1. Demba Bamba – France
Still not yet 21, Bamba has become the name on everyone’s lips with his astonishing displays from tighthead prop. A beast in the scrum, the Lyon powerhouse – on loan at former club Brive until the end of this season – is a giant waiting to be unleashed.
2. Aaron Wainwright – Wales
Equally capable at blind and openside, Wainwright impressed in the autumn and then tore it up for his region in the festive fixture list of derbies. And with Sam Warburton retired and Ellis Jenkins and James Davies injured, Wainwright is now ready to star in the Guinness Six Nations.