Test Team of the Week - Round 3
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It was a thrilling weekend on Test rugby and there were a number of players that put their hands up. This week has been one of the toughest ones to select and is litterede with a number of unusual names but also sees a number of players missing out.
1 Cian Healy - Ireland
A huge performance from the Irish loosehead who put his opposition number under pressure at the set piece. He weighed in with 7 carries and 12 tackles beating 2 defenders.
2 Guilhem Guirado - France
Guirado scored a try on the night from close range and performed well around the park as well as during set pieces. 100% line out success for the the home side in their 28-13 win over Argentina
3 Tadhg Furlong - Ireland
A huge scrummaging perfromance by Furlong which saw Tuinukuafe man handled at scrum time. He added with 12 huge carries
4 Michael Leitch - Japan
We have moved Leitch from the flank and into lock purely based on his incredible performance against England. 5 clean breaks, 7 defenders beaten and countless other contributions to Japan's effort at Twickenham
Quality try from Michael Leitch pic.twitter.com/jgz5nU2vyB
— John Davidson (@johnnyddavidson) November 17, 2018
5 James Ryan - Ireland
20 tackles from the big man as he continues to perform on the international stage. He made 17 carries to add to it and was not out of place against Retallick and Whitelock.
6 Peter O'Mahony - Ireland
A man of the match performance on a day that goes down in Irish Rugby history.
7 Mark Wilson - England
The Newcastle Falcons flanker topped the tackle count for the 2nd week running. A tough day for England with Wilson the consistent stand out player through out
8 CJ Stander - Ireland
For a man who was told he was too small to play International Rugby he sure continues to 'break the mould' each week. 21 mammoth carries and an all round performance that would never be out of place in Test Rugby.
9 Tomos Williams - Wales
Wales were made to work for their win over Tonga but managed to put the game to bed in the 2nd half. A try for Williams and a hand in some great moves, he is the only Welshman to make the side
10 Handre Pollard - South Africa
Man of the Match game by Pollard as South Africa seem to have settled on their 1st choicce 10. He kicked very well from hand and off the tee and relished his time with Embrose Papier at 9 while Faf de Klerk was released to Sale Sharks for the weekend. Sexton just misses out.
11 Jacob Stockdale - Ireland
Another consistent and great performance by the 22 year old. 3 clean breaks and 5 defenders beaten is nothing compared to his match winning try over the All Blacks
12 Gael Fickou - France
Fickou is starting to get to where many said he would be, he is in fine form for club and country and he carved Argentina open on a number of occasions and put in a perfect 35m pass for Thomas to score his 2nd.
Second try for Teddy Thomas. All about Gael Fickou who has been on fire all match for 🇫🇷 France. pic.twitter.com/LzumI954lX
— Paul Tait (@Argentina_2027) November 17, 2018
13 Jack Goodhue - New Zealand
The midfield pairing for the All Blacks were exceptional on defence against an Ireland side that kept on hammering at the door. Goodhue made all of his 16 tackles asked of him and beat 3 defenders on the night.
14 Kenki Fukuoka - Japan
Fukuoka was in sublime form for Japan against England and was in the top 3 for Defenders Beaten, Clean Breaks and Meters Run for the game.
15 Rob Kearney - Ireland
A standing ovation at the Aviva when finished his shift for Ireland sums up his performance. A solid showing defensively with 2 clean breaks and 4 defenders beaten on attack. Stuart Hogg is unlucky to miss out following a solid performance against the Springboks
Try of the Weekend - Peter Horne Scotland:
Huw Jones was up against a number of old Stormers friends when Scotland hosted South Africa but he sure didn't hold back in setting up this Horne try
We might have lost, but we will always have this absolute BANGER of a try!
— Thistle Scottish Rugby Podcast (@thistlerugbypod) November 18, 2018
Huw Jones’ offloads are pure filth 🤤#SCOvRSA pic.twitter.com/zrkhcKBgvS