Chiefs' Sam Simmonds in player-of-year long list

He needs votes

Exeter Chiefs forward Sam Simmonds is in line to be named the best player in Europe for the second time.

Simmonds Major, the elder of the two Chiefs' players, won the EPCR European Player of the Year award two years ago, the year the Chiefs become European champions.

Now he's on the long list for this year's title.

He's scored seven tries in the competition so far this season to become the leading try-scorer after the pool stages.

The other nominees are below. But to make Sam Simmonds the player of the European season he needs votes at this stage through this link: https://www.epcrugby.com/epoty

There's a change to win a signed rugby ball and a signed jersey from one of the Heineken Champions Cup finalist clubs.

The list will be reduced to five players in May, following the Heineken Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup semi-finals, by a combination of the public vote and the verdict of the judging panel, and players who have not been included in the initial longlist, but who make a significant impact during the knockout stages, may be considered for the shortlist.

The voting will then re-open and the winner of the 2022 award will be announced following the Heineken Champions Cup final in Marseille on Saturday, 28 May.

The EPCR European Player of the Year 2022 nominees are:

Grégory ALLDRITT (Stade Rochelais)

Alex DOMBRANDT (Harlequins)

Caelan DORIS (Leinster Rugby)

Antoine DUPONT (Stade Toulousain)

Gaël FICKOU (Racing 92)

George FORD (Leicester Tigers)

Michael LOWRY (Ulster Rugby)

Jimmy O'BRIEN (Leinster Rugby)

Jack O'DONOGHUE (Munster Rugby)

Damian PENAUD (ASM Clermont Auvergne)

Semi RADRADRA (Bristol Bears)

Sam SIMMONDS (Exeter Chiefs)

Marcus SMITH (Harlequins)

Josh VAN DER FLIER (Leinster Rugby)

Cameron WOKI (Union Bordeaux-Bègles)

The judging panel is Erik Bonneval (beIN SPORTS), Bryan Habana (two-time Heineken Champions Cup winner), Lee McKenzie (Channel 4), Alan Quinlan (Virgin Media), Dimitri Yachvili (France Télévisions)