Champions Cup team of the week: Jack Nowell, Joe Carbery, Hamish Watson - Page 2 of 3 - Ruck

Champions Cup team of the week: Jack Nowell, Joe Carbery, Hamish Watson

10. Joey Carbery (Munster)

26 points including two tries, the young Irish fly-half destroyed Gloucester on Friday night and showed superb skills with his passing, his kicking and defence. He seems to have settled well at Munster and will be one to watch for the future.


9. Conor Murray (Munster)

Impossible to include Carbery without his half-back partner, Connor Murray. He controlled the game excellently and his kicking game was exceptional. We lost count of how many tries he was involved in thanks to his intelligent passing from the base of the ruck. Luke McGrath from Leinster was closely behind him for this position.


8. Viliame Mata (Edinburgh)

One of the easiest picks in this XV, Mata is one of the best 8’s in world rugby at the moment and seems to be getting better and better. His stunning over the head offload was incredible and his carrying is phenomenal. He’s really flourished under Richard Cockerill and the Fijian will be hoping to light up the Rugby World Cup this year. Ken Owens also deserves a mention after a Man of the Match performance out of position for the Scarlets, as well as Jack Conan at Leinster.


7. Hamish Watson (Edinburgh)

Working alongside Mata in the back-row, Watson’s work-rate is second to none. He covered every blade of grass against Toulon and his defence was solid. A top performance from one of Edinburgh’s key players and one to watch for Scotland.


6. Rhys Ruddock (Leinster)

His physicality at the breakdown gave Leinster the platform to rip Toulouse apart. Such a strong ball carrier and constantly crashing over the gain line, as well as thundering defence. It could be argued that Taulupe Faletau deserved this spot for his performance for Bath after coming back from injury.

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