Armitage, Vunipola, Heaslip, Lee and Abendanon contenders for award
Wednesday 22 April 2015 21:04, UK
Two England exiles - Steffon Armitage and Nick Abendanon - have been named on a five-man shortlist for the 2015 European Player of the Year.
Armitage, 29, who won the award last year, looks set to miss out on selection for the World Cup due to the RFU continuing with their policy of not selecting overseas-based players for Test duty.
However, his impressive performances at club level which included a hat-trick of tries in the fifth round of the Champions Cup and the leading number of turnovers with 19, means he is in line to win the award for a second consecutive season.
Fellow Englishmen Billy Vunipola of Saracens is also nominated alongside Leinster captain Jamie Heaslip plus Clermont duo Fritz Lee and England's forgotten man, Abendanon.
Full-back Abendanon has been a key figure for Clermont in both attack and defence but the 28-year-old's chances of adding to his two England caps at the World Cup seem set, like those of Armitage, to be thwarted by the RFU's eligibility rules.
Lee, a No 8, had a central role in some of Clermont's best performances this season while Heaslip, a veteran of 72 Tests for Ireland, was ever-present in Leinster's run to the semi-finals where the Irish province almost upset Toulon's dreams of a third successive European crown.
Vunipola was nominated after a series of hard-charging displays for Saracens, the England international having established himself as the London club's 'go-to' ball-carrier at the age of just 22.
In addition to a five-man judging panel made up of rugby journalists and broadcasters, the 40 clubs in the Champions Cup and second-tier European Challenge Cup will have the opportunity to vote for the shortlisted contenders.
Meanwhile, fans can also have their say on Twitter using #EPCRPlayer2015 and on the tournament Facebook pages.
The winner will be announced after the Champions Cup final.
2015 European Player of the Year shortlist:
Nick Abendanon (Clermont)
Steffon Armitage (Toulon)
Jamie Heaslip (Leinster)
Fritz Lee (Clermont)
Billy Vunipola (Saracens)
