The final five-man shortlist for the International Rugby League Golden Boot award has been unveiled.
The Golden Boot is awarded to the international player of the year, of course, with the Pacific Championships and the Ashes series being taken into account. As such, there is no English representation on the shortlist with all five players coming from down under.
Australia have two players on the list, with Harry Grant and Cameron Munster getting the nod from the judges for their performances against England in the Ashes. The pair were arguably the stars of the series this autumn as the Kangaroos claimed a 3-0 series win over Shaun Wane’s side.
Munster was the man selected by members of the press as the player of the series, but Grant stood out in all three games, too, and got himself over the line at Headingley.
Joseph Tapine and Dylan Brown of New Zealand have also been shortlisted, with the Kiwis claiming a Pacific Championships win this autumn.
New Zealand beat Samoa in the final and Brown and Tapine were at the very heart of their autumn success.
Payne Haas is the fifth and final man on the list after impressing in the colours of Samoa. This autumn was Haas’ first time representing Samoa and he managed to back himself a try in the win over Tonga on October 26.
A panel of five rugby league legends were in charge of narrowing down the contenders to the five names above, with James Graham, Darren Lockyer, Cameron Smith, Ruben Wiki and Petero Civoniceva all involved.
The five players shortlisted for the women’s award are also exclusively Southern Hemisphere based. The Jillaroos have three representatives with Yasmin Clydsdale, Julia Robinson and Tamika Upton given the nod.
Apii Nicholls of New Zealand and Cook Islands’ Chantay Kiria-Ratu are also named.
England has three nominees for the wheelchair award, though, with Jack Brown, Nathan Collins and Rob Hawkins selected. Ireland international Joseph Calcott is on the shortlist, as well as Australia duo Bayley McKenna and Zac Schumacher.
The winners of all three prizes will be announced in due course.
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John Dalton
November 20, 2025 at 12:58 pm
Not interested, as we obviously do not play rugby league.
No awards for playing tiddlywinks!