Written by Megan Taylor, sports reporter covering international sports since 2020

Super Rugby Pacific awards have delivered major honours for NSW Waratahs young gun Sid Harvey and Chiefs centre Quinn Tupaea, with Harvey claiming the first rookie of the year prize and Tupaea voted player of the year.

Harvey, a 20-year-old outside back from Narrabri, made his debut in Round 4 and quickly became a regular for the NSW Waratahs. He finished with 98 points from 11 matches, including six tries, which ranked fourth in the competition.

For more rugby union coverage, read Western Force CEO Leadership Change Confirmed as Niamh O’Connor Steps Down, John Hartman Takes Over Rugby Union Role. Fans can also follow official updates through the Super Rugby Pacific website.

Harvey caps breakout Waratahs season

Harvey’s rise gave the NSW Waratahs a bright story in a season where his pace, finishing and goalkicking became regular features. His ability to settle quickly at Super Rugby Pacific level made him a clear rookie standout.

"It's incredibly special to win this award. It's the first time this award's been here so to win it, it's pretty cool," Harvey said.

"I'm incredibly grateful to the Waratahs for the opportunity to play so many games and to the coaches, Dan (McKellar), Locky (McCaffrey), Catty (Mike Catt), to back me and all the boys to continue backing me. Letting me make mistakes and letting me learn.

"I think it helped me massively and anything good I did was off the back of other people doing their jobs really well."

Tupaea wins after tight vote

Quinn Tupaea shared the top player vote count with Highlanders centre Timoci Tavatavanawai, but won the award on a tiebreaker after receiving more three-vote games from the independent media panel.

Tupaea was a steady force for the Chiefs, who finished second in the regular season before reaching Saturday’s grand final against the Hurricanes. NSW Waratahs back Max Jorgensen finished third in the voting, with Western Force playmaker Ben Donaldson fourth.

Nine clubs were represented in the inaugural Super Rugby Pacific team of the year. The side included Ethan de Groot, Xavier Numia, Samisoni Taukei'aho, Jeremy Williams, Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, Anton Segner, Leicester Fainga'anuku, Fraser McReight, Ryan Lonergan, Ben Donaldson, Max Jorgensen, Caleb Tangitau, Quinn Tupaea, Timoci Tavatavanawai and Jock Campbell.