Champions Cup Team of the Week Round 4

Champions Cup Team of the Week Round 4

Another good weekend of rugby where we see Leinster qualify for the Quarter Finals after 4 rounds, Saracens mount a come back and Clermont, Racing 92 and Toulouse carry on their fine form

1. Mako Vunipola - Saracens 

 
 
Another busy and aggressive game from the Saracens' loosehead prop. His man of the match display helped Saracens' keep their hopes of making the playoffs alive as he was solid in the scrums and all over the park. He made 18 carries, 15 tackles, two turnovers and scored a crucial try in the encounter.
 
 
 


 
 

2. Facundo Bosch - La Rochelle
 
A massive effort on defence sees the Argentine earn a place in our team of the week. The La Rochelle hooker beats a strong effort from Rob Herring to make the side as he made a whopping 21 tackles missing just two and won a turnover.
 
 

3. Tadgh Furlong - Leinster
 
Powerful in the scrum and elusive and aggressive around the park, Furlong was on top form against Northampton Saints, like most of Leinster were.
 
 
 
 
4. Ultane Dillane - Connacht 
 
An excellent game from the Connacht man that could have easily been overlooked on a busy Saturday. The Connacht second rower was sensational in the lineouts robbing Gloucester of possession and making it difficult for the Premiership side to gain the upper hand. He also topped the tackle count for the Irish Province and did a great job on the ball either as an added distributor or carrying it up himself. 
 
Scott Fardy was also excellent for Leinster, while Dillane's opposite number Alex Craig was massive on defence making 28 tackles.
 
 
 
 
5. Rory Arnold - Toulouse 
 
 
Jean Kleyn and George Kruis were superb in the encounter on Saturday but the second spot in the engine room goes to Toulouse's Wallaby Rory Arnold. 
 
The former Brumby had an immense work rate resulting in two tries, one an intercept and the other from a Johan Goosen blunder some 40 metres away from the initial kick. 
 
Arnold hit the rucks, made his tackles and carries before he was given a breather before the hour mark. As mentioned before Kruis and Kleyn were excellent with the former making a ridiculous amount of tackles, 23.
 
 
 


 
 
 
6. Sam Simmonds - Exeter Chiefs

 
A slight positional change to put Simmonds in the side but his 2 tries and Man of the Match performance was hard to overlook. 
 
 
 
 
7. Jack O'Donoghue - Munster 
 
 
 
O'Donoghue's 18 tackles and three lineout wins do his performance little justice. Coming in at the last minute to replace captain Peter O'Mahony. The Munster loose forward stalled Saracens' lineout on a number of occasions, was excellent over the ball and massive on defence. 
 
Lewis Ludlow also had a brilliant game for Gloucester in their loss to Connacht. 
 
 


 
 
 
8. Billy Vunipola - Saracens
 
 
 
Vunipola produced a matching winning offload to Sean Maitland in the win over Munster and was another strong contender for man of the match. The England no.8 made a massive 22 carries and managed to beat 6 defenders on his way to racking up 49 running metres.
 
He had stiff competition for a place in our side with Marcell Coetzee, Caelan Doris, CJ Stander, Yoann Tanga and Lewis Ludlam all having strong games for their sides.
 
 


 
 
 
 
9. John Cooney - Ulster
 
 
 
A match-winner again for Ulster! Cooney continued his fine form on Friday scoring 19 points in Ulster's win over the Harlequins. He didn't need to slot a late penalty this time to secure the win but did grab a pair of tries, slotted a penalty and three conversions. He controlled the game superbly and looks set to earn at least one start come the Six Nations.
 
 
 


 
 
 

10. Romain Ntamack - Toulouse
 
 
 
Toulouse earn a history making win at Altrad Stadium with Ntamack leading from 10 and beating 6 defenders on the day scoring a try and making a turnover.
 
 


 
 
 
 

11. Juan Imhoff - Racing 92:
 

One of the most intelligent wingers in the game, Imhoff was at his best against Ospreys as he produced the goods again for Racing 92 with a brace of tries including one intercept. 

Imhoff made over 130 running metres on his way to the double and beats the likes of Nemani Nadolo and James Lowe to a place in the team of the week.
 
 
 
 
12. Bundee Aki - Connacht

 
Man of the Match performance in a sensational Connacht win as they steal it at the death against Gloucester. 5 defenders beaten and 10 tackles on the day. George Moala deserves a mention after his fine showing against Bath.
 
 
 
 
13. Garry Ringrose - Leinster
 
Ringrose grabbed another hattrick of tries on Saturday, his second of the competition, and was brilliant in all facets of the game as Leinster cruised to a comfortable victory over Northampton Saints. The Irish centre scored two in the first 10 minutes before completing his hat-trick before the hour mark.
 
Sofiane Guitoune also had a fine game for Toulouse against Montpellier as they claimed their first win over Montpellier away from home since 2015. Damian Penaud for Clermont came close with a great attacking game against Bath

 


 
 
 
14. Jack Nowell - Exeter Chiefs
 
 
Another good performance by the England interantional as Exeter Chiefs earn a bonus point win against Sale Sharks
 
 
 

15. Jordan Larmour - Leinster
 
 
Jacob Stockdale's efforts on Friday evening had him down for a place in our team of the week but then Larmour put in a sensational performance against Northampton Saints.
 
His 124 running metres, 11 defenders beaten and two clean breaks just scratch the surface of what was an incredible game for the youngster. His man of the match performance included a number of mind-blowing runs, excellent takes under the high ball and some slick footwork.
 
 


 

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