Jack Willis Retains Top 14 Best Player Award
Jack Willis has retained the Top 14 award for the competition’s best player, becoming only the second man after Antoine Dupont to win the prize in successive seasons.
The Toulouse flanker beat Matthieu Jalibert and Harry Plummer on a three-man shortlist to land the honour for a second year running.
We saw Willis produce a player-of-the-match display in his Top 14 final masterclass against Montpellier, back in June. This Jack Willis Top 14 award win shows that form has followed him into the new season.
Toulouse Flanker Acknowledges Rules and Eligibility Criteria
Willis left Wasps for Toulouse in November 2022, shortly after the English club fell into insolvency. He was initially given special dispensation to keep playing for England despite moving abroad.
That arrangement did not last. His most recent of 14 England caps came in a pool-stage win over Chile at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, and he has not featured for his country since.
Willis is candid about what that decision has cost him. Speaking to a BBC Sport report, he reflected on the trade-off between France and an England recall.
You know what you sacrifice.
He remains hopeful of adding to his caps one day. “It’s something I still want to do, but rules are rules,” he said.
Under World Rugby’s birthright rules, Willis qualifies for Ireland through his grandfather, who was born in Belfast, once three full years have passed without an England cap.
“I’m a quarter Irish, but they have the same rules as England,” he explained. Asked half-jokingly whether he could find a way round that, he laughed: “You need to do some digging, that’s your job, you find the way [around the rules]!”
Impact on England Selection and Toulouse Form
England’s selection policy generally rules out players based outside the Premiership. That is why the special dispensation allowing Willis to keep playing for his country did not last much beyond his move to Toulouse.
The Jack Willis Top 14 award recognition shows how well that decision has worked out on the club stage. He was named player of the match in Toulouse’s win over Montpellier in June’s final, and this latest honour suggests his form has not slipped since.
His situation contrasts with that of his twin brother Tom, whose path back into the England fold sits at the heart of ongoing discussions on the Willis brothers’ international exile. Tom’s own route back into contention is a story we followed in our look at Tom Willis’s international return.
Upcoming Campaign and International Test Timeline
Toulouse continue their push for more silverware this season, in France and in Europe, with Willis expected to anchor the back row.
No announcement has been made on any change to his international status, and this award recognises his club form rather than signalling any Test recall.
The three-year window since his last England cap, won against Chile at the 2023 World Cup, edges closer with every passing month. For now, his focus stays with Toulouse, where the Top 14 award and a fresh European campaign give him plenty still to prove.
