TOMMY BOWE, Jamie Heaslip and Keith Earls have been short-listed for the annual Bord Gáis Energy IRUPA Players' Player of the Year award, to be announced at a banquet on on Wednesday, May 12th at Dublin's Burlington Hotel, writes Gerry Thornley. It's unlikely the players' nominations will brook much argument.
Bowe and Heaslip were star performers on the Lions tour and have been two of the few to carry on that form almost uninterrupted this season.
Aside from the all-round quality of his support play, passing and defending, Bowe, who won this award two seasons ago, just can’t stop scoring. He is the leading try scorer in the Heineken Cup with seven in seven games (and has 14 in 20 games all told this season for the Ospreys) as well as four in seven games for Ireland, including three in the Six Nations.
Heaslip, who along with Brian O’Driscoll, Paul O’Connell and John Hayes was one of Ireland’s only four ever-presents this season, has been sensational of late, winning successive man of the match awards in the wins away to Munster and at home to Clermont and the Ospreys.
Earls, another Irish Lion from last summer, has been Ireland’s leading try scorer this season with five in six starts, and despite an initially frustrating spell on the wing and an injury-truncated campaign, has emerged as probably Munster’s most potent strike runner.
IRUPA chief executive Niall Woods said: “Winning an award voted for by players who you play and compete against is the best tribute for any rugby player. These awards celebrate not only those players but also raise much needed monies for the IRUPA Injured Players Fund.”
Among the other awards is the IRUPA Nature Valley Young Player of the Year Award, and the nominations this year feature Earls, fellow Munster man Scott Deasy and Connacht’s Fionn Carr, who is also nominated in the IRUPA Volkswagen Try of the Year category for his try against Leinster in the Magner’s League.
Rugby fans across Ireland can again vote for their Supporters Player of the Year 2010 on Newstalk 106-108fm and be in with a chance to win a year’s supply of Bord Gáis Electricity as well as attending the awards dinner, where IRUPA and O2 will also announce the O2 Team of the Decade, as chosen by the players’ association.
