Embrose Papier has been named the SA Vodacom URC Player of the Season after a campaign that saw him score 11 tries — nine in the regular season and two more in the quarterfinal against Munster, where he also claimed the man of the match award. The Bulls scrumhalf finished as the competition's second-highest try scorer, adding five assists, 25 defenders beaten, and 15 clean breaks to his tally.
The award is voted on by the Springbok coaching staff, the four franchise coaches, and selected South African broadcast commentators. Previous winners include Evan Roos, Manie Libbok, Sanele Nohamba, and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu.
Papier, now 29, was recently invited to the Bok alignment camp and is targeting a national recall for the first time since 2018, when he earned seven caps. His growth this season has been underpinned by a shift in his decision-making at the base of the scrum.
"I just kept working," said Papier. "I knew I could still do it. It was just little things I had to work on. I have become a lot calmer over the years and started making better decisions on the field. In the past, I used to just pass a lot and see what happens. But now I analyse teams. The more experience you gain, the better decisions you make. You can see when the forwards are going forward or being tackled backwards, then you know when to make the ball slow or fast."
Papier goes into Saturday's URC semifinal against Glasgow Warriors as the Bulls' primary attacking weapon, with the franchise also claiming the competition's Innovation Award.
Elsewhere in the awards, the Lions dominated individual honours — Quan Horn taking the Ironman award and Chris Smith claiming the Gilbert Golden Boot. Evan Roos topped the try-scoring charts for the Stormers. The Elite XV named Horn at fullback alongside Werner Kok (Ulster), Stafford McDowall (Glasgow), and Stuart McCloskey (Ulster) in the backline.