JONES VOTED TOP FLY-HALF
The Clermont Auvergne general bagged the most votes in an end-of-season poll by influential newspaper Midi Olympique, beating the likes of French internationals Frederic Michalak, Julien Peyrelongue and David Skrela to the title.
Jones, nicknamed the “Red Devil” by the French rugby press, was the third highest points-scorer in the French Championship, despite an under-performing Clermont side finishing mid-table and only just scraping into next season’s Heineken Cup tournament.
“The ‘Red Devil’ is on top of his game,” the newspaper enthused about the British Lions Test fly-half. “And it’s not just his kicking – everything he did last season was perfect.
“He is a great organiser and a great defender. When he arrived, there was a question mark over his defence because we didn’t know much about him, but he has proven to be up there with the best.”
This is the first time a non-Frenchman has won the prestigious award in his first season in France, and Midi Olympique said 27-year-old Jones’ achievement was remarkable considering Clermont didn’t play in the Heineken Cup or reach the semi-finals of the French Championship.
“Even when Clermont went through an awful patch at the start of the season, Jones was superb,” the paper said. “He dragged the other players up to his level and Clermont qualified for next season’s Heineken Cup because of him.
“He was a leader from the first game to the last. He is always smiling, but he is always concentrating on his game.”
Jones’s heroics in the season-defining match against Agen in May also got a mention. “The match had the suspense of a Hitchcock movie and it was that man Jones who kicked Clermont to a thrilling victory to ensure Heineken Cup qualification.”
