URC: Team of the Week - Round 18

Connacht booked themselves a place in the knock-out stage in dramatic fashion, as Stuart Lancaster's side leapfrogged their Irish rivals Ulster to snatch the eighth-placed spot. Connacht secured an away win over Edinburgh to put themselves in play-offs contention on Friday night, before Ulster dropped out of the top eight with a heart-breaking home defeat to Glasgow Warriors.

The Scottish side end the season at the top of the United Rugby Championship, with Leinster, the Stormers and the Bulls also taking the home semi-finals across the second to fourth ranks. The top eight rounds off with Munster, Cardiff, Lions and Connacht taking the away slots for the incoming round of quarter-finals in a fortnight's time.

CARDIFF 22-16 STORMERS / EDINBURGH 5-26 CONNACHT / ULSTER 22-26 GLASGOW WARRIORS

SHARKS 54-19 ZEBRE / BULLS 45-19 BENETTON / LEINSTER 68-14 OSPREYS

SCARLETS 35-35 DRAGONS / MUNSTER 24-17 LIONS

GLASGOW WARRIORS vs CONNACHT / BULLS vs MUNSTER

STORMERS vs CARDIFF / LEINSTER vs LIONS

We kick off our Team of the Week for the final round of the United Rugby Championship's regular season, with a stand-out performer from the dramatic drawn Welsh derby. The Dragons would have ended their campaign in defeat to the Scarlets, had it not been for the educated feet of full-back Angus O'Brien, who coupled his tremendous back-field work with a keen eye for the goal-posts. O'Brien nailed three penalties and two conversions to keep the Men in Gwent in the fight for the 35-35 draw.

We keep it all things Welsh for the back-field, with Cardiff flyer Jacob Beetham on hand to bag a well taken brace of tries in the impressive win over the Stormers. Beetham was a rocket along the touch-line, as the blue and blacks booked their return fixture with the Cape Town side, for an upcoming trip down to South Africa for the quarter-finals. Beetham delivered with his double, as the capital city club ended their regular season in front of jubilant home supporters inside the Arms Park. There's an honourable mention for Leinster's Jordan Lamour, who ran rough-shod over the Ospreys with his own brace.

Whilst Jordan Lamour narrowly missed out on a place in the Team of the Week, there is no mistaking the spot for his Leinster teammate Garry Ringrose. The experienced Ireland international was at his barn-storming best in the one-sided victory over the Ospreys at the Aviva. A strong try-scoring performance puts Leinster into third ahead of the home-hosted quarter-final against the Lions, with a form-finding Ringrose paramount to putting the Ospreys to the sword.

It's an All-Ireland midfield pairing for our Team of the Week, as Bundee Aki joins his long-standing Ireland teammate Ringrose in our selected centres. Aki had to rise to the occassion for Connacht on Friday, as he led the Galwegians up to Edinburgh for the do-or-die final round. Connacht prevailed with Aki at the heart of the action, with the New Zealand born big time player running the battle of the gain-line. With his revered reputation bringing in multiple defenders, Aki shipped some neat offloads to the outside runners as Edinburgh new who Connacht's danger-man was.

Whilst a final round drop out of the top eight was a heart-breaking way for Ulster to end their United Rugby Championship season, Zac Ward can take plenty of pride from his personal contributions. The former Ireland Sevens wing has enjoyed a stand-out season in Belfast, and ended his campaign with two tries in the close-fought defeat to Glasgow Warriors. With 15 tries across all competitions, Ward has put his name forward for an Ireland run this Summer, for the incoming Nations Championship July series.

The man of the moment for Connacht's gutsy trip to Scotland. With a place in the play-offs up for grabs, Josh Ioane needed to deliver a composed and measured performance to guide his adrenaline-fueled side in the must-win match. Ioane delivered with a definitive linchpin's contribution, as he crossed the try-line for a neat five-pointer, whilst also pulling the strings of the impressive away victory in the Scottish capital. The former All Black showcased his level-headed leadership, as Connacht booked themselves a return trip to Scotland for their quarter-final clash with Glasgow.

