The Autumn Tests pitted North v South, with England and Ireland players especially doing themselves no harm in the race for 2017 Lions tour selection.
Without further ado, here is our All-Star Autumn XV
15. Stuart Hogg (Scotland)
The fullback has been Scotland’s best player for a few years now, but his string of world-class displays during Autumn now makes him a banker for the Lions tour in 2017.
14. Dayne Haylett-Petty (Australia)
13. Jonathan Joseph (England)
12. Owen Farrell (England)
Another impressive series of displays by the Saracens man. He also passed the 500-point mark on the international stage.
11. Jonny May (England)
Given a chance by Eddie Jones, May has grabbed it without both hands. He was explosive in defence and attack. He’s been sublime.
10. Beauden Barrett (New Zealand)
World Rugby’s player of the year finished an outstanding 2016 with a number of top-quality performances.
9. Conor Murray
Murray has stamped his claim to be one of the top scrum-halves during this November series with a number of outstanding performances.
1. Mako Vunipola (England)
Since replacing Joe Marler in the England XV during the summer tour of Australia, Vunipola hasn’t looked back. Strong carrying and relentless scrummaging have quickly seen the Saracens man develop into one of the best front-rowers in the world.
2. Rory Best (Ireland)
Captain fantastic. He’s now emerged from the giant shadow cast by previous captain Paul O’Connell by leading his team to wins over South Africa, Australia and New Zealand in the space of 6 months.
3. Tadhg Furlong (Ireland)
He may be embarrassed by talk of a spot on the Lions tour, but should he continue next year as he finished this year, it will be difficult to overlook the Leinster front-row.
4. Courtney Lawes (England)
5. Sam Whitelock (New Zealand)
6. Chris Robshaw (England)
Robshaw has put in an immense shift with his work-rate during the Autumn, which secured him the man-of-the-match during England’s win against Argentina. His ball carrying and fierce tackling has been crucial to Eddie Jones’ men ending 2016 unbeaten.
7. David Pocock (Australia)
Pocock has been a monster at the breakdown for the Wallabies, helping the men in gold to good victory’s against France, Scotland and Wales.
8. Kieran Read (New Zealand)
A dominant player across the field and a master of the role of the modern number 8, All Blacks captain Kieran Read turned in a number of outstanding displays during the Autumn.
