Team of the Week

Some truly exceptional performances this week, but also a few duds. We’ve just about put together a solid team, but could use some improvement from the Americas contingent heading towards the new year.

1 – Matías Agüero (Leicester) Italian international but born and raised in Argentina. Got the nod ahead of Marcos Ayerza this week and filled in admirably against Worcester.

2 – Martín García Veiga (Jersey) Had a few blips in the lineout early, but his scrum work was top notch and his play around the park steady as always. Would be nice to see a few more Americas hookers in European pro rugby to put up a challenge.

3 – Francisco Gomez Kodela (Bordeaux) Nothing spectacular, but strong in the scrum and did his bit in the loose. The set piece deteriorated noticeably when he was replaced by Sekope Kepu.

4 – Samu Manoa (Toulon) The big man is loving life in the south of France. Put in a very solid 80 minute shift in the drubbing of Agen.

5 – Rodrigo Capó Ortega (Castres) Chief piston in the engine room of a dominant scrum. Played himself to a standstill as Olympique earned a big win over rivals Montpellier.

6 – Aaron Carpenter (Cornish Pirates) A late switch before kickoff from no8 to the flank didn’t throw him off one bit. Scored another try and improves his record to three wins from three as captain of the ship.

7 – Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe (Toulon) Continued excellence from the veteran was rewarded with a try this week. A vital part of one of the best clubs in Europe.

8 – Sergio Parisse (Stade Francais) Like Agüero, qualifies by virtue of being Argentinean. Gave his all in an emotional day in Paris, but couldn’t quite inspire his team to victory.

9 – Agustín Figuerola (Lyon) Snappy distribution and occasional snipes around the fringes kept his side on the front foot. Bayonne nearly stole it after he went off.

10 – Felipe Berchesi (Carcassonne) Has completely changed USC’s fortunes, going 3-1 since he arrived. Another outstanding all-around performance, he kicked 14 points including one penalty from well beyond 50 metres. A mention too for Patricio Fernández, who made his run-on debut for Clermont and looked good doing so.

11 – DTH van der Merwe (Scarlets) A constant threat with ball in hand at Treviso. Walk-in try was his easiest act of the day.

12 – Ignacio Mieres (Dax) Wonderful match, single-handedly led his side to a comeback victory over Montauban. Scored 21 points including a try for himself and gave the final pass for the other.

13 – Ciaran Hearn (London Irish) A rough start, it has to be said, as the Exiles were trounced by Harlequins, but with little competition the Canadian gets a sympathy nod for making his professional rugby debut. Onwards and upwards.

14 – Takudzwa Ngwenya (Biarritz) His terrific club form continues. Two quality finishes for tries as Les Biarrots routed Stade Montois.

15 – Matt Evans (Cornish Pirates) Played on the wing, but usually plays fullback so he’ll do. Another fine match and another try, this time an 80 metre breakaway effort. We’ll forgive him for his yellow card for an iffy intentional knock-on.