Team of the Week

It’s an all-domestic selection this week, with the vast majority of the side coming from two PRO matches where Ohio and Denver were particularly dominant. Sacramento did sneak a couple players in, while the Canadian Rugby Championship gives us a pair of players from the game in Esquimalt. Los Jaguares, sadly, were barely worth watching and have only one representative in this week’s team.

1 – Valdemar Lee-Lo (Sacramento) Possibly his best match at senior level. Had a good battle with Jamie Mackintosh at the scrum, but his work in the loose was excellent with several strong carries through heavy traffic. Very harshly penalised for not releasing on one of those runs.

2 – Zach Fenoglio (Denver) Remains the form hooker in the Americas with his accurate lineout throwing and fine work around the park. Scored two tries himself. Can John Mitchell tempt him back to an Eagles shirt? Maybe a social media campaign would work.

3 – Chris Baumann (Denver) His strongest match of the season for the Stampede. Carried and tackled with intent and won a couple turnovers. No problems in the scrum.

4 – Pierce Dargan (Ohio) One of the most consistent performers in the Aviators jersey this season. A ceaseless engine around the park whose support play is top notch.

5 – Kyle Baillie (Ohio) Showed his athleticism once again with a strong lineout performance and his pace as a carrier was rewarded with an impressive try. His strongest match in PRO thus far.

6 – Hanco Germishuys (Denver) Immense in the contact area, winning every collision and routinely slowing down San Diego’s ball. Brought home two tries and made numerous big plays.

7 – Sebastián Kalm (Ohio) Doesn’t carry as much as a flanker but still heavily involved. Great work as a link man around the ball and his cover tackle on Cody Jerabek saved a certain try – temporarily.

8 – Facundo Isa (Jaguares) Far and away the best player for Los Jaguares in a poor team performance. Kept his reputation intact with another huge match with ball in hand and some excellent defense as well.

9 – Shaun Davies (Ohio) The best halfback in PRO week-in, week-out. Doesn’t do the flash stuff but distributes quickly and knows when and where to kick. Goal-kicking was below par this week but it didn’t matter in the end.

10 – Will Magie (Denver) Another controlled performance, marshaling his team around with pitch and keeping the San Diego kick defense on their toes. Lovely toe through put Mike Garrity in for an easy try. Worthy of a look-in as AJ MacGinty’s understudy with the Eagles.

11 – Cody Jerabek (Sacramento) The breakthrough player of the week. Showed his athletic potential with two huge bursts, impressing with both his speed and strength in the contact area. One to watch.

12 – Roland Suniula (Ohio) Another very strong match, this time more prominent with ball in hand. Barreled through the midfield and made smart decisions with ball in hand.

13 – Mozac Samson (Wolf Pack) The lead carrier for the Pack as they beat the Bears once again, he set a target for his forwards all day. Should get a chance to impress on the Canada ‘A’ tour in August.

14 – Spike Davis (Ohio) It’s official. Davis owns this spot in the team. He’s been nearly unstoppable all season and scored two more on Saturday. Europe surely beckons sooner than later.

15 – Brock Staller (Bears) Rock solid at the back, it was more than his kicking that kept the Bears in the game. Made an impression with each carry and popped up to create Doug Fraser’s try early on.