United Rugby Championship Team of the Week: Ulstermen aplenty after Bulls victory while Leinster also well represented
Benetton wing Louis Lynagh, Leinster flanker Josh van der Flier and Ulster scrum-half Nathan Doak.
Following another enthralling weekend of United Rugby Championship (URC) action, here is the Planet Rugby Team of the Week for Round Three.
After putting the Bulls to the sword at Affidea Stadium, Ulster lead the way with five representatives in our side while Benetton, Munster and Leinster are next best with two players apiece.
URC Team of the Week, Round Three
15 Jacob Stockdale (Ulster): The experienced Ireland flyer did not cross the whitewash in his side’s deserved home victory over the Bulls but he was one of his team’s best performers with an outstanding attacking performance. Stockdale gave his team good attacking momentum with some barnstorming runs from the back and beats out Rhyno Smith of Benetton.
14 Louis Lynagh (Benetton): The 24-year-old Italy international missed his country’s entire Six Nations campaign due to a knee injury but showed that he is fully fit now and back to his best as Benetton cruised to a brilliant victory over the Lions in Treviso. Lynagh delivered an attacking masterclass and was rewarded with four tries for his efforts.
13 Tom Farrell (Munster): The experienced midfielder left his stamp on the match with a fine all-round effort as Munster clinched a hard-fought victory over Edinburgh in Cork. The 32-year-old created several try-scoring opportunities for his team-mates and also marshalled his side’s defence and walked off with the official man-of-the-match award after the game.
12 Stuart McCloskey (Ulster): Former All Blacks star Malakai Fekitoa was one of several Benetton players who caught the eye in their one-sided win over the Lions but we couldn’t ignore McCloskey, who delivered a brilliant performance against the Bulls. The Ireland centre showed great physicality on defence and attack and crossed for his side’s first try.
11 Tom Bowen (Cardiff): The teenage flyer continued with his outstanding form and after scoring a hat-trick of tries against Munster in Round Two, he followed it up by crossing for two five-pointers in Cardiff’s narrow home victory over Connacht. His current superb form could see him representing Wales at Test level later this year. Elsewhere, Benetton’s Ignacio Mendy also impressed.
10 Harry Byrne (Leinster): The Stormers’ Springboks star Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu showed some nice touches during his side’s victory over the Scarlets but it wasn’t enough to get in ahead of Byrne, who was outstanding in helping Leinster to beat the Sharks at the Aviva Stadium. Byrne showed his class with his brilliant game management and playmaking skills as Leinster sealed their maiden win of the campaign.
9 Nathan Doak (Ulster): Glasgow Warriors’ George Horne deserves a mention as he played well in his side’s thrashing of the Dragons but it wasn’t enough to get into our side as Doak was simply superb in his side’s triumph at Affidea Stadium against the Bulls. He was excellent on attack, successfully converted all four of Ulster’s tries and was named as the official man of the match.
Solid-looking pack
8 Juarno Augustus (Ulster): The former Northampton Saints star was one of Ulster’s best players against the Bulls as he came to the fore with an excellent all-round performance. Augustus was solid in defence but made his biggest contribution on attack and was rewarded with a try for his efforts. Leinster’s Max Deegan was next best.
7 Josh van der Flier (Leinster): The Ireland international captained Leinster for the first time but the extra responsibility of leading his troops had no effect on his game as he was in the thick of the action throughout. Van der Flier was his usual busy self on defence and at the breakdowns but also shone on attack and scored a well-taken try.
6 Evan Roos (Stormers): With his fellow South African Augustus locked in at number eight, we’ve moved Springboks back-row Roos to the blindside flank after impressing in the men from the Cape’s rout of the Scarlets. As usual, the 25-year-old proved difficult to stop with ball in hand which led to him keeping his opponents on their toes during a 58-minute stint and he scored one of his side’s five tries.
5 Cormac Izuchukwu (Ulster): The 25-year-old delivered a fine all-round performance as he did what was expected of him in the lineouts while also making his presence felt on defence and attack during an impressive 63-minute shift. Izuchukwu’s efforts in the latter category saw him crossing for Ulster’s bonus-point try just before he left the field and he edges out the Stormers’ Ruben van Heerden.
4 James Ratti (Ospreys): The Stormers’ JD Schickerling delivered a fine performances in his side’s victory over the Scarlets but it’s Ratti who comes in ahead of him after impressing for the Welsh region in their triumph over Zebre Parma. He delivered a competitive performance in the lineouts while also doing well as a ball carrier and also scored a deserved try.
3 Simone Ferrari (Benetton): There were good showings in losing causes from Springboks duo Wilco Louw (Bulls) and Asenathi Ntlabakanye (Lions) but we’ve opted for the experienced Italian international Ferrari, who was one of Benetton’s star performers against the men from Johannesburg. The 31-year-old stood up well in the scrums and impressed on attack, especially at close quarters where he scored a well-taken try.
2 Johnny Matthews (Glasgow Warriors): The experienced hooker impressed in the execution of his core duties as Glasgow Warriors clinched an impressive victory over the Dragons at Scotstoun. Apart from that he also crossed for a well-taken try and beats out Rob Herring of Ulster, JJ Kotze of the Stormers and Ronan Kelleher of Leinster.
1 Michael Milne (Munster): In Cork, Munster had to dig deep to clinch a narrow victory over Edinburgh and Milne was the forefront of the Irish province’s charge as he was outstanding during his 61 minutes on the field. The 26-year-old did his bit in the scrums but also showed of his attacking ability as he scored two important tries in the grander scheme of things.