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Hodgson still the Force's best

Sat, 03 Jul 2010 16:57

Matt Hodgson has become the first player in Western Force history to receive the coveted West Australian Player of the Year honour twice.

It is back to back awards for the versatile Hodgson, who built on his brilliant 2009 campaign with a stellar 2010 season in which he was the only Force player to start every game and not be substituted.

He also secured his 50th Super Rugby appearance and maiden Wallabies cap this year.

Hodgson accumulated 236 votes in a thrilling count, as inspirational Western Force skipper Nathan Sharpe challenged all the way to finish just six votes behind in second place.

"It's a huge honour to win the Player of the Year back to back and to again be recognised by your peers for the effort you put in. It honestly comes as a surprise to me after some great individual performances in the team," said Hodgson.

"The likes of Nathan Sharpe, who once again was a fantastic leader and performer, and also David Pocock who made a huge difference to the squad when he came back from injury, both would have been worthy recipients."

He continued: "I'm really humbled to accept the award.

"This was definitely the hardest Super 14 campaign I've ever been involved in, particularly those first seven or so games with so many quality players out of action.

"While injury did hurt the team it enabled us to blood a lot of young players so when we had our full compliment on deck we were able to show what we could do in the latter part of the season. We're moving forward and with the expanded comp we'll need a bigger group to perform and the introduction of so many players this season is only going to help us.

"Being able to take on more of a leadership and guidance role was something I really enjoyed. I think that improved my rugby as well and I hope to continue with that next year.

"The biggest highlight for me though was the way the team got through those troublesome times and came out the other side together. A lot of teams would have gone into their shell and lost morale and energy for the whole year but we kept showing up each week and I don't think there were many games that we weren't in the contest for long periods of time," said Hodgson.

The 29-year-old is also the only player since the franchise's inception to receive both the Player of the Year and Force Man award in the same season. It is the third time Hodgson has been named Force Man, a recognition given to the player deemed to best represent the team's values in all that they do both on and off the field.

The absence of fellow back row forwards David Pocock and Richard Brown saw Hodgson take on added responsibility and he went about his duties with a customary no fuss attitude.

"Matt is committed in everything he does and was one of the players that really drew strength from the situation we faced during the season and that was reflected in his performance," head coach John Mitchell said.

"His preparations never wavered and he never held back physically. His mental resilience throughout that period enabled him to regenerate and perform to the highest standard. That set an example from which the squad could draw inspiration."

In other awards Sharpe was voted the Western Force Members' MVP. The Force captain again led from the front and enjoyed a standout season in which he elevated his performances to yet another level of excellence.

Ben McCalman's brilliant debut season saw him take out the Rising Star award. The rookie forward appeared in all 13 matches where he played a variety of roles in the back row while also on occasion partnered Sharpe at lock. His impressive performances saw him earn a call-up to the Australian Barbarians where he started in two tour matches against England.

Vice-captain Pocock enjoyed a barnstorming finish to 2010 with a third placing in The West Australian Player of the Year despite missing five matches with a finger tendon injury. Teenage star James O'Connor and scrumhalf Brett Sheehan rounded out the top five.

2010 Award Winners:
Player of the Year: Matt Hodgson
Force Man: Matt Hodgson
Members' MVP: Nathan Sharpe
Rising Star: Ben McCalman

West Australian Western Force Player of the Year Award – Top 10:
1 Matthew Hodgson: 236
2 Nathan Sharpe: 230
3 David Pocock: 205
4 James O'Connor: 144
5 Brett Sheehan: 101
6 David Hill: 86
7 Ben McCalman: 81
8 Pek Cowan: 80
9 (Tied) Mitch Inman & Ryan Cross 78
10 Tim Fairbrother 61

EWF Player of the Year Honour Roll:
2010 - Matt Hodgson
2009 - Matt Hodgson
2008 - Ryan Cross
2007 - Matt Giteau
2006 - Scott Staniforth

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