Another nomination for Simmonds
By Mark Stevens
3/5/18
A busy of week of nomination for seasonal awards shows no sign of abating for Sam Simmonds after he was today named as of of five of the brightest young Aviva Premiership Rugby stars named on the shortlist for this season’s Land Rover Discovery of the Season award.
The Exeter Chiefs and England star, who is already in the running for the RPA’s Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year awards, will battle it out alongside rivals from Gloucester Rugby, Wasps and Worcester Warriors, all of whom have emerged in the race to be recognised as the most impressive young player in Aviva Premiership Rugby.
The full Land Rover Discovery of the Season shortlist is:
- Ruan Ackermann – Gloucester Rugby
- Josh Adams – Worcester Warriors
- Jake Polledri – Gloucester Rugby
- Sam Simmonds – Exeter Chiefs
- Jack Willis – Wasps
“This year’s shortlist shows the quality of players coming through the ranks for their Premiership Rugby clubs,” said David Flatman, Land Rover Ambassador and one of the judges for this season’s award.
“The long list of players was an impressive one and it was a tough job to pick the shortlist with all of the nominees catching the eyes of rugby fans all season, and showing themselves to be class acts and deserving of this nomination.
“It’s no coincidence that the majority of previous winners have gone on to represent their country; testament not just to their clubs but the players themselves, and this year’s list is the same.”
Players aged under-23 on 1 September 2017, and to have featured in eight or more Aviva Premiership Rugby games, are eligible to win Land Rover Discovery of the Season.
The shortlist was compiled by the following panel – David Flatman (Land Rover Ambassador), Tom Hamilton (EPSN Scrum), Sonja McLaughlan (BBC), Nick Purewal (Press Association), Gavin Mairs (Telegraph), Alex Lowe (The Times) and Jonny Fordham (The Sun), while Paul Morgan (Premiership Rugby’s Communications Director) chaired the panel.
To celebrate the winning player’s achievement, the Land Rover Discovery of the Season Award winner will have the opportunity to become a Land Rover Ambassador for the 2017-18 season.
Past winners include Ellis Genge, Maro Itoje, Henry Slade, Billy Vunipola, Joe Launchbury, Owen Farrell, Manu Tuilagi, Ben Youngs, Jordan Turner-Hall, Danny Cipriani, Tom Rees, Tom Varndell and Ollie Smith.
The winner will rub shoulders with the biggest names in English rugby at a glittering ceremony at the Royal Lancaster Hotel on Wednesday, 16 May.
Along with the winner of the Land Rover Discovery of the Season, the winners of the following awards will also be announced:
- Aviva Premiership Rugby Player of the Season
- Aviva Community Player of the Season
- BT Sport Dream Team
- Citizen Try of the Season
- Gilbert Golden Boot
- Ricoh Director of Rugby of the Season
- Singha Premiership Rugby 7s Player of the Season
- Top Try Scorer of the Season
The winners at the Aviva Premiership Rugby Awards will be announced first on Twitter via the @premrugby account. Use hashtag #AvivaPremAwards to join the conversation.