Champions Cup Team of the Week - Round 6

Some incredible rugby on show this weekend, from Scarlets' nail-biting win over Toulon to Munster's one-sided demolition of Castres, we are left with the impossible task of choosing a team of the week!

1. James Cronin – Munster

The replacement loosehead was called on a little earlier than expected due to a first-half injury to Dave Kilcoyne. However, he needed no time to get up to the speed of the game and slotted into the Munster forward pack seamlessly. He consistently put pressure on his opposite number at scrum time, got through a huge amount of work at the breakdown and stood up in defence when required. It’s great to see a player who has been so unfortunate with injury come back and have such a positive impact, and his great day was topped off with a try from a rolling maul.

2. Sean Cronin – Leinster

The Leinster hooker once again stepped up to the plate and proved that he can do it at the top level. He showed his dynamism throughout with dogged work at the breakdown, Trojan efforts in defence and thrilling bursts of attacking brilliance. He was accurate at the lineout and capped off his excellent performance with a try from a rolling maul. He led from the front all day and was thoroughly deserving of the standing ovation he received when he departed late in the second half.

3. Ben Tameifuna – Racing

The 26-year-old giant Kiwi was simply immense for his side this weekend as they narrowly edged past Leicester at Welford Road. He made a staggering 14 carries, got through an incredible amount of work at the breakdown and made some crushing defensive hits. Racing’s dominance at scrum time was largely down to the incredible work of this man and his relentless efforts saw him deservedly crowned the man of the match.

4. Tadhg Beirne – Scarlets

Another fantastic effort from the man destined for the red of Munster next season. He clearly still has a job to do in Llanelli, as his dynamic performances have helped his team to a home quarter-final berth. Again, he played like a back rower in attack, making 22m, 1 clean break and beating 3 defenders from his 8 carries. The lock was impeccable in defence again, having a perfect success rate in the tackle, 13 from 13. The welsh region will miss the Irishman dearly next season and will most certainly look to fill the void left by him in the scrum over the summer.

5. James Ryan – Leinster

Yet again the young Irish second row forward proved that he is more than capable of mixing it with the big boys in Europe. He was immense from start to finish for Leinster this weekend, posing a constant threat with ball in hand and standing up to the test defensively. He made an impressive 13 carries and recorded a 100% tackle success rate. As always, he provided Cronin with an excellent option at the lineout. He continues to show us all just why Joe Schmidt has included him in his Six Nations squad.

6. Maro Itoje – Saracens

The young flanker put in yet another incredible performance for Saracens this weekend as they cruised to victory against Northampton for the third time this season. He made 8 tackles and missed none, made 5 strong carries and even managed to secure 2 vital turnovers for his side at crucial periods of the game. He got through a remarkable amount of work at the breakdown and consistently disrupted the speed of the Northampton attack. Looks to be returning to his best form in time for the Six Nations.

7. Chris Cloete – Munster

The openside flanker was one of the standout performers in an overall excellent Munster performance this afternoon. The Castres back-row was kept quiet for virtually the whole game, largely due to the effective chop tackling and breakdown work of Munster and specifically, of Cloete. The number 7 had a perfect success rate in the tackle and managed to secure several vital penalties for his side.

8. Schalk Burger - Saracens

The veteran Springbok was the standout performer in a very impressive Saracens forward pack performance this weekend. He laid down a marker early as he got in over the ball and secured a turnover for his side after just one minute of play. Remarkably, he was able to maintain this intensity throughout the game, making all of his tackles and carrying a whopping 16 times. He also showed some really soft hands and beautiful offloading skills to set teammates into key attacking spaces.

9. Morgan Parra – Clermont

Clermont’s victory over Ospreys this weekend was largely orchestrated by their veteran scrum-half, who received the MOTM award for his unwavering efforts. He was lively throughout, making a number of small sniping break around the fringes of the rucks and cutting holes in the Ospreys defence. His kicking was on point, recording a 100% success rate from the tee as well as playing a perfect box kick over the top for Abendanon who regathered and touched down for a brilliant try.

10. Dan Jones – Scarlets

The young stand-off has really shown himself to be a crucial asset in the Pro 14 champions back-line this season. He has ousted Rhys Patchell from the number 10 shirt, leading to Lions star, Leigh Halfpenny, taking up a place on the bench in recent weeks. His fluid passing game has made a significant difference to the side, as he puts his outside backs into space again and again, leading to line breaks. He has also proven himself to be extremely adept at performing the low cross-field kick that has taken world rugby by storm of late. A threat with ball in hand as well, he managed to make 35m and beat 3 defenders on Saturday evening. He managed to bag himself a try just before HT after he received a pass from Gareth Davies to score in the corner. A perfect performance from the boot granted the first-five 17 points and the MOTM award.

Honourable mention for Owen Farrell who was excellent as his side cruised to victory against Northampton

11. Keith Earls – Munster

The final Munster player to make it into our XV is Limerick’s own Keith Earls. He was a menace from start to finish as time and time again he took on his opposite number. He was unstoppable with ball in hand, consistently beating the opposition on the outside for a total gain of 64 metres. It was his sheer pace that enabled him to cross the whitewash in the corner just before halftime. His excellent performance was capped off with a man of the match award.

James Lowe was unlucky to miss out having put in a stellar performance for Leinster.

12. Pierre Aguillon – La Rochelle

The French inside-centre was the standout performer in a fluid La Rochelle backline performance as his side edged past Harlequins to book their place in the knockout stage of the Champions Cup. He showed great intelligence to run some beautiful attacking lines and saw his efforts rewarded when he crashed over the whitewash to finish off a lovely try. He consistently got in over the ball and disrupted the speed of the opposition attack which was a crucial factor in La Rochelle’s victory this afternoon.

13. Chris Farrell – Munster

The newly-capped Irish-international was a key part of the Munster backline that ran riot at Thomond Park on Sunday evening. The stocky centre was impossible to contain in attack, consistently making positive yardage gains every time he carried the ball. He displayed beautiful soft hands and deft offloading skills to burst through tackles and set teammates into dangerous attacking spaces. He didn’t shirk his defensive responsibilities either, recording a 100% tackle success rate, including some huge, crunching tackles at pivotal moments of the game.

14. Nathan Earle – Saracens

The young English man needed absolutely no time to warm up to the pace of the game when he was called upon from the bench early in the first half due to a Chris Wyles injury. He was hungry for the ball and took every opportunity available to run straight at the Northampton defence. His combination of devastating power and blistering speed proved too much to handle as he gained a total of 102 metres and bagged himself a lovely try assist.

15. Stuart Hogg – Glasgow

The Scottish speedster was back to his brilliant best this weekend as his side played beautiful free-flowing rugby to defeat and end the European campaign of Exeter. Hogg made his intentions clear from the outset as time and time again he chose to run the ball from deep. He looked menacing with ball in hand, making 14 carries for a total of 148 metres gained. His outrageous pace was on show when he broke from deep to play a key role in one of the tries of the tournament. His wonderful performance was capped off with an excellent try of his own.

Honourable mention goes to Willie Le Roux who put in an excellent performance for Wasps this weekend.