RG Snyman in winning URC weekend as Viking is victorious for Leinster

Published on 8th June 2025 | Leave a response

RG Snyman, named Players’ Player of the Season, at the 2024/25 URC Awards, capped a winning weekend as Leinster thumped defending champions Glasgow Warriors in the URC semi-finals.

Double World Cup-winning Springbok lock Snyman, affectionally dubbed the Viking for his physical appearance, has been sensational for Leinster this season. He moved from Munster, where he inspired the club to the 2022/23 URC title win against the DHL Stormers in Cape Town.

The Viking will play his former club mates, the Bulls, in Saturday’s final at Croke Park in Dublin.

The Players’ Player of the Season awards is voted on by the captain and vice captain of all 16 teams in the league, and a nominee must have played a minimum of nine out of 18 league matches.

Snyman played in 12 of Leinster’s 18 league matches, played in the quarter-final and semi-final wins and also played in seven Investec Champions Cup matches for a club season tally of 21 matches. He also played in 3 Springboks Test matches last November and Saturday’s final will be his 25th match of the season.

Snyman was won the Leinster Player of the Year award.

Leinster, scratchy against the Scarlets in the quarter-final, were never troubled in hammering Glasgow 37-19 and recording a third successive win against the Scots in all competitions this season. Leinster led 37-5 going into the final quarter. Earlier this season Leinster smashed Glasgow 52-0 in the Investec Champions Cup quarter-final, but only won 13-5 in the last round of league play in the URC.

LEINSTER HAMMER GLASGOW 37-19

SACHA WINS BIG IN URC

BKT Coach of the Season: Massimo Brunello (Zebre Parma)

Brunello has transformed Zebre Parma this season, leading them to victories over Munster, Ospreys and Dragons at home, as well as famous away wins against Ulster and Edinburgh.

Their away against Ulster ended a four-year wait for a victory on road, and was backed up the following week with another win away against Edinburgh.

One of his fellow coaches said:

“Massimo made Zebre even more competitive this season with some impressive wins on the road. These results made qualification for the top eight interesting until late in the competition.”

Previous winners of this award include Graham Rowntree last season, and Glasgow Warriors head coach Franco Smith back in 2022/23.

Lucia Salmaso, CEO of BKT Europe said:

“Massimo has done a wonderful job this season with Zebre Parma, guiding them to some famous wins against tough opposition. He has demonstrated excellent leadership in his first season at the helm, creating history with Zebre’s first away win in four years. In creating a custom ring for him as the BKT Coach of the Season, we want this achievement to live long in the memory. Congratulations to Massimo on his fantastic work this season, and we wish him all the best in the future.”

Players’ Player of the Season: RG Snyman (Leinster Rugby)

RG Snyman’s “X-Factor” has been lauded as a key reason he’s been named as the 2024/25 Players’ Player of the Season by his peers.

Snyman has been a key figure for Leinster this season following his switch from rivals Munster over the summer.

The towering lock helped his side to top of the table in the regular season, with his offload game in particular being pivotal to the Irish province.

One fellow player applauded his “unique skillset” – branding him a “very tough” opponent.

“A threat all over the park. Strong in the set-piece and has a unique skillset which makes him very tough to play against.”

Previous winners of this award include Munster’s Jack Crowley last season, Leinster’s Dan Sheehan back in 2022/23, and DHL Stormers forward Evan Roos in 2021/22.

Be sure to follow all the URC Awards announcements using the hashtag #URCAwards

URC Awards Winners 2024-25

Gilbert Golden Boot: Ioan Lloyd (Scarlets)

OFX Top Try Scorer: Harri Millard (Cardiff Rugby)

Tackle Machine: Ruben van Heerden (DHL Stormers)

Ironman: Cam Winnett (Cardiff Rugby)

Playmaker: Tom Farrell (Munster Rugby)

Elite XV: Jamie Osborne (Leinster Rugby), Darcy Graham (Edinburgh Rugby), Tom Farrell (Munster Rugby), Andre Esterhuizen (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Blair Murray (Scarlets), Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (DHL Stormers), Craig Casey (Munster Rugby), Jan-Hendrik Wessels (Vodacom Bulls), Marnus van der Merwe (Scarlets), Wilco Louw (Vodacom Bulls), RG Snyman (Leinster Rugby), Tadhg Beirne (Munster Rugby), Jac Morgan (Ospreys), Rory Darge (Glasgow Warriors), Cameron Hanekom (Vodacom Bulls)