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Nick Abendanon

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Nick Abendanon
Nick Abendanon playing for Bath against Leicester
Birth nameNicholas Abendanon
Date of birth (1986-08-27) 27 August 1986 (age 38)
Place of birthBryanston, South Africa
Height1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Weight87 kg (13 st 10 lb) [1]
SchoolBeaudesert Park School
Cheltenham College
Rugby union career
Position(s) Fullback / wing
Senior career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2005–2014 Bath Rugby 207 (193)
2014–2020 Clermont Auvergne 95 (105)
2020–2023 Vannes 41 (50)
Correct as of 18 October 2023
International career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2007 England 2 (0)
National sevens team
Years Team Comps
2006 England

Nick Abendanon (born 27 August 1986 in Bryanston, South Africa) is a former England international rugby union player. His preferred position was full-back. He has Dutch nationality through his parents.[2]

Abendanon started playing during the 2006–07 season, scoring 10 tries in 24 first-team appearances for Bath. A strong tackler, balanced runner and dangerous counter-attacker, he firmly established himself as Bath's first-choice full-back in the post-Matt Perry era.

His form that season earned him a first England cap in South Africa – the country of his birth – in June 2007. He was capped again against France in August 2007, but narrowly missed out on a place in England's 30-man squad for the 2007 Rugby World Cup. However, he did eventually travel to France as cover for the final after an injury to Josh Lewsey.[3]

Some fine performances during the 2008–09 season were rewarded with a call-up for the England Saxons squad for the 2009 Churchill Cup in the United States.

Retaining his place in the squad, Abendanon was part of the England Saxons victory of the 2010 Churchill Cup and his impressive performances resulted in him being named Player of the Tournament.

Entering the 2010–11 season Abendanon continued his good form. Although he lost his place for a month to Jack Cuthbert due to a niggling injury which limited him to impact appearances of the bench, Abendanon was promoted to the England Elite squad as replacement for the banned Delon Armitage.[4] This promotion put him in contention to feature during the 2011 Six Nations which some pundits believed he deserved for his improvement over the previous year.[5]

After eight years with Bath, on 3 February 2014, Abendanon signed for French giants Clermont Auvergne, playing in the Top 14 from the 2014–15 season.[6] On 12 June 2020, Abendanon joined Pro D2 outfit Vannes on a two-year deal from the 2020–21 season.[7]

Abendanon confirmed his retirement from international rugby on 28 October 2021 via Instagram.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Aviva Premiership Rugby - Bath Rugby". web page. Premier Rugby. Archived from the original on 16 June 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
  2. ^ "Nick Abendanon: An eager Englishman abroad". independent.co.uk. Archived from the original on 19 June 2022.
  3. ^ Hooper, Andy (15 October 2007). "England call up Abendanon for World Cup final". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
  4. ^ Davidson, Dave (25 January 2011). "Bath's Nick Abendanon targets England call-up after joining elite squad". Somerset Guardian. Retrieved 2 February 2011.
  5. ^ Bradshaw, Tom (27 January 2011). "Bendy's on the straight and narrow". The Bath Chronicle. Retrieved 2 February 2011.
  6. ^ "Former England fullback Nick Abendanon signs for Clermont Auvergne". ESPN scrum. 3 February 2014. Retrieved 10 December 2014.
  7. ^ "Ex-England full-back Abendanon in retirement U-turn to join Vannes". France 24. 12 July 2020. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
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