PREMIERSHIP TEAM OF THE WEEK: NICK EASTER REWARDS WEST COUNTRY FORM AS ‘CLOSE CALL’ MADE AT FLY-HALF

Following Round 15, which included some incredible results, such as a win on the road for Bath and a thrashing of Newcastle Falcons by Bristol Bears, former England and Harlequins back-row Nick Easter picked his Team of the Week.

We have teamed up with eToro, the official investing and trading partner of Premiership Rugby, to launch a new feature that will see us name a best XV from a famous face after every Premiership round for the remainder of the season.

Last week, Easter correctly predicted the winner of four of the five Premiership Rugby fixtures. The only game which Easter did not correctly call the winner of was Bath’s win over Exeter Chiefs at Sandy Park.

On the back of his predictions on Friday, Easter rejoins us to select his team of the round.

Premiership Rugby Team of the Week – Round 15

15 Joe Carpenter (Sale Sharks): A consummate display at the back for Sale as they claimed a crucial win against a leg-weary Harlequins. Tyrone Green also shone for the visitors in defeat, whilst Alex Goode impressed in Saracens’ 46-24 win versus Gloucester.

14 Siva Naulago (Bristol Bears): A huge performance from the winger as he profited from the brilliance of his centres as he started the rout with a first-minute try. Louis Lynagh grabbed a brace for my old club Quins as they went down at Sale, whilst Saints’ George Hendy also impressed as Northampton disposed of Leicester Tigers in the East Midlands derby.

13 Benhard Janse van Rensburg (Bristol Bears): Absolutely brilliant all afternoon and created some real problems for Falcons, crossing twice and assisting three. He’s my Player of the Week, although a word too for Ollie Lawrence, who went well for Bath, and Rob du Preez, who was again the glue in the Sale backline.

12 Max Ojomoh (Bath): A wonderful outing for the England hopeful who is forging an impressive partnership with Lawrence. Manu Tuilagi was absolutely massive for Sale and is such a hard player to contain, whilst Fraser Dingwall also impressed me for Saints.

11 Gabriel Ibitoye (Bristol Bears): The winger’s fine form continues as he was literally involved in everything good I saw from the Bears, and there was quite a lot of it! Tom Parton was also one that caught my eye as he excelled for Saracens with a rapid hat-trick.

Half-backs

10 Marcus Smith (Harlequins): A very close call with Fin Smith starring for Saints, Owen Farrell reminding us all of his class for Saracens, AJ McGinty racking up a cricket score for Bristol and George Ford also impressing. But Smith still has that X-factor and he was crucial in the Quins’ comeback.

9 Ben Spencer (Bath): A really close call between Spencer and Alex Mitchell, who again shone for Saints. In fact, England’s scrum-half stock all did well, with Harry Randall in great nick for Bristol and Raffi Quirke also shining for Sale.

Who’s hot and who’s not: Lions fly flag for South Africa, Bristol Bears maul dismal Falcons and Taulupe Faletau’s cruel blow

Loose forwards

8 Alfie Barbeary (Bath): Absolutely huge as he dominated the gainline with some thundering carries. Jean-Luc du Preez was in fine fettle for Sale, and over in Bristol, Magnus Bradbury also impressed me as he’s proving to be a really shrewd signing for the Bears.

7 Ben Earl (Saracens): A quite remarkable performance at the breakdown and around the park from the brilliant openside-cum-eight. I love watching Ben these days, but Sam Dugdale also impressed me for Sale, as did Lewis Ludlam, another like Barbeary that is great at making yards through contact.

6 Juan Martin Gonzalez (Saracens): An all-action display from the blindside flanker who is proving to be amongst the shrewdest signings made by Mark McCall in recent times. Alex Coles also shone for Saints, filling the big boots of Courtney Lawes, whilst Chandler Cunningham-South is demonstrating he’s something very special as he shone for Quins in defeat. Ethan Roots also had a strong game for the Chiefs, while Ben Curry looked back to his best, too, scoring for Sale Sharks.

Tight five

5 Theo McFarland (Saracens): Absolutely monstrous, a world-class athlete in every respect and once again outstanding in his club’s win. Josh Beaumont often goes under the radar for Sale, but he was very impressive in his lineout and maul work in a vital win for Alex Sanderson’s team.

4 Charlie Ewels (Bath): Ewels is in the form of his life, and he put in a brilliant display, including two try assists, one from a galloping 30m break, as once again he showed just how impressive his work rate is. Alex Moon showed his credentials as he also put in a big shift for the Saints as they overcame their bitter rivals, Leicester.

3 James Harper (Sale Sharks): Immense. There are not many who even so much as trouble my old mate Joe Marler at scrum time, but Harper really laid down a marker as he got Sale going forward in the set-piece. A shout out to Will Stuart, very influential for Bath, carrying brilliantly all afternoon.

2 Curtis Langdon (Northampton Saints): Hugely mobile, scored yet another try, and his tight work is getting better and better. Tom Dunn was part of the Bath front-row that dismantled Exeter Chiefs, whilst Theo Dan again shone for Saracens.

1 Ellis Genge (Bristol Bears): The Bears pack set the platform for the backs to run riot, and Genge was paramount to that effort. Meanwhile, Alex Waller is on the road to his retirement, but it may well be via Twickenham if his form continues as he really got into both Dan Cole and Will Hurd in an impressive display. Bevan Rodd once again looked like a fourth back-row as his ball skills shone for Sale Sharks.

🦏 Power and pace from the 'Baby Rhino', Ellis Genge.#BRIvNEW #GallagherPrem pic.twitter.com/llefZrscsw

— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) April 21, 2024

The Premiership Team of the Week is brought to you by eToro, the official investing and trading partner of Premiership Rugby.

Tackle investing the smart way and join millions of UK investors on eToro today. The friendly platform for serious investors.

eToro is a multi-asset investment platform. The value of your investments may go up or down. Your capital is at risk.

READ MORE: URC Team of the Week: Ospreys ‘heroes’ rewarded after stunning Stormers win as rising Springboks star ‘shows his class’

2024-04-22T13:14:15Z dg43tfdfdgfd