World Rugby: Antoine Dupont (FRA) and Zoe Aldcroft (ENG) elected as 2021 Players of the Year

Antoine Dupont (France) and Zoe Aldcroft (England) have been voted as the men's and women's World Rugby 15s Player of the Year in association with Mastercard (payment solutions), according to the body on 10/12/2021. French champion and winner of the 2020-21 Champions Cup with Stade Toulousain (Top 14), the scrum-half is "the first Frenchman to win the prestigious award since Thierry Dusautoir in 2011."

"Antoine Dupont received two-thirds of the public vote, having been at the heart of a fast-developing young French team capturing the imagination ahead of a home Rugby World Cup in 2023. The 25-year-old's reading of the game, allied with his passing speed and turn of pace, invariably mean he's in the right place to start or finish off a flowing French attack. He crossed for three tries in the Six Nations and then was handed the captaincy for the Autumn Nations Series, leading France to three wins, including a first over New Zealand on home soil since 2000," said World Rugby.

"Named England captain for the first time on her 25^th birthday, Zoe Aldcroft led the Red Roses to an 89-0…