Team of the Week

We had a virtually full slate of Americas professionals on offer this past weekend which left a lot to look over, but overall it wasn’t a great week for our exports. Many of the European players came up short and Los Jaguares were below par against the Stormers. A couple players have been shifted around to accommodate others but we’ve just about got a reasonable side ready to go.

1 – Ignacio Sáenz Lancuba (Jersey) Celebrated his 50th match for the Island side with a solid performance against a fired up London Scottish team. Battled the much larger Matt Shields in the scrum and disrupted enough to force a fumble that put Richard Lane in for a critical score.

2 – Agustín Costa Repetto (Tarbes) Part of a huge front row that demolished their Carcassonne counterparts in the scrum. A heavyweight with ball in hand once again, a sight that Colomiers fans look forward to seeing in person next season.

3 – Leandro Assi (Provence) Huge workrate around the pitch, his scrum was up to scratch and his tackling around the fringes accurate. Played all 80 minutes and won a crucial turnover in the 78th minute to save a four point win over Albi.

4 – Tomás Lavanini (Jaguares) Had his rough areas with some patchy handling, but overall a very physical performance in a losing team effort. Picked off one throw in the lineout and only conceded one penalty, which is a good day at the office for an infamous offender.

5 – Jon Phelan (Doncaster) Right in the middle of an outstanding effort by the Knights, robbed of a famous victory over Bristol by a last minute try from Tom Varndell. Phelan played the full 80 minutes and never let up, adding a couple strong carries and several tackles to his usual contribution at the lineout.

6 – Evan Olmstead (London Scottish) Another to lose in dramatic fashion as a penalty try awarded on full-time handed the game to Jersey. Stuck it out in the back row for the entire match and put himself about most notably in defense.

7 – Tomás Lezana (Jaguares) Showed huge promise in his Super Rugby debut with three line breaks and several effective carries. Virtually flawless in defense, he can hold his head high despite the defeat.

8 – Andrew Durutalo (Sunwolves) Played on the flank but moves to his old spot of no8 to make room for Lezana. Prominent in a beaten side one again, his good support was rewarded with an early try. Also pinched a couple balls at the breakdown, though he may have taken one or two penalties too many.

9 – Agustín Ormaechea (Mont-de-Marsan) Outstanding game leading his team to a smashing victory over Béziers. Quick distribution kept his team on the front foot, and his sniping around the fringes caused havoc and created three tries.

10 – Patricio Fernández (Clermont) His 12 points including a try helped his team claw back from a 19-0 halftime deficit. Distributed brilliantly and picked his spots to run with effect.

11 – DTH van der Merwe (Scarlets) Another big game going forward, proving a handful with every touch. Diving finish staying just infield to score at the end was the icing on the cake in the win over Ospreys.

12 – Jerónimo de la Fuente (Jaguares) Hard step off the left foot put him past the cover defense to score the only try of the match for his team. Carried strongly and defended well, another who put his hand up for continual selection.

13 – Marcelo Bosch (Saracens) More a steady influence than a star. Mixed up his play and distributed well, and most importantly kept the Exeter midfield off the scoreboard en route to a dominant victory.

14 – Chris Wyles (Saracens) Enjoyed his 200th club appearance in the fullest. Had a handful of quality carries including one to wrap up proceedings, breaking through tackles to score a fine try.

15 – Matt Evans (Cornish Pirates) Played on the wing but we’ll take him at fullback. A thorn in the side of the overwhelmed Moseley defense and he notched his 8th try of the season.