Rey Lee-Lo was rewarded for yet another fine season for Cardiff Blues as he was named in the Guinness PRO14 2018-19 dream team.
The line-up was revealed on Premier Sports and eir sport after a media vote determined the best performing players from the current campaign.
Josh Turnbull, Willis Halaholo and Matthew Morgan were also nominated but only Lee-Lo made the final cut.
In total, 11 clubs are represented in a XV where competition in the voting was incredibly close, and only a handful of positions were selected with a clear majority.
Edinburgh, Munster, Connacht and Ulster were the only teams with more than one player in the Dream Team which includes the Guinness Players’ Player of the Season – Bill Mata of Edinburgh.
Rabz Maxwane of the Toyota Cheetahs is another award winner included, the Toyota Cheetahs winger scored a record-equaling 14 tries in the Guinness PRO14 season – nine of them scored away from home – and was voted in as the left wing.
Only three players from last season’s Guinness PRO14 Dream Team have been selected with the second row pairing of Tadhg Beirne (Munster) and Scott Vardy (Leinster) getting the nod while John Cooney’s impressive performances at Ulster have kept him in the No 9 shirt.
The team was revealed on a TV Special aired by Premier Sports and eir sport on Thursday night (May 23) where Rory Lawson, Sean Holley, Luke Fitzgerald and Murray Kinsella dissected and debated about who deserved their places and who was unlucky to miss out.
Guinness PRO14 Dream Team 2018/19
FORWARDS
- Pierre Schoeman (Edinburgh)
- Ken Owens (Scarlets)
- Zander Fagerson (Glasgow Warriors)
- Tadhg Beirne (Munster)
- Scott Fardy (Leinster)
- Peter O’Mahony (Munster)
- Colby Fainga’a (Connacht)
- Bill Mata (Edinburgh)
BACKS
- John Cooney (Ulster)
- Jack Carty (Connacht)
- Rabz Maxwane (Toyota Cheetahs)
- Stuart McCloskey (Ulster)
- Rey Lee-Lo (Cardiff Blues)
- Monty Ioane (Benetton Rugby)
- Dan Evans (Ospreys)
Please note: To be eligible for selection players had to appear in a minimum of Guinness PRO14 games. A media panel of over 75 including former players and coaches from across Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa and Wales were invited to vote for the Dream Team.