Wafer Honoured As Guinness Women’s Six Nations Player Of The Championship

Wafer gained 41% of the fan vote to decide the winner from a shortlist of four nominees vying for the coveted Player of the Championship honour.

The 22-year-old was presented with her trophy during an event at Dublin’s Mansion House hosted by the Lord Mayor of Dublin, Emma Blain (pictured below), to inspire young women with the power of sport.

She attended it alongside her Ireland team-mmate Niamh O’Dowd, before being surprised with the Player of the Championship accolade, and celebrating with those in attendance, some of whom may go on to follow in her footsteps.

The shortlist for this year’s Women’s Six Nations Player of the Championship award included England winger Abby Dow, France lock and captain Manaé Feleu, and Scotland back rower Evie Gallagher.

Alongside Wafer, all four players made the 2025 Team of the Championship line-up, while their performance statistics and chart-topping number of fan votes secured the four places on the player shortlist.

Over 18,546 fans answered the call to cast their votes, with the Leinster and Ireland star narrowly fending off Feleu by 333 votes to claim the prestigious title for 2025.

Wafer finished as the joint-second highest try scorer with four, taking her impressive tally to 12 tries in 15 appearances for Ireland. Her four scores in the 2025 Six Nations were the joint-most by any forward.

Beyond just a try scoring threat, Wafer made a staggering 70 carries, the most of any player in this year’s campaign, for a staggering 424.7 metres, beating 17 defenders in the process – the second highest of any forward across the six teams.

Off the pitch, Wafer (pictured above making a call to her proud parents) proved to be a fan favourite in the Official Six Nations Fantasy Rugby game, rewarding the fans who picked her with an impressive 221 points over the course of the Championship.

This made her the second-highest scoring forward in the tournament, just behind Teani Feleu. The Ballygarrett youngster also boasted the highest average points per game at 55.3, and registered the single highest individual game score with 82 points against Wales.

Speaking after being crowned the Player of the Championship for 2025, Wafer said: “It means the world to me because I want to be the best in the world, and I want my name up there with those Irish Women’s rugby stars. I feel that this award is a little step towards that.

“It’s huge for me, but also for our team – it really shows how much we have done in the last two years and how much we are growing. This trophy is not just mine, it’s for the team, my family – it’s more so for them than it is for me.

I always wanted to be the best at everything I did, I wanted to make my family, my friends, and my team proud.

“Ever since I was six I wanted to play for Ireland, and then, as I started growing up, it became like, ‘You could be a professional Women’s rugby player in Ireland’.

“It’s great to be nominated and win this trophy, and hopefully this can inspire the younger generation to pick up a rugby ball or to pick up any sport, as it’s very important.”

Julie Paterson, Chief of Rugby at Six Nations Rugby, commented: “Congratulations to Aoife, as well as each of the nominees from this year’s shortlist.

“The quality of players in the Guinness Women’s Six Nations continues to show the calibre of the athletes competing at the elite level of the game, and the likes of Aoife are incredible examples for future stars of Women’s rugby.

“With each of the Six Nations Unions and Federations strengthening their development pathways, through participation in the U-18 Festivals, and Women’s Summer Series, those players following in the footsteps of players like Aoife makes the future of Women’s rugby incredibly exciting.”

IRFU Chief Executive Kevin Potts added: “Congratulations to Aoife on being named the 2025 Guinness Women’s Six Nations Player of the Championship, a truly historic and inspiring achievement.

“As the first Irish woman to receive this honour, Aoife has not only showcased world-class talent but also is helping to inspire future generations.

I would like to pay tribute to her parents, Sam and Aidan, who I know have been a fantastic source of support for her since she took up playing rugby at a young age. Everyone at the IRFU is immensely proud of Aoife’s achievement.”