Following another enthralling weekend of United Rugby Championship (URC) action, here is the Planet Rugby Team of the Week for Round 12.
Edinburgh lead the way with four representatives after their outstanding performance in the victory over Munster on Friday, while the Lions are next best after their dominant victory against the Sharks in Johannesburg.
Team of the Week
15 Huw Anderson (Dragons): Although Jack Walsh was the Ospreys’ match-winner, the Dragons full-back once again showed his immense talent despite their defeat to Zebre Parma. It has been another depressing season for fans of the Welsh region, but Anderson has been a real bright spark and he was in fine form on Friday, leading the way for metres made and defenders beaten, while he also chipped in with a try assist.
14 Matt Currie (Edinburgh): There were some fine performances in the Connacht v Benetton clash as Shayne Bolton and Ignacio Mendy shone for their respective sides, but Currie’s inclusion was an easy decision. Usually a centre, the 24-year-old may find himself out wide more often after his hat-trick showing against Munster. He also grabbed an assist as the Scottish outfit claimed a stunning triumph.
13 Manny Rass (Lions): No Henco van Wyk, no problem for the Johannesburg-based outfit on Saturday. Rass was magnificent for the Lions, carrying really well and linking play nicely in attack, while he was also very solid in defence, making 13 hits. Hugh Gavin displayed his talent in Connacht’s victory, but he could not displace the Lions centre.
Fighting a lone battle
12 Alex Nankivell (Munster): Basically carried his team on his own. Munster fans were certainly not happy, with “unacceptable” and “embarrassing” two words which were regularly used online, but Nankivell rightly escaped criticism. On his return from injury, the New Zealand-born centre was superb, scoring twice, making breaks and winning turnovers. In a competitive weekend, where Cathal Forde (Connacht), Charlie Tector (Leinster) and Keiran Williams (Ospreys) all impressed, the Munsterman deserves his selection.
11 Edwill van der Merwe (Lions): What is it about South Africa and scrum-capped wings. Not only does Van der Merwe have remarkable attacking qualities, he is also superb in defence and was utterly relentless when the Sharks had the ball as he took the spot from Connacht’s Finn Treacy. Van der Merwe, who was an absolute beast on Saturday, is just unfortunate that the Springboks have two players by the name of Cheslin Kolbe and Kurt-Lee Arendse out wide.
10 Jurie Matthee (Stormers): There were some good displays by the Ospreys’ Dan Edwards, Ross Byrne of Leinster and the Lions’ Gianni Lombard, but Matthee was the best of the lot. The 24-year-old is behind Manie Libbok and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu in the pecking order but, with those two injured, the fly-half needed to step up and he did on Saturday as the Stormers claimed a huge victory over the Bulls.
9 Kieran Hardy (Ospreys): Reminded everyone of his quality with a two-try showing in the Welsh region’s victory over Glasgow Warriors on Saturday. Morne van den Berg and Luke McGrath were excellent for the Lions and Leinster respectively, but Hardy put in a superb effort as they overcame the Warriors.
Young powerhouses
8 James McNabney (Ulster): Perhaps tough on Evan Roos, who was exceptional for the Stormers, while the Ospreys’ Morgan Morse showed his promise, but McNabney led the charge in Ulster’s success. The young number eight is a massive unit and tremendous athlete, and he constantly made the hard yards in the tighter exchanges. Was deservedly awarded player of the match.
7 Ben Muncaster (Edinburgh): Another young back-rower who has shone for his side this season. Muncaster made his return from the injury that put pay to his Six Nations hopes – for the first three rounds at least – and impressed as they overcame Munster. Dynamic, physical and strong on defence, he takes the position from the Lions livewire JC Pretorius.
6 Alessandro Izekor (Benetton): A fine effort in defeat from the gifted Italian. Izekor was a ubiquitous presence on both sides of the ball but particularly shone with his athleticism in the loose as he constantly made ground when in possession. The back-rower also easily topped the tackle count in defence, making a superb 24 hits against Connacht – a remarkable nine more than any other player in that game.
5 Sam Lousi (Scarlets): Put in an almighty shift for the Welsh region. Did everything in his power in Belfast, but ultimately he couldn’t quite take the Scarlets to a victory over Ulster. Lousi was one of their top carriers and tacklers while he also helped in the set-piece to lay a stable platform for the Llanelli outfit.
4 Marshall Sykes (Edinburgh): Not one of Edinburgh’s players to produce the match-defining moments, such as Currie and Muncaster, but the lock put in a mammoth shift in the coalface on Friday. The lock made a match-high 25 tackles, put immense pressure on the Munster lineout and also won a couple on their own throw.
Mighty scrummaging
3 Wilco Louw (Bulls): His appearance in this side seems to be a weekly occurrence as that Bulls scrum continues to motor forward. There were some fine efforts from Asenathi Ntlabakanye (Lions), Paul Hill (Edinburgh) and Rabah Slimani (Leinster), but Louw was once again utterly dominant in the set-piece, which will no doubt impress Rassie Erasmus.
2 PJ Botha (Lions): The backs are generally the shining light in the Lions team but they can’t get the scores without the work of their forwards and Botha was among their best performers in the victory over the Sharks. He had competition from the Bulls’ Johan Grobbelaar, but the 27-year-old had a fine all-round match.
1 Boan Venter (Edinburgh): Usually Louw would be joined by his front-row colleague, Gerhard Steenekamp, and to be honest he was very close, but it took an incredible individual display from Venter to displace him. The loosehead was absolutely key to Edinburgh’s victory as he won several penalties in the scrum. Steenekamp, Thomas Gallo (Benetton) and Jack Boyle (Leinster) were next best.
Src: Planetrugby.com - https://www.planetrugby.com/news/urc-team-of-the-week-springboks-beast-shines-as-returning-star-fights-lone-battle-for-unacceptable-munster
