England fullback Brown voted player of the Six Nations

LONDON (Reuters) - England fullback Mike Brown was voted the player of the Six Nations championship on Friday after a series of effervescent performances that helped light up England's backline play. Brown had a superb tournament in defence and attack having finally nailed down the number 15 shirt, helping England to a second-placed finish behind Ireland. He scored four tries and, according the tournament's official statistics, also had 65 carries, beat 25 defenders, gained 540 metres and did not concede a penalty. More than 68,000 rugby fans took part in the poll and Brown received over 34 percent of the votes. "I'd like to say a massive thank you to everyone who voted for me, I'm extremely grateful and proud to win this award, particularly as it's decided by the supporters," Brown said in a statement. "It was disappointing not to win the tournament overall but congratulations to Ireland, and I'm sure we'll come back stronger next season. "Finally a big thank you to all my team mates, backroom staff, and coaches for all the help they've given me through the tournament. I couldn't perform on the field without them and it's great to have that support." Ireland centre Brian O'Driscoll came second with 28 percent of the vote, a return no doubt bolstered by the emotion of his international retirement. Fellow Irishman Andrew Trimble was third with 10 percent of votes. (Reporting by Mitch Phillips, Editing by Ed Osmond)