PREM Rugby Team of the Week: Maro Itoje ‘at his absolute best’ while England prodigies ‘announce themselves’ to Steve Borthwick
Maro Itoje (left), Benhard Janse van Rensburg (centre) and Miles Reid (right) feature in this week's Team of the Week!
Following the conclusion of round 14 of the PREM season, here is the latest Planet Rugby Team of the Week!
There were big wins for Bristol Bears, Sale Sharks, Saracens, Northampton Saints and Gloucester across the weekend, as the run-in takes another twist heading into the European break.
Without further ado, here is who made our PREM XV!
PREM Rugby Team of the Week
15 Tom O’Flaherty (Sale Sharks): Max Malins yet again sees himself the honourable mention, but Tom O’Flaherty gets the nod at full-back this weekend after a really tidy outing against Harlequins. Offered a real flick of flair ball-in-hand, creating all sorts of havoc in that slightly freer role at 15 and notched 115 metres from 17 carries alongside a tally of five beaten defenders and two linebreaks, and grabbed himself a deserved try as well.
14 Tommy Freeman (Northampton Saints): It seems it doesn’t matter what position you play him in, he will do serious damage ball-in-hand. Freeman was again in great touch ball-in-hand for the Saints in their win over Bath, making a game-high 141 metres from his 15 carries, while also beating five defenders and notching three linebreaks. Opposite number Louie Hennessey also impressed out wide, while Christian Wade was a bright spark on an otherwise tough night for Newcastle.
13 Seb Atkinson (Gloucester): A tough call at 13, with Gloucester’s actual outside centre Max Llewellyn and Bristol’s Matías Moroni both going well this weekend, but Atkinson gets the nod. The England back was again front and centre of Gloucester’s win, injecting himself into the game when it mattered most and stepping up with huge efforts on both sides of the ball. Ended with a healthy stats sheet of 18 tackles (a joint game-high) and 13 carries for 40 metres.
12 Benhard Janse van Rensburg (Bristol Bears): This was a performance that will have Steve Borthwick drooling ahead of his qualification for the national side. Ran the show in a thumping win against Newcastle, making 16 tackles and 16 carries for 87 metres, all while acting as that crucial link-player to spread the play wide. A proper all-court effort. Fraser Dingwall was a close second, though.
11 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (Exeter Chiefs): Ollie Sleightholme and Ben Loader were very close to this team, but England’s Immanuel Feyi-Waboso was simply immense at Kingsholm and gets the nod in the process. Consistently made positive impacts ball-in-hand when his team needed a spark, notching a tidy 178 metres from just 10 carries alongside five linebreaks and a tally of 13 defenders beaten, and got himself a try as a result. Phenomenal.
10 Tom Jordan (Bristol Bears): The toughest pick of the weekend, with Ciaran Donoghue dropping a proper reminder of his quality on his comeback from injury, but the Scotland ace just gets in ahead. Jordan’s dual threat of playmaking and running allowed him to consistently trouble the Red Bulls’ defence on Friday, ending his shift with a healthy 73 metres from 12 carries for good measure, and got the Bears playing some lovely stuff in the process. Fin Smith’s latest match-winning moment also deserves a mention.
9 Tomos Williams (Gloucester): Sensational return for the British and Irish Lions tourist, who pips Charlie Bracken into this selection in the process. Had the Exeter defence on strings for the full match, offering his traditional threat around the fringes of the ruck and creating space for the rest of the backline to pour through, alongside some gorgeous offloads as well. Got the rewards his efforts deserved with a well-taken try too. Harry Randall also looked back to his best for Bristol, which was pleasing.
The forwards
8 Will Trenholm (Gloucester): Has had to bide his time this season, but boy oh boy did he take his chance back in the starting line-up. His gritty work in the tight was a huge part of Gloucester’s win on Sunday, chipping in with a game-high 22 carries for 60 metres, while also tying with the aforementioned Atkinson on a game-high 18 tackles. Henry Pollock was also in good touch for Northampton Saints.
7 Miles Reid (Bath): A good weekend for back-rowers, with Lewis Ludlow and Ben Earl both impressing, but we couldn’t overlook Reid in this selection. The Bath flank just charged around the park like he was angry at the ground, throwing himself into every tackle, breakdown and carry with proper venom and ending with a strong tally of 21 tackles, two turnovers, and 16 carries for 26 metres. Cannot be ignored for Test honours for much longer, you would feel.
Want more from Planet Rugby? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for world-class coverage you can trust.
6 Guido Petti (Harlequins): The Stoop was treated to a fine battle between the sixes, with Jacques Vermeulen impressing for Sale Sharks, but Petti just edges ahead. The Argentine ace threw his body around with no regard for his own safety at times, almost single-handedly keeping Quins in the game against Sale, and that was reflected in his healthy tally of 11 tackles, 32 metres ball-in-hand and two turnovers.
5 Tom Lockett (Northampton Saints): Potentially not a headline-grabbing display from Tom Lockett, but one that absolutely set the foundations for Northampton’s win against Bath. Led the defensive efforts for his side with a healthy 17 tackles, and was always seen in and around the action. Ollie Chessum went pretty well for Leicester as well.
4 Maro Itoje (Saracens): This was Maro Itoje at his absolute best, and he played a crucial role in Saracens’ narrow win over Leicester. Tackled his heart out all game with 17 for good measure and just pestered the breakdown expertly well, winning two turnovers as well. Ernst van Rhyn impressed for Sale too.
3 Afo Fasogbon (Gloucester): A big mister display from the England hopeful, who has certainly pushed his Test case for the summer. Had the Exeter scrum on toast across his 77-minute shift, winning a handful of penalties in the process, while also contributing 11 tackles, a turnover and three carries. George Kloska also warrants a namecheck this weekend.
2 Alfie Longstaff (Sale Sharks): Some way to announce himself as a PREM starter, and one that could flag his potential to Borthwick as well, looking into the future. The 20-year-old just showed proper maturity in all his actions, which is some doing considering where Sale are at right now, and ended his shift with a tidy 21 metres from his six carries. Did not look out of place at this level. Dan Frost also caught the eye for Bath.
1 Val Rapava-Ruskin (Gloucester): Like his prop colleague, just monstered his opposite man in the scrum, which helped lay the foundations for Gloucester’s win. Trucked well around the park, too, making nine tackles and six carries for good measure. Leicester’s Nicky Smith wasn’t far behind.