The United Rugby Championship (URC) regular season concluded over the weekend with a thrilling couple of days of action.
The results see Leinster, Bulls, Sharks and Glasgow Warriors finish in the top four positions and will host Scarlets, Edinburgh, Munster and the Stormers, respectively in the quarter-finals.
Without further ado, here is our team of the week.
URC Team of the Week
15 Aphelele Fassi (Sharks): There were a handful of strong candidates, including Munster’s Thaakir Abrahams, Leinster’s Hugo Keenan, Stormers’ Damian Willemse and Benetton’s Rhyno Smith, but Fassi gets the nod after a match-winning performance against the Scarlets. He shifted into the fly-half jersey in the second half and nailed three important kicks for the side while being solid in the backfield.
14 Suleiman Hartzenberg (Stormers): Again, no shortage of options and frankly, Leinster’s Tommy O’Brien and Edinburgh’s Darcy Graham are incredibly unlucky to miss out. But Springboks hopeful Hartzenberg was outstanding in his 50th appearance for the Stormers, where he scored two tries. A slippery customer, Hartzenberg beat seven defenders and gained 114 metres. An outstanding shift from the 21-year-old.
13 Tom Farrell (Munster): Yet another standout shift from the Munster midfielder who has had a brilliant first season a the club. He shone against the world-class centre pairing of Juan Ignacio Brex and Tommaso Menoncello. He beats the ever-impressive Henco van Wyk of the Lions and Jude Postlethwaite, who impressed for Ulster in their disappointing defeat.
12 Andre Esterhuizen (Sharks): The Springboks powerhouse was a driving force in a dour URC match in Durban. He regularly got over the advantage line for the Sharks and was strong defensively. Leinster’s Jordie Barrett shone again while Bulls’ David Kriel and Connacht’s Bundee Aki just missed out.
11 Leolin Zas (Stormers): He finished the season as the joint-top scorer in the URC along with Harri Millard and Farrell after grabbing two tries against Cardiff. It was another standout performance from the lethal finisher. Bulls star Sergeal Petersen made a good fist of knocking Zas out of the team with his brace against the Dragons, as did Lions speedster Edwill van der Merwe.
10 JJ Hanrahan (Connacht): Put in a Man of the Match performance in his last outing for the club before he returns to Munster. He scored seven points from the tee and assisted a try in a hard-fought victory over Zebre. Meanwhile, Manie Libbok was superb on his return from injury, and after his excellent 55 minutes, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu steered the Stormers over the line, setting up a try for Connor Evans before slotting a penalty to end Cardiff’s season. Lions rookie Lubabalo Dubela scored the match-winning try against the Ospreys, capping off a super shift. Jack Crowley is unlucky to miss out after his double against Benetton.
9 Craig Casey (Munster): Another Man of the Match performer cracks our team after the livewire Irishman steered Munster to a 30-21 victory over Benetton. He expertly converted two shots at goal after taking over the kicking duties from Crowley and also assisted a try. Bath-bound Bernard van der Linde was sensational off the bench for the Bulls, making a stunning break in the build-up to Marcell Coetzee’s try and claimed two try assists too.
Bulls loosies dominate
8 Magnus Bradbury (Edinburgh): We were spoilt for choice in the back-row with Bulls youngster Cameron Hanekom shining once again while Ospreys’ Morgan Morse was immense against the Lions. Leinster’s Jack Conan was combative against Glasgow Warriors, but Bradbury’s Man of the Match shift against Ulster was hard to ignore. It was an all-action 80-minute performance scoring two tries, racking up 13 carries and 15 tackles.
7 Ruan Nortje (Bulls): There were several standout blindside flankers in the URC this weekend, with Leinster’s Ryan Baird and Connacht’s Cian Prendergast both having outstanding games against Glasgow and Zebre, respectively. However, Springboks forward Nortje was sublime, racking up 12 tackles and a turnover. He ran the Bulls’ lineout brilliantly too and played a starring role in the build-up to Coetzee’s try. He was taken off in the latter stages of the match as Jake White tested how his side would fare being a man short.
6 Nama Xaba (Bulls): Just his second start of the year, and the flanker did not disappoint with a brutally effective 80 minutes at the breakdown and made 11 tackles and 14 carries. He was named Man of the Match for his efforts, as was Lions flanker JC Pretorius, while Hamish Watson is pressing for a Scotland recall after a powerful shift against Ulster. On the opposite side of the pitch, Ulster’s Nick Timoney was as excellent as ever.
Tight five
5 Izan Esterhuizen (Lions): When Ruan Venter was forced off the pitch, Esterhuizen was called upon and the 24-year-old put in a mammoth shift, topping the tackle count in the match, racking up 20 in total without missing. He was also a great lineout option and narrowly beat Scarlets star Sam Lousi to a spot in our team.
4 Eben Etzebeth (Sharks): Fans and pundits feared the worst when the Springboks great was carted off the pitch last time out, but he showed no sign of injury against the Scarlets. He was up to his usual tricks as he hassled and hurried the Welsh half-backs, while he was a real force at the lineout and on defence.
3 Thomas Clarkson (Leinster): The Irish tighthead played a full 80 minutes against Glasgow, with Leinster getting the upper hand at scrum time. He made 10 tackles and won a turnover. Stormers prop Neethling Fouche shone on Friday evening while Hanro Jacobs was impactful off the bench for the Sharks.
2 Akker van der Merwe (Bulls): The angry warthog grabbed two tries in a livewire display, which included an accurate set-piece performance. Glasgow’s Seb Stephen shone against Leinster, while Lewis Morgan deserves a shout after making his debut for an injury-hit Dragons outfit. The semi-pro hooker was flown out to South Africa last minute to provide cover for the club and came off the bench to score a try against the Bulls.
1 Pierre Schoeman (Edinburgh): A statement performance from the British and Irish Lions squad member who dominated in the scrums against Ulster and scored two tries in a powerful display that included 13 tackles, a turnover and eight carries. Fellow Lion, Andrew Porter, was similarly excellent for Leinster while Jan-Hendrik Wessels continued his stellar form for the Bulls.
Src: Planetrugby.com - https://www.planetrugby.com/news/urc-team-of-the-week-eben-etzebeth-rubbishes-injury-concerns-while-irish-livewire-steers-munster-to-clutch-victory
