PREM Rugby Team of the Week: ‘Big mister’ Benhard Janse van Rensburg ‘proves his point’ as ‘force of nature’ Test star shines
Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (left), Benhard Janse van Rensburg (centre) and Maro Itoje (right) feature in the latest PREM Rugby Team of the Week
Following the conclusion of round 17 of the 2025/26 PREM Rugby season, here is the latest Planet Rugby Team of the Week.
There were big wins for Bristol Bears, Northampton Saints, Saracens, Newcastle Red Bulls and Exeter Chiefs across the weekend, with the race for the play-offs set to enter the final weekend.
Without further ado, here is who made our PREM XV!
PREM Rugby Team of the Week
15 George Furbank (Northampton Saints): The man of the moment at the final whistle after his match-winning try, but it came after a seriously good outing. His customary lick of flair in attack, chipping in with 45 metres from just five metres alongside a tally of three beaten defenders, went a long way to keeping Saints in the game against Gloucester and eventually powered them over the line. Olly Woodburn can feel pretty unlucky to miss out.
14 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (Exeter Chiefs): You do start to run out of superlatives to describe Feyi-Waboso, don’t you? This was just extraordinary from the Exeter man, balancing dazzling linebreaks with outright power in the tight, and he played a key role in dragging Exeter over the line against Leicester as a result. His stats alone warrant a mention, posting 100 metres from his seven carries alongside a tally of six defenders beaten and two linebreaks. Cameron Anderson went well for Harlequins in a losing cause.
13 Alex Hearle (Newcastle Red Bulls): There was a lot to like about Hearle’s effort on Saturday evening, and he gets in ahead of Matias Moroni in the process. His match-winning score will take the headlines, and rightfully so, but he just seemed to have the bit between his teeth in attack as he chalked up 98 metres from 10 carries alongside three linebreaks.
12 Benhard Janse van Rensburg (Bristol Bears): This was a big game for the England hopeful, coming up against main rivals Ollie Lawrence and Max Ojomoh, but he certainly proved his point in a big mister outing. Just seemed to play with real venom on both sides of the ball, tallying 52 metres from his 10 carries alongside 14 tackles, and his turnover at the death was almost metaphorical in a way given who it was on. Len Ikitau went well for Exeter in an all-court display.
11 Tobias Elliott (Saracens): Just a really solid outing for the exciting winger, who rolled up his sleeves, went looking for work and contributed well on both sides of the ball with 10 tackles, 10 carries for 76 metres and two turnovers. Tommy Freeman went well for Northampton, too.
10 Fin Smith (Northampton Saints): Toss of a coin stuff between him and Tom Jordan following the Scotland international’s brilliant cameo against Bath, but the England man just gets the nod. Smith’s fingerprints were all over Northampton’s attack once again, ending the game with two assists, but also stepped up on the other side of the ball with a team-high 14 tackles for good measure.
9 Stephen Varney (Exeter Chiefs): Archie McParland had the shirt until Sunday, but Varney was on song for Exeter and gets in ahead. The Italian international just seemed to make exactly the right call at exactly the right time to get the Chiefs on the front-foot, particularly off the boot, and that was a major factor in their win over Leicester.
The forwards
8 Amanki Mafi (Newcastle Red Bulls): Tom Willis continued his good form for Saracens, but we couldn’t ignore the monumental effort of outgoing Mafi in Newcastle’s win over Sale. The Japan man was simply outstanding across the game, and acted as a real point of difference in the tight with 11 carries for 60 metres, two defenders beaten and four turnovers. His opposite man, Reuben Logan, also deserves a namecheck for his graft.
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7 Tom Christie (Newcastle Red Bulls): Another Red Bull in the back-row now, with Christie just pipping Henry Pollock into this selection. The former Crusaders flanker was again a rock of consistency in defence, putting his body on the line across the 80 and coming away with a healthy 16 tackles in the process.
6 Fitz Harding (Bristol Bears): Another Team of the Week inclusion for Harding, who gets in ahead of James Venter in the process. The Bristol skipper was again excellent in pretty much every facet, leading the way for both carries (13) and tackles (20) across the game and pinching a try along the way. England surely have to be looking at him for the summer tour.
5 Andrea Zambonin (Exeter Chiefs): A force of nature in Exeter’s win over Leicester, deservedly being named Man of the Match for his efforts. Just bossed every individual battle he was involved in, particularly at the lineout, and got the match-winning try for his troubles. Arthur Clark warrants a mention here for a brave effort against Northampton.
4 Maro Itoje (Saracens): Dafydd Jenkins can feel hard done by here, but Itoje gets the nod again at lock. The England captain is just oozing class and confidence once again, and that is seeing him playing some of his best rugby as Saracens eye up a play-off spot.
3 George Kloska (Bristol Bears): It’s a hard ask to impress as a tighthead when you’re on the same pitch as Thomas du Toit, but George Kloska gave it his all in a strong showing. Just seemed to pick the positive option at every opportunity, and did a decent job at scrum-time too. Luke Green also warrants a mention here.
2 Seb Blake (Gloucester): A potentially understated but huge performance from the hooker, who just gets in ahead of Harry Thacker. Trucked hard on both sides of the ball and ended his shift with a healthy stats chart of 10 carries and two turnovers.
1 Eroni Mawi (Saracens): Not a glamorous shift, but did the nuts and bolts superbly to help Saracens get the better of their London rivals. 12 tackles, five carries and a turnover, plus some decent efforts at scrum-time, reflect a job well done for the loosehead. Ellis Genge was not far behind.