Thomas du Toit has taken out three awards at Bath's annual end-of-season ceremony — Forward of the Year, Supporters' Player of the Year, and Players' Player of the Year — as he prepares to return to the Sharks ahead of the 2026 World Cup cycle.
The prop has made 21 competitive appearances for Bath this season, largely deployed off the bench as part of the club's impact substitution unit. He joined Bath from the Sharks in 2023 and will head back to Durban at season's end, with a Premiership title tilt still on the table in June.
Du Toit has been candid about the challenges of breaking into Springbok match-day squads during one of the most competitive eras for South African front-rowers. "I've been in this generation of Springboks players that have just been the best that South Africa has ever produced," he said on The Good, The Bad and The Rugby podcast, citing competition from the likes of Nché, Koch, Louw, Mtawarira, Kitshoff and Malherbe as the reality he has had to navigate.
"My philosophy is serving the team the best way I possibly can by working unbelievably hard. That needs to speak for itself; if it doesn't, then I can't get selected."