Super Rugby Team of the Week - Round 10

Super Rugby Team of the Week - Round 10

With the dust settling on Round 10 of Super Rugby we pick our team of the week with a number of players getting their first pick of the season while a few familiar faces feature again.

1. Santiago Botta

Botta was solid in a see-saw battle with Allan Alaalatoa in the Jaguares victory over the Brumbies on Sunday.

He was busy at the ruck time and made 6 tackles and 4 carries. Pierre Schoeman had a good game for the Bulls, while JP Smith made a massive impact off the bench for the Reds.

2. Ash Dixon


Ash Dixon's massive defensive performance against the Blues sees him take the number 2 jersey over the ever-present Lions hooker Malcolm Marx.
Dixon made 15 tackles in 53 minutes and had a tidy performance both in the scrum and at lineout time. 
 
 
3. Thomas du Toit
 
Arguably one of du Toit's best performances in the no.3 jersey for the Sharks this year. The big tighthead scored a crucial try for the Sharks as they fought off a late Stormers onslaught to win the coastal derby 24-17. 
Siate Tokolahi put in another strong performance for the Highlanders making 8 tackles without a miss, while Allan Alaalatoa continued his fine form for the Brumbies.
 
 
4. Brodie Retallick
 
Another week, another strong performance by one the best locks in the world. Retallick made 13 tackles, won two turnovers and got the scoresheet with his 4th try of the season.
Sunwolves lock James Moore was brilliant in a losing effort against the Crusaders, Jackson Hemopo had another workhorse like performance for the Highlanders.
 
5. Ruan Botha
 
The Sharks captain edges out his fellow countryman Lood de Jager for a spot in our team of the week. 
Botha put the Stormers lineout under tremendous pressure resulting in two turnovers and made 15 tackles.
 
 
6.  Shannon Frizell
 
A tough choice at number 6 with two players standing head and shoulders above their competitors this week.
Phillip van der Walt was busy on attack and defence making 20 tackles and carried the ball 14 times, he also won two turnovers for his side.
Unfortunately, for van der Walt, Shannon Frizell was just as impressive for the Highlanders as he dotted down for three tries and assisted a fourth to claim the number 6 jumper.
Frizell wasn't all attack against the Blues, he also made 14 tackles and one turnover. 
 
 
7. Dillon Hunt
 
Hunt is the second Highlanders loose forward to make the team of the week and rightfully so. Hunt made 25 tackles against the Blues, 2 short of David Pocock's Super Rugby record in 2009.
Hunt caused the Blues a number of headaches at the breakdown and won one pilfer. 
 
Sam Cane and David Pocock just miss out on selection with the pair continuing to consistently perform for the Chiefs and Brumbies. 
 
8. Amanaki Mafi
 
The Rebels went down 28-10 to the Bulls on Saturday but the result was certainly not down to the performance of Amanaki Mafi who once again came up with impressive numbers in the match.
Mafi made 121 running metres from his 22 carries and 10 tackles.
Caleb Timu wasn't too far off from avoiding the cut and the same can be said about Sunwolves no.8 Kazuki Himeno.
 
 
9. Cameron Wright
 
Wright made the best of his rare start for the Sharks. The busy halfback had an exceptional game with the boot and kept the Sharks attack ticking over.
He beats Jaguares halfback Gonzalo Bertranou to the starting jersey.
 
10. Nicolas Sanchez
 
Sanchez was unpredictably brilliant against the Brumbies, as he varied his attack throughout the match.
His game management was superb as was his kicking from the hand and defence. 
Sanchez was credited with two try assists and made 9 tackles without missing. 
The Jaguares playmaker edges out the likes of Lima Sopoaga and Handre Pollard.
 
 
11. Rieko Ioane
 
 
Returning to the wing for the Blues, Ioane, had another strong game for the Blues despite his side being unable to claim a win over a fellow New Zealand side.
Ioane made 110 running metres, beat 8 defenders and made 5 clean breaks.
Madosh Tambwe had another strong performance for the Lions as they kept the Waratahs scoreless in Sydney, while Mapimpi was crucial to the Sharks success over the Stormers.

12. Samu Kerevi

Samu Kerevi scored both of the Reds tries in their loss to the Chiefs on the weekend. The destructive runner made 62 running metres, beat 6 defenders and made 1 clean breaks.
On defence, he made 11 tackles and one turnover. Ryan Crotty's performance against the Sunwolves deserves a mention as he scored a double in their 33-11 victory.
 
 
13. Lukhanyo Am
 
Lukhanyo Am was sensational against the Stormers he set up a brilliant try for himself from a scrum and was strong defensively making 9 tackles.
Am did have stiff competition for the no.13 jersey with Matias Orlando and Rob Thompson both impressing for the Jaguares and Highlanders.
 
 
14. Solomon Alaimalo
 
Alaimalo finds himself on the right wing in our team of the week despite playing on the left against the Reds.
The 22-year-old has been a consistent performer for the Chiefs and continued his fine form rucking up 95 running metres beating 4 defenders and made 3 clean breaks.
He was also credited with a try assist and beat off the likes of Johnny Kotze and Sibusiso Nkosi.
 
 
15. Warrick Gelant
 
Another solid performance by Gelant as he continues to mature as the weeks go by.
Known mostly for his attacking ability, Gelant had a great game with the boot against the Rebels as the two sides battled for field territory for large periods of the game.
Gelant was still effective on attack making 64 running metres, beating 10 defenders and made 2 clean breaks. 
Curwin Bosch, Tom Banks and Joaquin Tuculet were amongst the number of fullbacks who performed well this past weekend.

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