Following the conclusion of round nine of the PREM season, here is the latest Planet Rugby Team of the Week!
The weekend kicked off with a double-header on Friday night, as Newcastle Red Bulls downed Gloucester to record their first win of the season, while Bristol Bears stunned Sale Sharks with a strong comeback at Ashton Gate.
Saturday saw two more games unfold, with Bath scoring an 81st-minute try to beat West Country rivals Exeter Chiefs and Northampton Saints condemning Harlequins to yet another heavy defeat.
Rounding off the action, Leicester Tigers secured a crucial bonus-point win over fellow play-off chasers Saracens.
15 George Hendy (Northampton Saints): His case for the Six Nations squad gets stronger and stronger with each week, doesn’t it? Hendy is in such a rich vein of form at the moment, and was again at full tilt against Harlequins with a dazzling attacking display. Across his shift, he notched 114 metres from 11 carries, while beating three defenders and making one line break. Elliott Obatoyinbo can feel unlucky to miss out here.
14 Eduardo Todero (Northampton Saints): He’s taken to the PREM like a duck to water this season, but Saturday was probably his best performance of the season. He just seemed to have the bit between his teeth against Harlequins, offering serious fizz in attack. That told in his stats, too, with the Italian international making 148 metres from just nine carries, alongside a tally of seven defenders beaten. His try late in the second-half was also remarkable. Immanuel Feyi-Waboso wasn’t far off.
13 Tommy Freeman (Northampton Saints): His shift to 13 seems to be paying off for Northampton, with the British and Irish Lions and England star again putting on an excellent show. He’s always had that attacking X-factor, but at 13, he’s just able to get his hands on the ball in slightly different spaces, and that showed in his display against Quins. He notched a team-high 16 carries for 125 metres ball-in-hand on Saturday, and capped things off with a deserved try. Will Wand also caught the eye for Leicester.
12 Orlando Bailey (Leicester Tigers): The ex-Bath man might not have started at 12 that often in his young career, but he looked right at home here in Leicester’s win over Saracens. His deft handling and playmaking skills were pivotal in getting Leicester playing wide and fast, a tactic which worked so well, and he added his own flashes ball-in-hand too with a tally of five defenders beaten. Cameron Redpath was a close second here.
11 Adam Radwan (Leicester Tigers): The onlooking England attack coach Lee Blackett will certainly have been impressed with the flying – quite literally when you look at his first try – winger. Radwan was at the peak of his powers against Saracens, thriving in the expansive attack that saw him touch the ball in almost every strike play and led to a whopping haul of 143 metres. He also showed impressive defensive skills, particularly in his intercept try late in the second-half. Kalaveti Ravouvou held this shirt for most of the weekend, and can feel unlucky to miss out.
10 Billy Searle (Leicester Tigers): Fin Smith was in pole position until Sunday afternoon, but Searle’s impressive effort sees him leapfrog the England and Lions man into the shirt. He seems to have really taken to life at Mattioli Woods Welford Road, after bouncing around different clubs in the years since Worcester’s demise, and Sunday felt like a real marker. Searle was a real force in Leicester’s attack, offering that dual threat with his carrying and distribution, and also kicked well off the tee. A very complete performance.
9 Alex Mitchell (Northampton Saints): We’re starting to run out of superlatives for Mitchell, with the England and Lions man in spellbinding form of late. Mitchell was again at the heart of Northampton’s rampant attack against Harlequins, injecting serious tempo around the ruck, which then got them playing consistently on the front-foot. He backed that up with his trademark sniping, too, making 86 metres from just six carries alongside two line breaks. Simon Benitez Cruz was also a key part of Newcastle’s win over Gloucester.
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The forwards
8 Alfie Barbeary (Bath): A good weekend for English number eights, with Callum Chick, Greg Fisilau and Tom Willis impressing for Saints, Exeter Chiefs and Saracens respectively, but the Bath man gets the nod. The England hopeful again proved himself as a premier ball-carrier in those tight exchanges, notching a game-high 15 carries for 24 metres across his 57-minute stint, while also beating eight defenders, and added a nice try on top.
7 Tom Christie (Newcastle Red Bulls): A lot of the plaudits for Newcastle’s first PREM victory of the season should fall onto Christie’s name, after a truly exceptional display. The ex-Crusaders man was a rock in defence during the win, making an eye-watering 23 tackles at a success rate of 100%, and pleasingly contributed in attack too with some nice carries and a try. Tom Pearson deserves a name check too.
6 Tom Hooper (Exeter Chiefs): He’s enjoyed a strong start to life at the Chiefs, but his performance against Bath was on another level. The back-rower was a real force in their spirited fightback against Bath, making 17 tackles and two turnovers alongside six tackles, but it was his ability to spawn in the right place at the right time that gets him into this side. Sam Graham and Kane James both made strong cameos off the bench.
5 Pedro Rubiolo (Bristol Bears): The Los Pumas ace’s defensive efforts get him in ahead of Leicester’s Ollie Chessum in this selection. Rubiolo posted a game-high tally of 19 tackles – at a success rate of 95% too – in an effort which helped turn the tide in the battle up front, and also got stuck into the breakdown battle.
4 Alex Coles (Northampton Saints): England lock Coles walks straight into this side. His hat-trick and assist for Mitchell will take the headlines, but he backed that up with yet more steely efforts in the tight and some top-notch work in the lineout too. Another who has really given his England hopes a boost in recent outings, following a strong Autumn Nations Series campaign too. JJ van der Mescht also played his part in the Saints win.
3 Richard Palframan (Newcastle Red Bulls): A close call between him and Leicester’s Joe Heyes, but we’ve opted for the Newcastle man here. Palframan has been a rock of stability for the Newcastle club for a good while now, and his display against Gloucester was the embodiment of that. His efforts in defence were particularly noticeable, making 13 tackles across his shift.
2 George McGuigan (Newcastle Red Bulls): Just pipping ex-Newcastle man Jamie Blamire into the number two shirt is current Red Bulls skipper McGuigan, after his all-court display against Gloucester. His try set the Red Bulls on their way to victory on Friday night, but also chipped in around the park with 12 tackles, six carries and a turnover.
1 Ellis Genge (Bristol Bears): This pick caused a sleepless Sunday night, with Danilo Fishcetti shining for Northampton, but we’ve just got the British and Irish Lions tourist ahead. Genge was once again a wrecking ball in attack, making 11 carries for 24 metres alongside a tally of four defenders beaten, and looked supremely powerful in the scrum too.
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