Champions Cup Round 4 TOTW

Champions Cup Round 4 TOTW

After 4 Rounds of the Champions Cup there are 3 unbeaten teams, Racing 92, Saracens and Toulouse as we look ahead to the final pool games. After a thrilling weekend we pick our Team of the Week

1 Mikheil Nariashvili - Montpellier

The Georgian was in fine form against Marcel vd Merwe at scrum time and added huge value in the 34-13 win over Toulon. The 28-year-old thrived in the wet conditions and often got the better of the South African tighthead. He also made 13 tackles in the hour he was out on the pitch and edged the likes of Mako Vunipola and Cian Healy.

2 Jamie George - Saracens


Man of the match performance with a tremendous work rate, carrying strongly, solid in defense and superb at the breakdown winning some crucial turnovers.

His set-piece work was exceptional as his side maintained a 100% success record in both the scrums and lineouts. His efforts were rewarded with the game-clinching try from the back of a maul.


George did have some stiff competition for the jersey this week with the likes of Jack Yeandle, Jaco Visagie, Kevin Firmin and Rory Best all having particularly strong games.

3 Ben Tameufuna - Racing 92

Tameifuna showed that he is more than just 153kg battering ram against Leicester Tigers with a number of soft touches and big hits.

He was smashed by Manu Tuilagi in the first half but that hit did his game little damage as he got the better of Ellis Genge a few times.

His opposite number Dane Cole also had a reasonably strong despite going to the sin bin for 10 minutes while Wilfrid Hounkpatin was expectional off the bench for Castres. 

4 Devin Toner - Leinster

Huge showing on defence with 22 tackles and added 10 carries to the attacking numbers.

His effort was a huge contribution to the foundation that set up the 42-15 win on the weekend.



5 Jonny Gray - Glasgow

Yet another workmanlike performance from the Scottish International lock who pips Franco Mostert for a place in the side. Gray made all 21 of his attempted 21 tackles and carried the ball 7 times.

Gray also ran a relatively tidy shift at lineout time with his side losing just 3 of their 13 lineouts with Lyon possessing the most effective defensive lineouts in France. Gray also dominated the rucks and mauls and fronted up against the tough South African lock pairing of Etienne Oosthuizen and Hendrik Roodt, with the latter having a particularly impressive game. Elsewhere, Iain Henderson is incredibly unlucky not to make the cut after a massive shift against Scarlets where he scored a brace and made 13 tackles and 13 carries.

6 Dan Leavy - Leinster

The 24-year-old flanker was instrumental in the Leinster win this weekend and got on the scoreboard too in the 6 try thriller by Leinster. He pestered the Bath breakdown on a regualar bassis and often on hand to defuse the threat the likes of Francois Louw and Sam Underhill provided in that particular area. 

Toulouse' Francois Cros also had a big game against Wasps while Michael Rhodes was one of the standout performers for Saracens.

7 Don Armand - Exeter Chiefs

A massive game from the England International as he hit double digits in the tackle and carries departments and lead the charge for Exeter who claimed a crucial win over Gloucester on Friday evening.

He made a handy 17 tackles and 11 carries for his side and dotted down for a try just before the break.

8 Antoine Claassen - Racing 92

Racing 92 is known for the flair they possess but Claassen played the balancing attack in their win over Leicester Tigers on Sunday.

He was excellent off the base of the scrum providing Teddy Iribaren excellent services to attack from and did the same at lineout time.

He carried the ball well and tackled whatever came his way while also lending a heavy helping hand at the rucks. 

He was rewarded with the man of the match accolade in the game where the backs stole the limelight.

CJ Stander was also brilliant in defeat while Louis Picamole thrived in the wet against Toulon. Finally Jerome Kaino's efforts against Wasps deserves a mention.

9. Antoine Dupont - Toulouse

An incredible performance against Wasps earns Antoine Dupont our player of the weekend award. He was brilliant in every single facet of the game and was given an outstanding applause when he left the field in the 66th minute. Every single thing Toulouse did right against Wasps seemed to involve Dupont in some way or another. He created a gap and delivered a sensational offload for Iosefa Tekori who had no one in front of him as he darted over for his side's second try of the game. He then got Guitoune into space who set up N'tamack's try later on in the game. He then grabbed a try of his own when he ran a perfect line off of Huget for a try of his own. Not too long later he ran another great line off Ramos to score his second. His passing was crisp throughout the game while his kicking was pinpoint as he continues to put pressure on Baptiste Serin for the starting Les Bleus jersey.



10 Johnny Sexton - Leinster

An outstanding performance from the World Rugby Player of the Year sees him beat off some hefty competition for his place in the side this week.

Finn Russell, Adam Hastings, Zack Holmes, Jaco van der Walt, Billy Burns and Johan Goosen all had incredible games but fall just short of the Irish International.

His trademark loop was too much for Bath to handle on Saturday while he also drilled a pinpoint cross to Adam Byrne for a try.

He also finished the game with 100% kicking success. 



11 Duhan van der Merwe - Edinburgh

The Edinburgh finisher was excellent for the Scottish side as they scored 15 unanswered points to beat Newcastle Falcons.

He kept Vereniki Govenva relatively quiet making 10 of his 11 attempted tackles and finished a great try in the 73rd. 

He just beat Juan Imhoff to place in the side with the former Los Pumas enjoying an outstanding game against Leicester Tigers.

12 Rory O'Loughlin - Leinster

In a night that Johnny Sexton starred, Rory O'Loughlin still walked away with the man of the match award.

He gave Leinster a brilliant platform to attack from and was excellent when it came to putting his teammates into space.

His efforts were rewarded with a try in the 11th minute. Elsewhere, Romain Nt'amack was superb for Toulouse.

13 Sofiane Guitoune - Toulouse

Another brilliant performance by Guitoune who combined superbly with N'tamack - who would have made the team had it not been for O'Loughlin's brilliance. Guitoune ran some nice angles off the likes of N'tamack, Holmes and Dupont and regularly put the likes of Kolbe, Ramos and Huget into space. He was also heavily involved in N'tamack's try early in the second half.

14 Yoann Huget - Toulouse

Huget was everywhere against Wasps whether he was tracking back on defence on finishing off a try on the other side of the field. He pounced on a poor offload by Willie Le Roux after applying the pressure from the kick chase. He was also made a crucial break in midfield off a Thomas Ramos offload and made a brilliant offload to Dupont to score his first try of the game. Huget could have got his second but failed to ground the ball in the corner thanks to some handy cover defence by Wasps. The 31-year-old finished the game with 89 running metres, beating 3 defenders and came up with a try assist.

 

15 Francois Steyn - Montpellier

Steyn has been thriving in his old position since making the switch back to the 15 jersey for Montpellier. 

The Springbok racked up 100 running metres and pinned Toulon in their own territory with his siege gun boot in terrible condition, he also had a brilliant break to set up a try for Pienaar.

Like Sexton for the no.10 jersey, Steyn had a ton of competition with Thomas Ramos, Willie Le Roux, Alex Goode and Louis Ludik all having strong games.

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