George, Coles, Taylor, Marx in four-way battle to be named world's best hooker

Four of the world’s leading hookers will go head-to-head in the semi-finals of the Straight 8 Fan Vote to decide the best hooker on the planet.

Punters worldwide have hit the polls on RugbyPass’ Facebook and Instagram accounts as part of the initiative to decide the world’s best players in each position, as voted by the fans.

The first five instalments of the campaign have already passed, with South Africa dominating proceedings through the likes of flanker Pieter-Steph du Toit, No. 8 Duane Vermeulen and wing Cheslin Kolbe.

A look back at the RugbyPass FIFA Pros tournament

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The trio could well be joined by Springboks teammate Malcolm Marx, who is among four top-class hookers vying for a spot in the RugbyPass Straight 8 Fan Vote World XV after clinching a win in the opening round of the eight-man knockout bracket.

Pitted against Argentina and Jaguares star Julian Montoya, Marx – who missed the opening seven rounds of Super Rugby this year to ply his trade for the NTT Communications Shining Arcs in Japan – romped to victory after attaining 89 percent of the vote.

The 25-year-old’s first-up win means he has been paired with All Blacks fan favourite Dane Coles in the semi-finals.

A World Rugby player of the year nominee in 2016, Coles churned out an emphatic 76 percent win over former Scotland captain Stuart McInally in the preliminary round of voting.

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The 33-year-old Hurricanes stalwart will be joined in the final four by fellow New Zealand international Codie Taylor, who romped home in the polls against Ireland rake Sean Cronin.

The Leinster veteran proved to be no match for the All Blacks and Crusaders starter, who won the approval of 81 percent of the public.

Taylor will face esteemed England and Saracens hooker Jamie George after the 2017 British and Irish Lions tourist enjoyed a 79 percent winning margin over France and Toulouse youngster Julian Marchand.

The second round of voting is now open, with both George and Marx holding leads over Kiwi duo Coles and Taylor with five hours remaining at the time of writing.

To have your say, click the stories on either the RugbyPass Facebook page (here) or the RugbyPass Instagram page (here).