Canadian forward Sophie de Goede nominated for Women's World Rugby player of the year

Canadian forward Sophie de Goede, who has been an impact player at the Women's World Cup in her return from knee surgery, is a finalist for World Rugby's Women's Player of the Year.

The 26-year-old forward from Victoria is up against England's Megan Jones and New Zealand's Jorja Miller.

The Canadian vice-captain was also nominated for the award in 2022. Canada captain Alex Tessier was a nominee last year.

Going into Saturday's final against top-ranked England, de Goede leads the Women's World Cup in carries, offloads and lineout takes.

De Goede, who doubles as goal-kicker, has also scored 55 points for second-ranked Canada.

With six conversions in Canada's 42-0 win over No. 12 Wales in Pool B play Aug. 30, de Goede became the all-time leading scorer in Canadian women's rugby history with 262 points.

WATCH | Canada stuns New Zealand with dominant performance: 

Sophie de Goede leads Canada to the Women's Rugby World Cup final

She has since added six points (three conversions) in the final 40-19 group game win over No. 6 Scotland, 13 points (one try, four conversions) in the 46-5 quarterfinal win over No. 7 Australia and 14 points (a try, three conversions and a penalty goal) in the 34-19 semifinal win over No. 3 New Zealand.

The performances are all the more impressive given de Goede only returned to action in July after being sidelined for 13 months following knee surgery.

De Goede tore her anterior cruciate ligament on June 21, 2024, in a non-contact scrimmage against the United States on the last day of a Canada sevens camp in Chula Vista, Calif. Prior to making her return in a 22-minute cameo off the bench July 12 against South Africa, her last game was May 19, 2024, when Canada defeated defending World Cup