PREM Rugby Team of the Week: ‘Barbaric’ Tom Willis ‘sets pulses racing’ while England hopefuls drop ‘timely reminder of quality’
Saracens number eight Tom Willis and Gloucester centre Seb Atkinson impressed.
Following the conclusion of round 10 of the PREM season, here is the latest Planet Rugby Team of the Week!
The weekend’s action got underway on Friday night in a gripping West Country derby, with Bath getting the upper hand over rivals Gloucester.
There were then four matches on Saturday, with Bristol Bears, Leicester Tigers, Northampton Saints and Saracens all securing important wins over Exeter Chiefs, Harlequins, Sale Sharks and Newcastle Red Bulls respectively.
Without further ado, here is who made our PREM XV!
PREM Rugby Team of the Week
15 Freddie Steward (Leicester Tigers): Yet another really strong showing for the England full-back in Tigers colours, in a timely reminder of his quality ahead of the Six Nations. Steward was right at the heart of his side’s impressive win over Harlequins, particularly in attack with 110 metres from 17 carries alongside a tally of nine defenders beaten. Santi Carreras also impressed for Bath.
14 Noah Caluori (Saracens): The PREM’s latest starlet once again put his name in lights with a sensational display against Newcastle. In all aspects of his game, in particular with his carrying with 84 metres to his name from 10 carries alongside beating six defenders, Caluori was excellent, and his haul of four tries was certainly worth a spot in this side alone. Edoardo Todaro continued his fine form for Northampton too and deserved a name check here.
13 Rory Hutchinson (Northampton Saints): Just quietly goes about his business in this high-powered Northampton attack, and again played a really crucial role in their win over Sale. Just seemed to make big impact after big impact after big impact across all areas of the game, notching 42 metres and two linebreaks from his eight carries while also nabbing a turnover too. His try was also a fitting reward for his efforts. Will Wand can feel hard done by to miss out.
12 Seb Atkinson (Gloucester): With debate raging over the England 12 shirt, this was a very good time to drop a display like this. The powerful midfielder just consistently dragged his side through the stubborn Bath defence, reflected in his 15 carries for 48 metres while busting the gainline on nine occasions. He also got stuck into the defensive efforts with two turnovers and seven tackles. Nick Tompkins was a close second.
11 Rotimi Segun (Saracens): A good weekend for Saracens wingers, with Segun edging out Leicester’s Ollie Hassell-Collins to join Caluori in our side. The exciting back has been a rock of stability in a pretty turbulent few weeks for the Londoners, and was very prominent in their win over Newcastle Red Bulls with a healthy stats sheet of 107 metres from 10 carries, three linebreaks and eight defenders beaten.
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10 Finn Russell (Bath): A really tight call at 10, with Owen Farrell hitting top form for Saracens, but we’ve opted for Bath ace Russell. This was Russell back to his best, offering that dual-threat that has been so pivotal to Bath’s attack in recent seasons. His distribution was again on point, unpicking the Gloucester defence and sending his elusive backs through, but also offered his own flashes ball-in-hand too with 77 metres from 11 carries. Also kicked well off the tee, much to the dislike of the Shed.
9 Alex Mitchell (Northampton Saints): Leicester’s Jack van Poortvliet was so close to getting into this side after a great display against Harlequins prior to his knock, but England rival Mitchell takes the jersey. The Northampton man was at his electric best in the Saints’ win over Sale, injecting serious tempo and fizz into their attack. His distribution from the ruck was again on point, and offered his own threat ball-in-hand too with 74 metres from 13 carries.
The forwards
8 Tom Willis (Saracens): Utterly barbaric, again, in a performance that will set pulses racing in Bordeaux. Willis epitomised the loud Saracens explosion on Saturday, after some torrid performances in recent weeks, setting the tone with some huge efforts ball-in-hand. Ended his shift with a ridiculous stats sheet, with 20 carries, 84 metres, six tackles and 12 beaten defenders to his name. Emeka Ilione and Callum Chick also went well for Leicester and Northampton, respectively.
7 Andy Onyeama-Christie (Saracens): Joining fellow Saracens man Willis in the back-row is Scotland ace Onyeama-Christie, after an equally impressive outing. The forward might not have taken the limelight, but his try-scoring display only furthered his side’s all-court dominance, notching 57 metres from 14 carries ball-in-hand as well as six tackles and a turnover in defence. His efforts just see him nudge above fellow Saracen Juan Martin Gonzalez, while Tommy Reffell also deserves a mention.
6 Josh Bayliss (Bath): Guy Pepper and Fitz Harding can feel incredibly hard done by to miss out, but Player of the Match Bayliss gets the nod here. The only way to describe the Bath back-rower’s performance is mega, with him stepping up to the plate when his side needed it the most. Led from the front on both sides of the ball, too, making 11 tackles alongside 15 carries for 48 metres.
5 Cameron Henderson (Leicester Tigers): Potentially went under the radar in his side’s win, given their attacking exploits, but his work in defence was outstanding. He was everywhere for Leicester on that side of the ball, posting an impressive tally of 19 tackles and a turnover in the process, and really stood up when it mattered. Matias Alemanno was a close second.
4 Pedro Rubiolo (Bristol Bears): Has absolutely exploded into life in the past few weeks, and his relentless effort against Exeter was the latest example of that. Rubiolo was a one-man tackling machine in the Sandy Park monsoon, making an eye-watering 27 tackles for none missed. Yes, that’s right, 27 tackles. He also put his sizeable frame to good use ball-in-hand too, making eight carries for nine metres. Hugh Tizard again impressed for Saracens.
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3 George Kloska (Bristol Bears): Another Bear to put in a ridiculous defensive effort was Kloska, who gets in ahead of Bath Bomb Squad member Thomas du Toit. He was another who seemed to seemed to turn their England disappointment into a positive performance this weekend, making an insane 20 tackles at a 95% success rate, and looked to make a positive effort in attack on a day that suited more traditional prop efforts on that side of the ball.
2 Will Crane (Gloucester): A good weekend for hookers, to be fair, with James Hadfield‘s brace seeing him come close, while Gabe Oghre continued his fine form for Bristol, but Crane just gets in. The 31-year-old front-row has enjoyed a strong stint at Gloucester since making the emergency loan move from Champ outfit Hartpury, but put in a genuinely top-tier effort against Bath. 14 tackles at a 100% success rate tells a story on its own, considering where he was making them, but also played his part in a good scrummaging effort. Hopefully it’s not the last we see of him at this level.
1 Nicky Smith (Leicester Tigers): For all those young looseheads coming through the ranks, watch Smith’s display from Saturday on repeat. It was just the dictionary definition of looseheadery, tearing apart the Quins scrum with ease alongside a tidy tally of 11 carries and 14 tackles. Beno Obano had a good impact off the bench for Bath, while Ellis Genge also deserves a mention too for his efforts in Bristol’s win at Sandy Park.
