Firstly, congratulations to Shane Williams for being named IRB Player of the Year for 2008 but I must say as a rugby fan that I am surprised that All Black captain, Richie McCaw was not the winner of the award but he was not even part of the shortlist of the players! The list included: Shane Williams and Ryan Jones from Wales, Scotland scrumhalf Mike Blair, Italy captain Sergio Parisse and New Zealand flyhalf Dan Carter. Now surely you can not tell me that Blair and Parisse had a better year than McCaw.
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I must say I am not really surprised by this one. Wales winger Shane Williams has been named the International Rugby Board Player of the Year for 2008. He beat off competition from Wales teammate Ryan Jones, Scotland scrumhalf Mike Blair, Italy captain Sergio Parisse and New Zealand flyhalf Dan Carter. Funnily (or not) no Springbok players were up for the running. Should Jean de Villiers have been included there? Williams had a great year and for me, the highlight was the way he ran ‘inside out’ of Habana in the test earlier in the year. He made South Africa’s best winger look like a junior school boy. Congrats to Williams for the award.

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