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Gallagher Premiership XV of the Week - Round 14

By Alex Shaw
Rory Hutchinson of Northampton Saints is tackled by Zach Mercer of Bath Rugby as he dives in to score a try during the Gallagher Premiership Rugby match between Northampton Saints and Bath Rugby at Franklin's Gardens. (Photo by Tony Marshall/Getty Images)

Gloucester were the story of Round 14 of the Gallagher Premiership season, as they continued their recent good run of form, knocking off Saracens just a week after doing the same to Exeter Chiefs.

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A young Northampton Saints side showed that you can win with kids as they held serve at home in a narrow and exciting victory over Bath, whilst Harlequins and Bristol Bears entertained in a high-scoring affair, with Paul Gustard’s charges taking the win and solidifying their spot inside the top four.

We have rounded up the top performers from the round in this weekend’s XV of the week below.

  1. Charles Piutau, Bristol Bears

Piutau was a constant threat for Bristol at the Stoop and though Quins were the more clinical of the two sides and in control of the game for the most part, the full-back gave Bristol a puncher’s chance. He slalomed through Quins’ defence on multiple occasions, as well as proving to be a creative option in the wider channels, linking well with Alapati Leiua and Luke Daniels.

  1. Alex Cuthbert, Exeter Chiefs

The Welshman was pushed very close by Zach Kibirige, who scored two excellent tries in the Sandy Park encounter, but Cuthbert just edges it on overall impact. Exeter were dangerous in the wide channels on Saturday and that was typified by Cuthbert’s powerful breaks, effective offloading and confidence to take on his man.

  1. Rory Hutchinson, Northampton Saints

Hutchinson’s second appearance in as many weeks and this one might be even more impressive given the performances stacked at the position this week by the likes of Billy Twelvetrees, Jonathan Joseph, Joe Marchant and Juan de Jongh. Hutchinson was again a potent dual-threat in that 13 channel, gouging Bath with big carries and then having the technique and composure to pull off difficult passes whilst moving at high speed.

  1. Mark Atkinson, Gloucester

The inside centre was a constant threat in attack, mixing up his game as a direct runner or distributor outside of Danny Cipriani. It was that variety which troubled the Saracens defence and allowed Atkinson to create space for others around him, whether through a clever pass on the gain-line or by tying in defenders as a carrier.

  1. Tom Howe, Worcester Warriors

Howe grabbed the match-winning try with less than a minute to go at Sixways, but he was also a threat whenever he got his hands on the ball. It was an error-strewn match and yet Howe was one of the saving graces, always looking dangerous to expose Leicester’s defence in the wide channels and showed good footwork and power to move back inside and avoid Tigers ushering him into touch.

  1. Marcus Smith, Harlequins

Statistically, Smith’s showing won’t match up to that of James Grayson or Callum Sheedy, both of whom had very good games, but there was a lethality to Smith’s play that set him apart. He grabbed a try, but it was the feints and dummies that Bristol were buying defensively that allowed the fly-half to create space for his teammates and put them in positions to score.

  1. Alex Mitchell, Northampton Saints

A statement performance from Mitchell, who showed that he has what it takes not only to cover for Cobus Reinach but also to push the South African for his spot. He made a number of breaks around the fringes, was regularly the first man supporting other Northampton carriers and helped his side play at a tempo that made them a struggle for Bath to defend against.

  1. Facundo Gigena, Leicester Tigers

The loosehead helped deliver scrum dominance for Leicester in the first half of their game with Worcester. Some of the angles looked questionable but he clearly had the referee onside, who was judging the Argentine to be winning the contest with Nic Schonert.

  1. Jack Singleton, Worcester Warriors

Singleton’s lineout work was accurate against Leicester and he delivered plenty of work in the loose as both a ball-carrier and in his contributions at the contact area. His handling work was also impressive, with the hooker able to keep phases alive with accurate passes on the gain-line and neat offloads, one of which helped set Worcester up for their decisive late try.

  1. Paul Hill, Northampton Saints

Hill dealt well with the potent scrummaging ability of Nathan Catt and came out on top of the contest multiple times. He brought the carrying grunt up front that kept Northampton moving forward and he was a busy man in defence and at the contact area for the 62 minutes he was on the pitch.

  1. Ben Glynn, Harlequins

A strong showing from Glynn against his former team, which was epitomised by his snaffling of a Bristol knock-on and galloping away to set Marchant free to go over for a Harlequins try. He was a potent carrying option at the Stoop, defended physically and was part of a smooth-running lineout.

  1. Ed Slater, Gloucester

The Englishman continues to form a strong partnership with Franco Mostert in the Gloucester engine room, and he played with an energy and physicality that surpassed that of Saracens on Friday evening. His carrying was pivotal to the Cherry and Whites in their bid to break the gain-line and get the Saracens defence retreating, rather than being set and able to utilise their usual line-speed.

  1. Jono Ross, Sale Sharks

Ross provided his side with a dominance at the gain-line, offering both powerful carries and impactful tackles in defence. He was making a nuisance of himself at the contact area, too, slowing down Wasps’ ball and providing clean presentation for Faf de Klerk to work with. It wasn’t glamorous, but it was effective.

  1. Jaco Kriel, Gloucester

There were plenty of flashes of what Kriel can bring to Gloucester and the Premiership in his side’s win over Saracens, where he was influential at the breakdown and in the loose as a ball-handler. He was able to help deliver quick enough ball for the Cherry and Whites to tame Saracens’ usually potent line-speed, whilst he exploited gaps that the defence showed him as a carrier, too.

  1. Ben Morgan, Gloucester

Morgan grabbed two tries in Gloucester’s win over Saracens, the first through cleverly identifying the undefended base of the post and the second on a similar close-range drive. His ability to make ground on the pick and go and as a one-out runner really helped Gloucester build momentum and challenge the usually watertight Saracens defence. He helped shut down Saracens offensively, too, making a number of dominant tackles on the gain-line.

Watch: Eddie Jones faces the press after England’s 21-13 loss to Wales in Cardiff

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A
Adrian 10 minutes ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

6 Go to comments
T
Trevor 2 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

21 Go to comments
B
Bull Shark 6 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

29 Go to comments
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