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Tait nominated for IRB Sevens Player of the Year
Tuesday 5th September 2006
The International Rugby Board have today announced that Mathew Tait (Newcastle Falcons) has been nominated for the award of IRB Sevens Player of the Year. Tait is nominated alongside Stefan Basson (South Africa) and Uale Mai (Samoa). The winner will be announced at the IRB Awards dinner on 26th November.
Speaking on his nomination Mathew said, "I am thrilled with the IRB nomination. I really enjoyed my time with the England Sevens squad last year and experienced some unforgettable times. It was a season of highs with the wins in Dubai, LA and then the record fourth win in Hong Kong, but also some disappointing times, especially not winning gold at the Commonwealth Games in March. Playing international sevens is incredibly tough but it helped me enormously in terms of improving my confidence on and off the pitch, as well as getting me pretty fit! And I did get a Commonwealth silver medal out of it which is something I will always treasure.
There are some awesome players on the IRB Sevens circuit and it is really an honour to even be nominated. Steffan Basson and Uale Mai are both incredible sevens players so we will just have to wait and see when the decision is made!"
England Sevens Coach Mike Friday said, "Mat is a fantastic talent and really lit up the sevens circuit last year. He was a vital member of the squad and really benefited from his sevens experience. He was outstanding on so many occasions during the season and could always be relied upon to go that extra inch when we needed it most. The nomination is recognition of his contribution to the squad and I am delighted for him. He is a great illustration of the success of sevens as part of England's elite player pathway, and I look forward to watching the next stage of his career as he progresses from the sevens squad and hopefully establishes himself in the senior England team."
Should Mathew be successful in winning the award he will be the second England player to receive the award since it was introduced by the IRB three years ago. Captain Simon Amor was the inaugural winner of the award in 2004. |
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