Heaslip named Leinster Player of the Year

Jamie Heaslip has been named the Bank of Ireland Leinster Player of the Year at the annual awards ceremony in the Burlington Hotel, Dublin on Friday evening.

The number eight has played a pivotal role in Leinster’s Magners League and Heineken Cup campaigns, making 18 appearances for the province this season to date.

Heaslip will be a vital player for head coach Michael Cheika against the Ospreys in the Magners League final on Saturday, 29 June.

The 26-year-old Ireland international commented on the great honour of receiving such a prestigious award.

“It is a huge honour to receive this award and I’d like to thank Bank of Ireland for their generosity. I don’t think I’ve ever received an award of this stature before on an individual basis and I wouldn’t like to take too much credit because I couldn’t have achieved this without my team-mates and coaches.”

Heaslip continued by speaking of the Magners League final battle which the squad faces next weekend.

“We have a huge test coming up next weekend against the Ospreys and it will be another massive battle up front. They have an array of talent out wide so we will have to up our levels again next week. There’s no sense of our season being complete even though we were pleased to beat Munster in the semi final. While it’s humbling and I’m extremely grateful to receive this award, I hope that it won’t be the last one for this season.”