Zebo and Best in frame for top award

Munster sensation Simon Zebo, inset, and Ulster’s Rory Best are the only Irish players in contention for the ERC European Player of the Year Award.

The search to select a successor to Leinster’s Rob Kearney for the accolade was based on performances during the pool stages of the Heineken Cup and the Amlin Challenge Cup.

Fifteen players are in the hunt for the honour but that list will be reduced to five after the semi-finals at the end of April. The Player of the Year will be selected after the finals weekend in May.