Premiership Team of the Week: David Campese picks ‘brilliantly reliable’ Finn Russell alongside potential Lions half-back partner
With Round 11 of the Premiership season now behind us as the competition takes a mini-break, Wallabies legend David Campese is back to give us his Team of the Week.
For the second season in a row we have partnered with?eToro, the official investing and trading partner of Premiership Rugby, to bring you a best XV from every?Premiership?round, each one chosen by a famous face from the world of rugby.
“The pre-Six Nations round is always a tricky one for the clubs. Shorn of England players but with the guys from other countries such as Scotland and Wales forced to play due to a lack of release agreements with the other Unions makes it difficult to predict results and it’s a real test of squad depth as we saw this weekend,” Campese said in his review.
“The standard of attacking play was, however, delightful, with Harlequins and Gloucester particularly impressing me and Bath showing real fortitude to win on the road at Sale in a storm!
“Here’s my team of the weekend.”
eToro Premiership Team of the Week
15 Tyrone Green (Harlequins): A number of full-backs impressed me with Joe Carpenter and Santi Carreras both unlucky to miss out. But Green ignited Quins – he becomes available for England shortly and on the form we’ve seen from him, a Test call will be immediate, you’d like to think?
14 Noah Heward (Bristol Bears): A great example of how Test call-ups create opportunities for others as the young Bear crossed for a couple of great tries. Tobias Elliott replied with two for Saracens as both young guns gave a great account of themselves over the weekend.
13 Chris Harris (Gloucester): It says something about the depth of midfielders available to Scotland that this brilliant centre hasn’t been called up. Nevertheless, Scotland’s loss is Gloucester’s gain as Harris was great on both sides of the ball. A word for Quins’ Will Joseph, a highly rated player who scored an important try for Quins v Saints, whilst Max Ojomoh impressed me for Bath.
12 Will Rigg (Exeter Chiefs): A massive performance by a big, direct inside centre as Chiefs continue their turnaround. Benhard Janse van Rensburg had another good outing for Bristol, whilst Seb Atkinson did well again for Gloucester and Max Clark stood up well in defeat for Newcastle Falcons.
11 Kalaveti Ravouvou (Bristol Bears): The big man stood out again as he crossed for two in a powerful display on the left wing. Cassius Cleaves shone for Quins, whilst Max Llewellyn, inexplicably omitted from the Welsh squad, did well again for Gloucester.
10 Finn Russell (Bath): A consummate display from the brilliantly reliable fly-half, his game control shone on a day that made handling hard. Gareth Anscombe was superb in running the Gloucester attack, and a word for Fergus Burke at Saracens who defended like a trooper for Saracens despite their loss.
9 Tomos Williams (Gloucester): There’s a chance Williams will be alongside Russell as the Lions half-back pairing in Australia and it’s easy to see why. Kieran Marmion shone for Bristol, scoring in their win, and Stu Townsend gave Exeter some go forward in their impressive win over Saracens.
The forwards
8 Alfie Barbeary (Bath): A massive display of close quarter carrying on a day made for stocky numbers eights in Sale. Callum Chick was close to getting in as he shone for Newcastle Falcons, whilst Olly Cracknell was one of Tigers’ better performers. Viliame Mata crossed for Bristol Bears in a solid outing for the eight.
7 Miles Reid (Bath): A man that really should be on England’s radar takes the place from another man ignored at Test level, Will Evans, who again bossed the breakdown for Quins. Lewis Ludlow was the other seven pest as he impressed me for Gloucester.
6 Jack Kenningham (Harlequins): Massive. A man that, but for injuries would surely be around the England team, Kenningham is properly big and a real athlete. Ethan Roots scored a crucial try for Chiefs, as did Jack Clement. Three players that all could do a job for Steve Borthwick but can’t get close due to the depth England have.
5 Charlie Ewels (Bath): A towering display from a man that perhaps should have done more at Test level, Ewels put in a massive shift in the Sale winds. Richard Capstick is doing a fantastic job for Chiefs as a makeshift lock, whilst Tigers’ Harry Wells scored in defeat.
4 Dafydd Jenkins (Exeter Chiefs): Dafydd is getting ready for Wales this weekend. It’s hard to say if he’s a flanker or a lock at Test level, but his maturity belies his age. Joe Launchbury was tireless for Quins in their win, whilst James Dun impressed me for Bristol.
3 Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers): He may have been on the losing side, but Coley Bear has a spine of concrete and he drilled Gloucester for fully 60 minutes. Thomas du Toit is normally a given in our teams of the week and he’s my runner-up.
2 Jamie Blamire (Newcastle Falcons): A consolation prize for a doughty display from the Falcons as Blamire shone, scoring a try in a rounded display. Exeter got maximum benefit from the two jersey as both Jack Innard and Dan Frost grabbed important tries as they turn their season around.
1 Val Rapava-Ruskin (Gloucester): Big Val is a world class operator without ever managing to get the international recognition he deserves. He defined impact in a great offloading and jackaling 40 minutes. Tarek Haffar crossed for Northampton Saints, as did Eroni Mawi for Saracens but both finished on the losing side.
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