PRO14 Round One Team of the Week

PRO14 Round One Team of the Week

With dust settling on the opening round of the PRO14 we picked out Team of the Week. 

1. Dave Kilcoyne - Munster Rugby

A solid performance at scrum time was an integral part of a Munster pack that dominated up front and gave brilliant service for their backs.

Kilcoyne weighed-in with 13 carries making 21 running metres and was rewarded with a try. 

He beats off Ox Nche and Peter Dooley among others for a place in the side.


2. Bryan Byrne - Leinster Rugby

A game changer off the bench for Leinster as he pitched in with two tries.


The first of which was at the back of a powerful rolling maul, while he cleverly scored the second - the match winner - off the base of the post.

Scott Otten and George Turner came close to making the cut but fall just short to the Leinster man. 


3. Tom Botha - Ospreys 

Ospreys' new signing Tom Botha had a relatively successful debut as he dealt with fellow South African Pierre Schoeman at scrum time.

He also weighed in with 11 tackles for his side and just beats the likes of Finlay Bealham and Zander Fagerson to a place in the side.

4. David Bulbring - Scarlets

The second row was a hotly contested position with Seb Davies and Alessandro Zanni very unlucky not to make the cut.

Bulbring's 20 tackles sees him claim a place in the side despite Scarlets going down to Ulster in their opening match of the season.

5. Jonny Gray - Glasgow Warriors

Gray marshalled the Glasgow lineout which functioned like a well-oiled machine. The big second row also managed to secure two turnover penalties at the breakdown and carried powerfully when given the opportunity.
 
Famous for his tackling statistics, Gray completed a game-high of 20 and always offered himself as a willing ball carrier.

Veterans Alun-Wyn Jones and Billy Holland also put in handy shifts this weekend.

6. Jarrad Butler - Connacht Rugby

The new Connacht captain was all over the place against Glasgow this weekend and snatches a place in the side despite his side going down to a late Hogg drop goal.

62 running metres from 11 tackles, beating 6 defenders shows how lethal he was on attack while he made 15 tackles and two turnovers as well. 

Munster's Dave O'Callaghan had a strong game against the Cheetahs while Marcell Coetzee had a busy 54 minutes following his lengthy injury layoff. 

7. Rhys Ruddock - Leinster Rugby

Another hotly contested position this weekend with Aaron Wainwright, Ellis Jenkins and Justin Tipuric all having fine performances in the opening round of the season.

Ruddock cracks the nod after an impressive all-round performance against Cardiff.

13 tackles without missing one, 17 carries and two turnovers capped off a stellar performance by the 27-year-old.

8. Arno Botha - Munster Rugby

Botha hit double digits in both the carrying and tackling departments against the Cheetahs and even racked up 93 running metres!

The loose forward will look to continue this form for his new side throughout the season with injuries plaguing most of his career. 

James King, Renato Giammarioli and Ryan Wilson were all close to making the side. 

9. John Cooney - Ulster

Cooney kicked Ulster to their first win of the season converting 5 penalties against Scarlets. 

He controlled the game well and his kicking from hand was also on point. 

He just edges the likes of Dragons halfback Rhodri Williams as well as Leinster's Jamison Gibson-Park who made a great impact off the bench.

10. JJ Hanrahan - Munster Rugby

With his starting place on the line following the arrival of Joey Carbery, Hanrahan stepped up to the plate and produced a match-winning performance against the Cheetahs.

Hanrahan scored 13 points (including a try), gained 70 running metres, beat 4 defenders beaten and made 2 clean breaks.

Ross Byrne and Jared Evans were both brilliant for their respective sides with the former putting in a man of the match performance.

11. Darren Sweetnam - Munster

Sweetnam's made 134 running metres a total bettered only by Cian Kelleher for Connacht.

The speedster tore up the Cheetahs defence beating 5 defenders and made 5 clean breaks against the South African side.

He was directly involved in three of Munster's tries, assisting 2 tries and scored a third. 

12. Reynold Lee-Lo - Cardiff Blues

The Cardiff Blues centre was in fine form against Leinster in the opening game of the weekend.

He ran in two well-taken tries against the Champions and made over 90 running metres. 

His attacking display sees off Alberto Sgarbi of Benetton Treviso who superb making 18 tackles without missing one.

13. Darren Cave - Ulster 

Cave had a strong performance on both attack and defence just edges Rory O'Loughlin for a place in the side.

He made 11 tackles on the night and made 32 running metres from his two clean breaks.

14. George North - Ospreys

What a return to the PRO14!! North was absolutely exceptional on his Ospreys debut against Edinburgh. 

He made metres with relative ease and showed off his wide range of skills to dot down for two tries. 

North made 133 running metres, beat 4 defenders and made 4 clean breaks.

A number of right-wingers had fantastic games this weekend with the likes of Mattia Bellini, Cian Kelleher and Craig Gilroy all staring for thier respective sides.

15. Stuart Hogg - Glasgow Warriors 

What can't Stuart Hogg do? The Scottish International was another player who put in a match-winning performance for his side.

Hogg made 52 running metres, beat 5 defenders and made 2 clean breaks. 

He scored a try, assisted another and hit a match-winning drop goal in the 73rd minute of the game. 

Will Addison was impressive off the bench for his new side while Michael Botha had great PRO14 debut for the Southern Kings.



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