3 – Sam Underhill
There’s skyrocketing to form and then there’s Bath’s back-rower. Sam Underhill has been sensational in recent months, and with his defensive save on Scott Williams against Wales last February, and an unstoppable try that beat Beauden Barrett of all people in November cropping up on the highlight reel, it begs the question of just what else can this man do when he wears the rose? Yes England have had a selection crisis lately, with Eddie Jones struggling to find his perfect starting XV, but I can’t see any reasons to leave Underhill off that team sheet.
4 – Matteo Minozzi
Italians probably hate this time of year thinking about the tournaments return to our screens. But if I was a fan of L’azzuri, I’d be in much better spirits this time round. O’Shea has worked wonders that two wooden spoon finishes haven’t justified, and their showings deserve more credit with this new and refined squad. And one of those who deserves a big mention is Zebre’s Minozzi. The Pro14 outfit have found themselves a diamond in the rough who has been lighting up European rugby in recent seasons, and his debut last term gave some big names a scare, with his try against Wales being the most notable of all. Continue to perform like that and I feel a shock on the cards coming on against a team least expecting it.