Now that the men’s international year is over, Sportin Wales celebrates Wales’ best player of 2024: Aaron Wainwright.

Aaron Wainwright has been Wales’ best player this year.

As Wales struggled to win matches, Wainwright has assumed an extra responsibility that made him stand out amongst his teammates as someone they can rely on in key moments.

The Dragons number eight was rewarded for his excellent form in 2024 with the Welsh Rugby Writers Association (WRWA) men’s player of the year award.

Wainwright certainly deserves his award, having played every minute of Wales’ Six Nations campaign in the spring, the 27-year-old joins the likes of Gareth Edwards, Barry John, Jonathan Davies, Shane Williams, Sam Warburton, and Alun Wyn Jones – too name just a few! – who have previously won this award.

Wainwright’s breakthrough in red came during the 2019 Rugby World Cup, where his dynamism and power earned him a spot in the back row with Justin Tipuric and Josh Navidi.

He appeared in all of Wales’ group stage wins and started the quarterfinal against France and semi-final against South Africa at blindside flanker, scoring an excellent try against the former.

Wainwright has been ever-present for Wales in recent years, often switching between numbers 6 and 8, to facilitate Taulupe Faletau and others in Wales’ well-stocked back row.

However, it was not always rosy for Wainwright. He went from a mainstay of the Welsh pack to bit-part player, and finally to looking in from the outside, as he was omitted from the 2022 Six Nations squad, missing the successful South Africa tour that summer and missing out in the Autumn internationals.

The Dragons man went 13 months without appearing for Wales, an unthinkable situation to anyone at Rodney Parade who will tell you without much hesitation that Wainwright has been their best player in recent times.

His tenacity with ball in hand stands out, making hard yards for Wales, while offering the necessary athleticism to be a solid lineout jumper and handy at the back of the scrum.

Wainwright has also been a loyal servant of his club side, Dragons RFC, and next year will no doubt be targeting British and Irish Lions selection, something just five other Dragons players have done before.

In the red of Wales, Wainwright reached the 50-cap milestone against Australia on the summer tour, a match that would turn out to be a bittersweet one as the forward suffered a hamstring injury during the match.

In typical fashion, the number eight returned to action ahead of schedule and started Wales’ autumn international matches against Fiji and Australia.

Wainwright, though, celebrated his award in typically humble fashion: by going back to his roots to do what he loves best – helping at his first club, Whiteheads RFC.

The back row can often be seen coaching the men’s and youth teams in his spare time and was once again this week back on the field at Park View to show his love for the grassroots game and helping the next generation of Welsh stars.

“It’s my first club. I played youth, played seven or eight games of senior rugby, even played in a final at Rodney Parade which we lost, and I got a yellow card,” he laughs.

“It’s good just to come down and have a laugh with some of the boys and have a bit of a chat with my mates. Maybe later in my career I’ll start thinking about the coaching side of things more seriously.”

“After the games I play, I often come back here and they’re happy enough to get stuck into me as much as I am to get stuck into them at training and on Saturday,” Wainwright adds.

“It’s a good balance. It keeps you grounded.

“It’s a good balance but it adds to that surrealness of it sometimes when you are out there playing in a packed-out Principality Stadium in front of 75,000 fans.”

So, after a stellar 12 months, what are the next targets for the back row?

“With goals, I don’t really like putting too much in my head, thinking about too much further into the future,” he admits.

“First thing first, get myself and my body back right. Try and get back playing and training well and then just go from there.”

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