Nick Abendanon© Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images

The latest Monday Maul looks at Nick Abendanon's claims for a spot in the England World Cup squad after a momentous performance on Saturday and also gives its take on the resurgent Challenge Cup.

A special circumstance

One of the first times we saw Nick Abendanon's twizzling finger to the cheek celebration was during his hat-trick for Bath against Bristol in March 2007. The 2007 Six Nations that had just been and gone saw Brian Ashton pick four different fullbacks out of England's five matches. Olly Morgan, Iain Balshaw, Josh Lewsey and Mark Cueto all started in the No.15 jersey. There was indecision, a door ajar for someone to clutch the shirt.

With Jason Robinson battling back from injury, as the 2007 World Cup ticked ever closer, Abendanon was one of the incumbents. His debut came from the bench on their ill-fated tour of South Africa where they got walloped back-to-back by the Springboks and then he was given his chance from the outset against France in one of their three World Cup warm-ups. A steamrolling from Sebastien Chabal and Abendanon's World Cup experience was limited to being called in as last-minute injury replacement for Josh Lewsey ahead of the final. His role was restricted to strolling around the Stade de France pitch at the end, complete with England tracksuit, having not played a single minute after Dan Hipkiss took the final spot on the bench.

The match against France was his last outing at Test level for England. Saxons opportunities came and went, along with the odd drive across to Pennyhill Park when called into a training squad, but Martin Johnson and then Stuart Lancaster preferred different options at fullback.

Frustration led to a thirst for a new challenge. Bath had mastered the act of being nearly men and when Clermont Auvergne came calling as they sought out a replacement for Lee Byrne ahead of the 2014-15 campaign, Abendanon moved from Bath to Montferrand.

On Saturday in Clermont's Champions Cup quarter-final against Northampton we saw the twizzling finger in the cheek celebration again; it is a gesture to his family in Bath and South Africa referring to the game spoof. The smile was the same but the international claim different.

As we approach the World Cup eight years on from his last sojourn in an England shirt, there is a man whose fullback jersey it is to lose - Mike Brown. But World Cups do strange things to the natural order of things. To date the individual dominating talk of Lancaster applying the 'special circumstances' option to pick those based overseas is Toulon's Steffon Armitage. His brother Delon has also been mentioned.

Following another impressive weekend for the exiled England trio, World Cup-winning coach Sir Clive Woodward and ex-England captain Will Carling both put it to their myriads of Twitter followers that it was time to involve Abendanon, Delon and Steffon Armitage in the England squad. Iain Balshaw, who is no stranger to the art of fullback play having won 35 caps for England, also provided his take saying:

Lancaster may now be caught in a Faustian dilemma. On one side will be the angel telling him to stick to his guns, keep the faith in those who have served him well and not bow to the temptation of going back on his principles and picking those in the Top 14. One breach of the sea wall could have implications on players' contracts in the future if they see a precedent being set of England bringing those in from the cold when the mood suits. The dam could break.

But then there will devil on his shoulder - perhaps with a semblance of Woodward - tempting him to bring in Abandanon and the Armitages. One option would be to roll the dice and bring one or two of the trio into the World Cup training squad to ascertain whether they are exceptional circumstances. That may have an adverse effect on morale if a figure like Alex Goode, who you would expect could get a lucrative deal in France if tempted, saw Abendanon trotting into England training, complete with a yellow and blue tracksuit.

Abendanon said post-match he is yet to hear from Lancaster. The exile seems to be permanent but there is a caveat. If he hears he could be back in the Test frame if he upped sticks and moved his life back over the Channel for the second time in a year then he consider it. There is a feeling of unfinished business.

Lancaster's stance so far has been admirable, but picture this. England are six points down in the final 10 minutes of the World Cup final. Both teams are tiring and an injection of pace and impact could prove to be the difference between being bridesmaids and lifting 'Old Bill'. Brown and Chris Robshaw are looking exhausted but sitting on the bench are Abendanon and Steffon Armitage, potential game changers. Will Lancaster want to live with those horrible what-ifs if he finds himself in that situation? Only he knows.

Challenge Cup regains face

It was the weekend that potentially saved the Challenge Cup. During the week a wonderful article claimed it was running the risk of becoming rugby's version of football's Johnstone Paint Trophy, a third-rate competition. The pool stages did little to persuade otherwise.

But the quarter-finals were enthralling. Friday night's game saw a young Connacht side, complete with the wonderful Robbie Henshaw, nearly upturn the Gloucester applecart and the first match on Saturday was a belting Welsh derby between the Dragons and Blues. Later we saw another commanding performance from Henry Slade and a super try from Thomas Waldrom as Exeter thrashed Newcastle and then on Sunday, when Edinburgh travelled to London Irish, it came down to the last play of the game to determine who would be in the final four. In the end, David Paice was held up as he charged over for what he thought would be a match-winning score and it was Edinburgh who travelled north knowing they had a home semi-final to look forward to. It was the weekend the tournament needed, badly.