We round off this very Irish provincial heavy back-line with Munster scrum half Craig Casey, who was at his enigmatic best in Saturday's evening match. Casey led the Red Army in their must-win match against the Lions, after Connacht's Friday night victory briefly shunted Munster out of the play-off places. Casey delivered in spades for his much-beloved province, as the nippy half-back grabbed himself a try and strung a plethora of cutting passes, to send his men through the line of the Johannesburg side.

The forward pack kicks off with Scotland international prop Nathan McBeth. With the asterisk of his yellow card to one side following the high tackle on Bryn Ward, the Glasgow Warriors man was a stand-out operator on the loose-head of the scrum, as the Scotland side clinched a tough away victory over Ulster. A first half try coupled with a tireless work rate around the park, saw McBeth at the centre of the tense encounter. Tempers flared this must win match for Ulster, and McBeth's physicality was undeniable in the winning effort.

We take our first trip down to the land of the Springboks for the next entry, with the South African influx steadily adding to our forward pack. We hand Bulls hooker Johan Grobbelaar the number two jersey after a strong outing for the Pretorian side, in their one-way win over Benetton at Loftus Versfeld. The scrum was a dominant Bulls display from the get-go, with the try-scoring Grobbelaar impressive across all sides of the set-piece. The Pretorians impressed with a systematic dismantling of the Italians, with a statement made ahead of the knock-out stage.

We keep it in South Africa following a surging win for the Sharks, with Vincent Koch on hand to deliver a brutalising display against Zebre. The experienced Springboks tight-head ran rampant at the scrum, with little the Italian side could do to contain the veteran prop. Whilst the Sharks' exciting young stars Vusi Simphiwe Moyo and Zekethelo Siyaya took the headlines from their high-flying back-line play, Koch laid the foundations of the one-sided with with an excellent execution at the coal face.

It's another Irish provincial pairing for our Team of the Week, with unlikely allies from Leinster and Munster banding together for our second row selections. We hand Joe McCarthy the first spot in the engine room, as the Ireland lock was arguably the most straight-forward pick from round 18. McCarthy delivered a hat-trick hero's contribution for Leinster's thumping win over the Ospreys, to help propel the Dubliners up to third in the table for an even more favourable home quarter-final tie.

Partnering up with Joe McCarthy in the second row is Evan O'Connell of Munster, with an honourable mention also on hand for his provincial teammate Tom Ahern. Both O'Connell and Ahern crossed for tries in the tense encounter with the Lions, with everything on the line for the province to get back into the top eight on Saturday night. O'Connell gets the nod, as the 22-year-old continues to rise through the ranks with a highly commendable work rate across the breakdowns. Whilst he may not steal the spot-light in Munster red, his continued emergence puts him on the radar for a run in Irish green, having starred for the 'A' team last year.

It was the end of an era for Siya Kolisi, as the Springboks captain finished up his time with the Sharks ahead of his return home to the Stormers. Kolisi ended on a real high for the Durban side, despite the previously cited disappointment of not taking the club into the URC play-off places. Kolisi grabbed a brace of tries and was a battering ram on the offensive foot, as the Sharks made light work of Zebre to close out their season with a win. With the Nations Championship Kolisi's next port of call, the back row returns to Springboks' gold and green before linking up with the Stormers ahead of the new season.

One man who has been a stand-out star throughout the entire United Rugby Championship season, Shamus Hurley-Langton delivered another captivating performance for Connacht to see his side over the line and into the top eight. The hard-working back-row battler is the optimity of grit, and has become a steady fan favourite out West in Ireland. Two tries to his name in the away trip to Edinburgh, sees Hurley-Langton end the regular season with seven scores across all competitions, and the New Zealander is not finished yet with the play-offs beckoning.

We close out the Team of the Week with a return back to Wales, with the Scarlet's Taine Plumtree standing out in the tied derby against the Dragons. The New Zealand born-Wales international excelled in the back row and will be hoping that his efforts continue into an international run with Steve Tandy's side this July. Plumtree opened the Scarlets' scoring just a minute on the clock, and had muscled his way back over the whitewash for a second try within a quarter of an hour's play. Whilst a draw delighted no-one in this tense rivalry match, Plumtree can take plenty of positives to close out his club season.