November Test Team of the Week: Springboks ‘sheer masterclass’, All Blacks’ saviour and ‘world-class’ Englishman rewarded
Springboks' Cobus Reinach, All Blacks' Damian McKenzie and England's Ben Earl.
With South Africa flexing their power game with only 14 men in Paris, Italy taking down Australia and Argentina adding 52 points to Wales’ woes, here’s our Autumn Nations Series Round 2 Team of the Week.
Test Team of the Week
15 Damian McKenzie (New Zealand): The All Blacks‘ saviour. DMac moved between 10 and 15, but we’re selecting him at full-back. His try was something out of the top drawer of Test finishing. France’s Thomas Ramos gave us a brilliant display in defeat, complete with the quip of the week when he turned to referee Angus Gardner and said, “It’s him!’ Ramos would have taken the shirt had he got the result he hoped for. Marcus Smith returned to form for England, whilst Santi Carreras was superb for Argentina in Cardiff.
14 Damian Penaud (France): Two tries saw him become France’s all-time leading try scorer, but it wasn’t enough to see France home. Cheslin Kolbe challenged the man twice his height in the air, whilst Manny Feyi-Waboso demonstrated his class for England against Fiji. Tommy O’Brien will be happy with his efforts as he came to the fore with an outstanding all-round effort, which was a timely reminder to Andy Farrell of his ability.
13 Leicester Fainga’anuku (New Zealand): The be-mulleted ex-Toulon centre has really added some physicality to the All Black backline, and he shone at Murrayfield. England’s Ollie Lawrence reminded the selectors of his skills whilst Italy’s new skipper, Nacho Brex shone in defence as he led his team to a brilliant win against the Wallabies.
12 Sione Tuipulotu (Scotland): A direct and powerful outing for the Lion despite the defeat. Santi Chocobares was as powerful as ever for Los Pumas in Cardiff, whilst Gael Fickou gave all in defeat for France, and Tommaso Menoncello had another industrious day for Italy.
11 Monty Ioane (Italy): A magnificently taken try was the deciding play in the Azzurri’s win versus Australia, and Ioane shone all afternoon in Rome. Kyle Steyn’s selection ahead of Duhan van der Merwe was a big talking point in the build-up to this match, but Steyn put in a solid all-round effort for the full 80 minutes, scoring a critical try and winning the aerial contest. Mateo Carreras also did everything right for Los Pumas in Cardiff.
10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (South Africa): Brilliant. A defining moment for the young tyro as he steered 14-man Springboks to a simply mesmerising win in Paris. Argentina’s Geronimo Prisciantelli grabbed two tries and a Player of the Match award as he demonstrated Los Pumas’ depth at 10, whilst Italy’s Paolo Garbisi needs a shout-out for his shift in Rome.
9 Cobus Reinach (South Africa): He left the field looking like a pocket-sized hulk after a superhero try-scoring display in Paris. Brilliant from the 35-year-old. Wales don’t have much to smile about, but Tomos Williams is one consistent beacon of excellence for them, whilst Nolann le Garrec gave us some breathtaking moments for France despite the result. Finally, Stephen Varney and Grant Williams were crucial in their respective side’s victories.
The forwards
8 Jasper Wiese (South Africa): A human battering ram, Wiese’s return to Springbok duty has coincided with their form upslope in the last few months. England’s Chandler Cunningham-South certainly added power to England’s carrying, whilst Ireland’s Caelan Doris was back to tip top form for Ireland against Japan.
7 Ben Earl (England): Earl gave England another world-class performance as the versatile Saracen claimed another Player of the Match award. In the Italy-Australia match stats, the top nine defenders in the game were all Azzurri men, and the brilliant Manuel Zuliani led that charge, grabbing two turnovers too. His opposite number Fraser McReight also shone, whilst in Cardiff, Wales’ Jac Morgan was something else in defeat, but the news on his shoulder is the last thing Steve Tandy needed during his rebuilding phase.
England v Fiji: Five takeaways as ‘introduction of England’s bench’ eventually overcomes ‘Pacific Island brilliance’
6 Andre Esterhuizen (South Africa): We had to do it! The big man gave a sheer masterclass in versatility as he came on to define the word hybrid in a brilliant bench display. Scotland’s Gregor Brown delivered a huge shift for his team, whilst Pablo Matera will surely be boring anyone prepared to listen about his cross-field kick for Los Pumas’ fifth try. Finally, a word for Wales’ Alex Mann outgunned and outmuscled, but there’s something to admire about this youngster’s spike.
5 Josh Lord (New Zealand): Lord gave us one of the moments of the weekend with his breakaway run, setting up a try for Cam Roigard at Murrayfield. A more controlled and focused display was seen from the gargantuan lock RG Snyman, and proved crucial against France and had a huge impact, whilst England’s Ollie Chessum continued his great form.
4 Niccolo Cannone (Italy): 19 tackles, five lineout wins, and nine carries makes Cannone a shoo-in this week. Alex Coles gave England a really industrious day at the office as the versatile Saint tackled his heart out and won a turnover in a great all-round effort.
3 Thomas du Toit (South Africa): Won two key turnovers and munched his way through the rookie French front-row in a towering display of the tighthead arts. Scotland’s D’Arcy Rae held on well in a classy display for Scotland, whilst Argentina’s young propping sensation Thomas Rapetti certainly caused Wales some headaches in his impact performance.
2 Malcolm Marx (South Africa): Massive. The individual duel between him and the outstanding Frenchman, Julien Marchand, was a game within a game and featured two of the very best exponents of their art. Julian Montoya once again showed his importance to Argentina, whilst Giacomo Nicotera had a massive day in Italy’s memorable win.
1 Danilo Fischetti (Italy): The hardest call of the weekend, with Ireland’s absolutely outstanding Andrew Porter pushing Azzurri’s pocket rocket all the way, but Fischetti was absolutely brilliant in defence, monstered Taniela Tupou in the tight, making a big statement for a smaller man in the context of a statement performance for Italy.