TRU's European Champions Cup XV - Round 2

The second round of the European Rugby Champions Cup is now in the books and so is our XV of the weekend. As ever, let us know what you think of the team, who should have made it in and who didn’t deserve their inclusion.

1. Paul James, Bath

Bath’s scrum has struggled in the opening months of the 2014/15 season, but it certainly found its groove against Toulouse on Saturday. The French visitors may have been victorious at The Rec, but James had Toulouse tighthead Census Johnston in all kinds of trouble. The Welshman led the way for Bath, laying a firm foundation for his side’s attacking play, but preventing their consistent defensive lapses out wide was a little outside his remit.

2. Leonardo Ghiraldini, Leicester Tigers

Not much went right for Leicester at Parc y Scarlets on Saturday night, but the play of their Italian hooker and the resulting well-functioning lineout was about all they could hang their hat on. The former Treviso man was helped out admirably by the ever-improving Graeme Kitchener, but his defensive work in the loose prevented the Scarlets from racking up a much bigger win over the misfiring Tigers. Honourable mentions are certainly due for Saracens’ Jamie George, Harlequins’ Dave Ward and Castres’ Brice Mach.

3. Chris King, Montpellier

As good value as Glasgow were for their win in Montpellier, their scrum not only creaked against the French side, it also buckled. King exerted all kinds of pressure on the Glasgow front row of Gordon Reid, Pat MacArthur and Euan Murray, and the trio just couldn’t live with him. The Kiwi didn’t offer too much in the loose, but with no other tightheads particularly putting their hands up, King takes it for his very proficient display at the set-piece.

4. Courtney Lawes, Northampton Saints

George North stole the headlines at Franklin’s Gardens, but he was only able to succeed thanks to the hard work put in by his pack. Lawes shone with his all-round performance, contributing as much defensively as he did offensively, whilst his work at the breakdown was particularly impressive, not only turning the Ospreys over on multiple occasions, but also consistently slowing down their ball and rarely allowing them to get on the front foot. The performances of Jonny Gray, George Kruis and Dave Foley all deserve recognition, too.

5. Paul O’Connell, Munster

Statistically, O’Connell couldn’t match Kitchener, who was securing lineout ball and tackling for fun against the Scarlets, but the Irishman was pivotal in his side’s victory over Saracens on Friday night. At times last season it seemed like age was catching up with O’Connell, but his form over the last couple of months has been exceptional. Even at 35 years of age, the iconic lock still regularly comes up with clutch lineout takes and momentum-reversing turnovers.

6. Imanol Harinordoquy, Toulouse

If you thought Harinordoquy had lost a step over the last couple of years, you could not be more wrong. Racing Metro’s Bernard le Roux and Northampton’s Calum Clark ran Harinordoquy close, but the former Biarritz man was in resplendent form for Toulouse against Bath. He did the dirty work well in defence and at the breakdown, but also added some gloss to his performance by setting up Maxime Médard for a try, as well as adding his own score later in the game.

7. Steffon Armitage, Toulon

On the biggest stage club rugby has to offer, Armitage simply doesn’t have bad games. Most of the game’s best fetchers are characterised by their relatively slight builds and short statures, something which allows them to get low and lock onto balls at the breakdown, but Armitage defies that stereotype. He utilised his big frame to power through the Ulster defence with ball in hand consistently, but it was turning ball over where he really shone, clearly outplaying the also impressive Chris Henry.

8. Jamie Heaslip, Leinster

For the second time in as many weeks, Heaslip carried a Leinster team that failed to fire on all cylinders to victory. He ran with the ball in hand 19 times against Castres, often in the tight, and it was these hard fought yards which allowed Leinster to control both possession and territory and escape from France with a priceless victory. Leinster have not really clicked yet this season, but Heaslip has been pivotal in putting them into a two-horse race for Pool 2 with Harlequins.

9. Conor Murray, Munster

Another polished performance from the Irish scrum-half, who is now surely in the conversation for not only the best scrum-half in the northern hemisphere, but the world. It was the awareness of Murray that set him apart from the likes of Aled Davies, Rhys Webb and Sébsatien Bézy this weekend, all of whom can consider themselves unlucky to miss out. Murray seemed to take the right option at every available crossroads, hurting Saracens on the blindside on more than one occasion, as well as distributing as finely as any player in Round 2.

10. Finn Russell, Glasgow Warriors

It was not flawless from Russell, but it was enough. Recently named in the Scottish squad, in the driving seat of a Glasgow side playing some excellent rugby, the temptation for the 22-year old would have been to try and display his impressive skill-set. Instead, Russell played the situation perfectly, managing the game well, making the right decisions and always ensuring he was defensively in the right position. Clermont’s Camille Lopez came close with a flashy performance, but he was driving a well-tuned Ferrari on Sunday against Sale, Russell’s accomplishments were made all the more impressive by the tough challenge his team faced in Montpellier.

11. George North, Northampton Saints

How do you not select someone who scores four tries? North profited from the exceptional play of the Northampton pack and his teammate Ken Pisi, but the former Scarlet showed why his considered one of the world’s very best finishers. The Welshman racked up 116 metres, five defenders beaten and four clean breaks on his way to a personal points haul that exceeded that of 13 of the 20 ERCC teams playing this weekend.

12. Wesley Fofana, Clermont Auvergne

Particularly harsh on Ian Madigan, whose precise kicking gave Leinster an important away victory, but it was not quite the all-round performance turned in by Fofana. The Frenchman looked to be in a real slump in Round 1 against Saracens, but displayed against Sale the intelligent running lines, soft hands and considerable physical skills that have made him one of the more dangerous attacking threats in the game.

13. Mark Bennett, Glasgow Warriors

The second appearance in as many weeks for the young outside centre, as he proved just how important he could be for Scotland this autumn with an efficient performance in Montpellier. It wasn’t quite the sparkling performance he turned in against Bath, but he barely put a foot wrong as his side battled to a memorable victory in France. He didn’t see a lot of the ball as Glasgow understandably opted for caution away from home, but when he did, he gashed the Montpellier defence for significant gains.

14. Napolioni Nalaga, Clermont Auvergne

With the opposite wing berth undisputedly going to North, Nalaga had to see off stiff competition from teammate Noa Nakaitaci and Ken Pisi for this spot, but his domineering display against Sale was enough to earn him the nod. It was an archetypal Nalaga performance, with the Fijian winger using his feared combination of pace, power and footwork to cut the Sale defence to shreds. Two tries deservedly cap an excellent game for Nalaga, whilst he consistently left defenders flailing in his wake.

15. Maxime Médard, Toulouse

Toulouse’s tight win over Bath at The Rec may not have been the most aesthetically pleasing match of the weekend, but it was certainly compelling, not least so for the play of Médard and his opposite number, Anthony Watson. Watson, aside from loosehead prop James, was arguably Bath’s best player on the pitch, but still came up short of Medard. The Frenchman was elusive in his running, beating seven defenders on his way to not only scoring a try, but also setting up teammate Vincent Clerc for a further score.