Six Nations Team of the Week: Fin Smith pips Sam Prendergast as ‘gladiatorial’ Italian takes top gong
Fin Smith, Tommy Freeman and Lorenzo Cannone make our Six Nations Team of the Week.
With Round Two of the Six Nations in the books and Ireland now the only unbeaten side remaining in the 2025 Championship, it’s time to select our Team of the Week.
It was a weekend that saw England shock France at Allianz Stadium, Ireland put in an immense performance against Scotland at Murrayfield and Italy defeat Wales in Rome.
Without further ado, here’s our Six Nations Team of the Week as six Englishmen make it.
15 Tommaso Allan (Italy): 17 points from the tee and a magnificent display under the high ball sees the Azzurri full-back claim this week’s spot. Both Hugo Keenan and Blair Kinghorn did well in direct opposition for Ireland and Scotland respectively, whilst Marcus Smith had his moments for England in attack.
14 Tommy Freeman (England): One try and his aerial work combine for the big Saint to beat off the challenges of Damian Penuad and Calvin Nash, who both shone for France and Ireland. Freeman profited from his club understanding with Fin Smith in a great display of power wing play.
13 Ollie Lawrence (England): A really abrasive and clever display from the Bath centre saw him score once again for England. His opposite number, Yoram Moefana, lacked the directness of Lawrence but still put in a shift, as did Huw Jones in defeat for the Scots.
12 Robbie Henshaw (Ireland): Henshaw played half the game at 13 and the other half at 12 but his defence was a key part of the Irish win in Edinburgh so we’ve slotted him in at inside centre. Tommaso Menoncello was brilliant in repelling the Welsh attack in Rome, whilst Henry Slade did his reputation no harm in a classy display at Twickenham.
11 Louis Bielle-Biarrey (France): France didn’t have their best outing but Bielle-Biarrey shone in a sea of French mediocrity in a brilliant display of pacy finishing. James Lowe was his usual dependable self for Ireland, whilst Ollie Sleightholme‘s last-ditch tackle on Bielle-Biarrey kept England in the match.
10 Fin Smith (England): Such a tough choice for fly-half with Sam Prendergast really impressing us. Smith’s impact in turning England around was greater, however. A shout out for Paolo Garbisi – brilliant for the Azzurri in Rome.
9 Jamison Gibson-Park (Ireland): A masterclass of spiky scrum-half art from Gibson-Park was a central feature of Ireland’s win at Murrayfield. Martin Page-Relo is unlucky not to get in our team as he was outstanding for Italy, and Alex Mitchell combined well with Smith at half-back for England.
The forwards
8 Lorenzo Cannone (Italy): 104 metres carried, seven defenders beaten, 17 tackles and two turnovers saw the gladiatorial Italy number eight top most of the round statistics and he’s our Player of the Week. Caelan Doris crossed once again in a classy display for Ireland, whilst Gregory Alldritt banged and crashed away all evening for France against England.
7 Josh van der Flier (Ireland): You think he’s had a quiet game by his standards, then you look at the match stats and see the sheer number of interventions he has in a match. Outstanding, and he beats Ben Earl to the openside shirt by a whisker.
6 Tom Curry (England): Relentless. Three turnovers, 14 tackles and 43 metres ran, but that doesn’t tell the half of it as Curry‘s sheer abrasion was one of the features of England’s performance. His opposite number Francois Cros will dine out over his footballing chip into his own hands that led to a French try, whilst Jack Conan made a huge impact on the blindside for Ireland.
5 Tadhg Beirne (Ireland): Combative and physical, the Irish back five specialist was in fine fettle as he had another influential display for his country. George Martin‘s simplicity is to be admired as he smashed and folded anything in blue all evening for England against France.
4 Maro Itoje (England): A first win as skipper and another classy performance, although his lineout wasn’t as sure as usual. James Ryan was abrasive and focused for Ireland, whilst Niccolo Cannone also needs a shout out for an impressive shift for Italy.
3 Finlay Bealham (Ireland): 13 tackles and a turnover were the hallmark of a big performance from the Irish tighthead. Simone Ferrari impressed once again for Italy whilst Will Stuart did everything right for England.
2 Jamie George (England): It was only 20 minutes from ‘Jinx’ but what a 20 they were. He was crucial in creating England’s last two tries as he defined impact off the bench. Luke Cowan-Dickie, the man he replaced, also shone, whilst Giacomo Nicotera was superb for the Azzurri.
1 Danilo Fischetti (Italy): For the second week running, the pocket rocket smashed and carved his way through an immense workload. Ellis Genge did brilliantly against Uini Atonio, whilst we very nearly went for Fin Baxter for his immense impact for England off the bench. Once again Andrew Porter impressed with a standout shift against the excellent Zander Fagerson.
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