Key Facts
| Squad | Bath Rugby |
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| Position | Full back |
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| Age | 25 |
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| Height | 1.85m (6'1") |
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| Weight | 87kg (13st 9lb) |
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| Caps | 2 Test appearances |
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Establishing himselfas first-choice full back for Bath after graduating from the club’s academy hasproved just a staging post for Nick Abendanon, the 2010 Churchill Cup Player ofthe Tournament in which he scored tries against Russia and Canada in England’s title win.
An imaginative andelusive runner who is secure beneath the high ball, Nick had marked his Saxons’debut with a try in the 34-5 win over Italy A in February 2007. His first Testopportunity came three months later, just six days after being man of the matchin the Saxons’ 18-3 victory over Scotland A in the Churchill Cup at Twickenham.
After flying to SouthAfrica as a tour replacement, Nick won his first England cap against theSpringboks in Pretoria and his second against France in a RWC warm-up match atTwickenham that August. He was omitted from that RWC squad but still set footon French soil in the final week as a squad replacement for the injured JoshLewsey.
In the end, Nick didnot feature among the match squad for the final against South Africa, but hehas played in four consecutive Churchill Cups (2007-10), starting every matchin Denver in 2009 and Colorado and New Jersey two years ago.
Elsewhere, a try byNick in the final of the 2008 European Challenge Cup helped Bath to beatWorcester Warriors 24-16 and lift their first trophy in ten years. The previousyear he had been the competition's joint leading try-scorer with seven as Bathfinished beaten finalists. By the start of February 2012, he had made 106Premiership appearances for the club and scored 16 tries, including five in2010-11.
Educated at CheltenhamCollege, Nick returned to his native South Africa, where he was born inBryanston, a suburb of Johannesburg, for a short spell in his early teens. Hethen represented England Schools 18 Group and U19 in the 2005 WorldChampionship and U21. His England Sevens debut was in Dubai in December 2006,when he used the opportunity to exhibit his intuitive skills. Two months later,he stepped up to the Saxons and in late January last year took over from thesuspended Delon Armitage in the England Elite Player Squad for the RBS 6Nations Championship.
International Record
2007 SA(2R), F
