Courtney Lawes, Marcus Smith and Fin Smith nominated for Investec Champions Cup Player of the Year award

England internationals Courtney Lawes, Fin Smith and Marcus Smith have all been nominated for the Investec Champions Cup player of the year award.

Lawes has been recognised for supreme consistency with Northampton Saints, who he will end his 17-year spell with to join French side CA Brive.

The 35-year-old has played an integral role in Saints' run to the semi-finals, where they face Irish side Leinster on May 4.

His Northampton team-mate Fin Smith is also included on the list of nominees after producing several stand-out displays in Saints' pursuit of domestic and European glory.

Smith's namesake Marcus has also been recognised for his exploits with Harlequins, as they prepare for a last-four match against Toulouse on May 5.

If any of the trio manage to scoop the prestigious individual honour, then they will become the first Englishman to win the award since Sam Simmonds in 2020 during his time with Exeter Chiefs.

Leinster have four players in contention for the award, with Caelan Doris, Jamison Gibson-Park, James Lowe and Dan Sheehan on the list.

Meanwhile, 2021 winner and France scrum-half Antoine Dupont is also listed among the nominees following impressive displays for Toulouse.

TNT Sports pundit and 2003 England World Cup winner Lawrence Dallaglio has waxed lyrical about Dupont, describing him as "the best player on the planet."

"There's no bigger name in the world than Antoine Dupont at the moment," Dallaglio said on TNT Sports ahead of last weekend's quarter-finals. "He's the poster-boy of French rugby and of Toulouse, and with very good reason.

"Everyone who is asked about him...just saying he's the best player on the planet at the moment, and he is because he brings so much to every single game whether he's playing at home for Toulouse, playing away or in the national team.

"Dupont absolutely, both sides of the ball whether it's in defence or attack, he affects the outcome of matches by either scoring tries, setting up tries, beating defenders.

"He's literally been player of every tournament he's been involved in so far."

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