TRU's Aviva Premiership XV Team of the Week

With both the East Midlands and West Country derbies taking place on Saturday, not to mention Wasps’ first game at their new home, the Ricoh Arena, on Sunday, there were certainly plenty of reasons to stay glued to the Aviva Premiership this weekend.

Round 10 offered up plenty of physical, prideful and exciting rugby and we put together our XV of the Week for you to peruse. As ever, let us know where you think we got it right and where we got it wrong!

1. Mako Vunipola, Saracens

Eiffion Lewis-Roberts, Alex Waller and Marcos Ayerza all deserve honourable mentions, but Mako Vunipola took London Welsh to school on Saturday, scoring two tries, charging through defenders with abandon and continuing his impressive scrummaging since his return from injury.

2. Marc Jones, Sale Sharks

Sale’s lineout has struggled this season with Tommy Taylor absent through injury, but Jones had the unit running like a well-oiled machine on Friday night. The Sharks’ ability to rely on their set-piece and use it as a foundation for their underrated back line was arguably the difference between Sale and Exeter at the Salford City Stadium.

3. Dan Cole, Leicester Tigers

Not much went right for Leicester on Saturday in the East Midlands derby, but their scrum went very well, particularly after the departure of Dylan Hartley. Cole’s opposite number, Alex Waller, didn’t have a bad game, but Cole is a formidable opponent at the best of times, let alone when your team has been reduced to 14 men. It was another important step in Cole’s recovery ahead of the 2015 Six Nations. Wasps’ Jake Cooper-Woolley came close to pipping Cole, after he took Tom Court apart at the Ricoh Arena on Sunday.

4. Matt Garvey, Bath Rugby

The additional physicality that Garvey’s second half introduction brought was akin to a haymaker knocking out a dazed and confused boxer at Kingsholm on Saturday, as he powered his way to two tries and took the game beyond the reaches of a reeling Gloucester side. Both Nathan Hines and Graham Kitchener deserve honourable mentions for their contributions this weekend, but neither influenced their games in the same fashion as Garvey.

5. Courtney Lawes, Northampton Saints

The England lock put in an excellent all-round performance on Saturday, carrying 14 times (just two times less than the entire Leicester pack), offloading to keep Saints’ attacks moving and had Tom Youngs’ number at the lineout, preventing the Tigers from having the success there that they were enjoying in the scrum. With Hartley off the pitch, Lawes picked up the slack as a ball carrier, hurting Leicester with ball in hand, especially around the fringes.

6. Dave Ewers, Exeter Chiefs

Everyone is well aware of the ability Ewers offers as a powerful carrier, but an impressive tally of 20 tackles against Sale shows that he has become a far more polished player since his move to the blindside. The same move helped take Billy Vunipola’s game to the next level and it surely can’t be long till it does the same for Ewers.

7. Francois Louw, Bath Rugby

The South African flanker must be in the conversation with the likes of Michael Hooper and Steffon Armitage as the best in the world at his position, putting in another dominant effort at the contact area, in just his second appearance since neck surgery. Leicester’s Julian Salvi put in a good shift, but fell some way short of Louw this weekend.

8. Josh Beaumont, Sale Sharks

Beaumont has been impressive this season and continued his development apace against Exeter, proving to be a defensive force both in the loose and at the set-piece. Not content with helping his own hooker lay the foundations for their success with 11 lineout takes, he also did a good job of disrupting Exeter’s set-piece, stealing two lineouts and spoiling even more ball.

9. Richard Wigglesworth, Saracens

Kahn Fotuali’i was excellent for Northampton, as was Wasps’ Joe Simpson, with both players controlling their games exceptionally, but Wigglesworth bagged a hat-trick against London Welsh after coming on as a second half replacement. Admittedly, players who played against Welsh should probably have an asterisk after their names in this team, with the phrase ‘shooting fish in a barrel’ springing to mind.

10. Andy Goode, Wasps

Owen Farrell had himself a field day against Welsh, Ford shone in the West Country derby and Tim Swiel’s unerring boot proved enough to earn Quins a hard-fought win over Newcastle, but Goode turned in a record-setting performance in Wasps’ debut at the Ricoh Arena. Contributing 33 of Wasps’ 48 points, a new Premiership record for points from an individual in a single match, Goode’s kicking looked as precise as it has ever been in his career, whilst he spread the ball efficiently and ambitiously, with the likes of Elliot Daly and Christian Wade prospering as a result outside of him.

11. George North, Northampton Saints

The Welsh winger isolated himself slightly more than Northampton would have liked, but it was the big gains that he broke off against a beleaguered looking Leicester defence that helped the Saints dominate territorially. His 127 metres with ball in hand were equal to the efforts of Mathew Tait, Anthony Allen, Vereniki Goneva and Blaine Scully combined. 

12. Luther Burrell, Northampton Saints

Burrell had a lot on his plate after centre partner Tom Stephenson had to make way for replacement hooker, Mike Haywood, but was still able to turn in a very nice performance that included a line-breaking bust that ultimately set up Waller for his important second half score.

13. Jonathan Joseph, Bath Rugby

Joseph carved his way through the Gloucester midfield of Billy Twelvetrees and Henry Purdy, as well as keeping them quiet with one of the better defensive performances of the former London Irish man’s career. The outside centre continues to link well with the likes of Matt Banahan, Semesa Rokoduguni and Anthony Watson, showing his proficiency as both a distributor and running threat, whilst his inability to break into Stuart Lancaster’s plans continues to baffle almost everyone.

14. Will Addison, Sale Sharks

The versatile back looked at home on the wing against Exeter, setting up Danny Cipriani for his try and threatening every time he got his hands on the ball. Games are not always easy to come by for Addison with the centre pairing of Sam Tuitupou and Johnny Leota playing so well, but a permanent home on the wing could give him the games he needs to succeed.

15. Ben Foden, Northampton Saints

Mike Haley had a nice game for Sale, but falls just short of Foden, who came off the bench to help Northampton to one of the most memorable victories in their history. Foden showed his class and versatility, initially stepping in at 10 as a blood replacement for Stephen Myler, before permanently replacing James Wilson at full-back and scoring a try that kept them in touch with the Tigers during a rare spell of Leicester dominance.