria. It was also the same opponent against whom Marx suffered one of the worst injuries of his career: a fractured tibia caused by a dangerous croc-roll clearout at the breakdown.

The culprits then were No 8 Caelan Doris and lock James Ryan, with Ryan executing the illegal cleanout while Doris took the yellow card.

So, when Marx delivered a powerhouse performance in the Boks’ 24–13 victory in Dublin this weekend, only to be targeted again by Ryan, the flashbacks would’ve been impossible to ignore. The Irish lock flew into a breakdown and caught Marx with a shoulder to the head — another reckless hit that, this time, earned Ryan a yellow, which was later upgraded to a red card on review.

Fortunately for the Springboks, Marx escaped injury and stayed on the field. He not only finished the match but capped off the night in the best possible way: being crowned World Rugby Men’s 15s Player of the Year.

It was a fitting reward after a monumental season in which he started 11 Tests and consistently produced world-class performances. True to character, Marx dedicated the award to his coaches, teammates, and to South Africa.

“It was, obviously, a tough game and having that many scrums is not pleasing on the neck,” Marx said afterwards.

“But we know what a quality side they are and what a quality pack they have. We knew it was going to be tough, so we obviously had to grind it out and try and put as much pressure as we could throughout the game, to try and get a reward from it.

“I thought they did extremely well in the second half, where they held us out. We had a few penalties and all of that. They’re a quality side, I think tonight they showed that even with 12 guys on the field.”

Marx beat fellow World Cup winners Pieter-Steph du Toit and Ox Nché, and Frenchman Louis Bielle-Biarrey to the prize. He became the first front rower since Irishman Keith Wood to be crowned the best in the world.

The KES-alumn made his debut for the Boks in 2016 against New Zealand, and has collected two World Cup medals, three Rugby Championships titles, a British and Irish Tour series series with the Boks thus far. He has been selected in three World Rugby Dream XVs.

Previously, he was nominated for the World Rugby Player of the Year Award in 2018, losing out to Johnny Sexton of Ireland.