Alex Shaw's 2019 Guinness Six Nations XV of the tournament
Wales made it through the 2019 Six Nations unscathed and picked up a coveted Grand Slam, but do they dominate our XV of the tournament?
England and Ireland fell at challenging hurdles, but do they punch above their weight in representation? Scotland, France and Italy all struggled as teams, however, how did their individuals do?
Check out our pick of this year’s performers below.
- Liam Williams, Wales
Mr Consistent for Wales in the 15 jersey this year, Williams was a reliable last line of defence and competitor in the aerial contests, as well as a skilful and ambitious spark plug in attack and, particularly, counter-attack. He complemented the skill sets of George North and Josh Adams outside of him and the return of Leigh Halfpenny will create an intriguing dilemma for Warren Gatland.
- Darcy Graham, Scotland
Thrust into the limelight following injuries to the likes of Stuart Hogg, Blair Kinghorn and Tommy Seymour, Graham did not let Gregor Townsend down. The diminutive wing finished the tournament strongly against Wales and England, after answering his country’s call against France. His work rate, footwork and ability to sniff out space were a welcome silver lining to a poor Six Nations for Scotland.
- Jonathan Davies, Wales
It is not the most glamorous of areas to excel as an outside centre, but the communication, organisation and decision-making of Davies defensively was such a critical part of Wales’ Grand Slam. His ability to blitz restricted the width for opposing sides, whilst he was consistently able to drift and buy the Welsh defence time to reset and fan out when opposing sides had potential numerical advantages. He brought his trademark physical running style to the mix, too.
- Hadleigh Parkes, Wales
Parkes showed up well as the glue in the heart of the Welsh midfield and his chemistry with Davies and Gareth Anscombe had all the hallmarks of a trio that have been playing together for years. Whether carrying, passing or kicking, Parkes was able to get Wales moving forward and his defence was energetic and efficient throughout the championship.
- Jonny May, England
The work of May in the air was enough alone to warrant his place here, where he ruled the skies, fielding contested kicks flawlessly inside his own territory and chasing kicks into the opposition half and, almost without fail, winning or tapping the ball back for his side. His potent finishing on top of that then takes him passed the honourable mentions of Adams and Jacob Stockdale.
- Gareth Anscombe, Wales
Anscombe saved his best till last in the tournament, putting on a creative and controlling masterclass against Ireland to help Wales seal the Grand Slam. He brought an element of guile to Wales over the last seven weeks and he was clinical in his execution as both a playmaker and a goal-kicker. Owen Farrell pushed him close, but the Englishman’s struggles in Cardiff and the second half of his game against Scotland just see this spot go to Anscombe.
- Conor Murray, Ireland
The variation that Murray keeps bringing to the nine jersey continues to set himself apart in the northern hemisphere. His box-kicking and sniping runs added to that variety, but it was the range of passing he brought to the base of the ruck that really hurt opposition teams. His whipped passes off both hands to different carrying options made him a nightmare to defend close to the try line.
- Cian Healy, Ireland
Ireland’s scrum was once again in fine shape during the championship and Healy helped lockdown the loosehead side, which gave Murray a solid platform from which to launch attacks. He carried well, too, and that was probably the decisive factor which saw him nudge ahead of Rob Evans, who was also very effective for Wales. Unfortunately for Healy, he seemed to get on the wrong side of referee Angus Gardener in the Cardiff encounter in Round 5.
- Guilhem Guirado, France
Aside from meeting a fired-up Courtney Lawes at Twickenham, the lineout was one area of France’s game that functioned reasonably well, and Guirado was a significant part of that. He picked up the slack, too, as a carrier and defender leading the line close the ruck, particularly later in games when France appeared to struggle with their conditioning. There really wasn’t much between Guirado and Jamie George, but the Frenchman takes the spot on the virtue of having performed in a team with far less firepower or chemistry than one George enjoys.
- Kyle Sinckler, England
The fact that Sinckler has become a more than adept scrummager has allowed him to legitimately challenge Tadhg Furlong for this spot. Furlong had a good tournament and he still sets the standard in international rugby, but Sinckler has closed the gap and shaded the battle with him over the course of the last month and a half. The Harlequins tighthead was a crucial component in England’s physical style, leading the way with ball in hand, but also as a tackler capable of driving opposing ball-carriers backwards.
- Alun Wyn Jones, Wales
An honourable mention for Italy’s Federico Ruzza, who had a fine tournament and match Jones in terms of the physical and technical contributions he made on the pitch, but the Welshman takes it based on the leadership he brought to the Grand Slam-winners. Jones continued to defy father time over the last seven weeks and his form, alongside that of his teammates, should give Wales plenty of confidence heading towards the Rugby World Cup.
- James Ryan, Ireland
George Kruis was incredibly consistent over the tournament and turned in a showpiece game in the defeat of Italy, but Ryan had an x factor to him. The Leinster lock shaded him in terms of the carrying ability he brought to the Irish pack, whilst continuing to be a valuable contributor at the lineout and in the defensive line. His 34 gain-line successes were over double his nearest second row rival, Ruzza, who had 15.
- Peter O’Mahony, Ireland
Even with Ireland’s dip in form and confidence during the championship, O’Mahony still maintained his sky-high standards, although he was pushed all the way by the duo of Josh Navidi and Mark Wilson. He was a wrecking ball at defensive lineouts and complemented that by being an ultra-efficient target for Rory Best, Sean Cronin and Niall Scannell. He was productive at the breakdown, too, and whilst not one of Ireland’s primary carriers, he enjoyed success with the ball in hand when the opportunity presented itself.
- Braam Steyn, Italy
Italy’s openside was their standout performer in the tournament by far, with the flanker leading the Six Nations in lineout steals and second gain-line successes, as well as chipping in with turnovers at the breakdown. Steyn was a valuable target on Italy’s lineout ball, too, and brought both line-speed and efficiency in the tackle in his defensive duties. It was the kind of high-level consistency that Sergio Parisse brought to the Azzurri for so many years, albeit in the slightly less flashy facets of the game.
Nods to both Tom Curry and Arthur Iturria, too, who were notable highlights for their respective teams.
- Billy Vunipola, England
It was a strong tournament for Vunipola, who will be as happy with the fact he made it through it unscathed, as he will be with his level of play. It wasn’t necessarily the most domineering we have seen Vunipola, breaking the gain-line for big breaks and stupendous offloads, but he delivered what his team needed in front-foot ball. He was the top carrier in the championship in terms of volume, led England in gain-line successes and if you couple that with his work at the breakdown, linking play and shifting contact and receiving the ball deep from kicks, he was the standout number eight this year.
Watch: The Rugby Pod discuss the proposed Nations Championship
Comments on RugbyPass
It was a pleasure to watch those guys playing with such confidence. That trio can all be infuriating for different reasons and I can see why Jones might have decided against them. No way to justify leaving Ikitau out though. Jorgensen and him were both scheduled to return at the same time. Only one of them plays for Randwick and has a dad who is great mates with the national coach though.
53 Go to commentsBrayden Iose and Peter Lakai are very exciting Super Rugby players but are too short and too light to ever be a Test 8 vs South Africa, France, Ireland, and England, Lakai could potentially be a Test player at 7 if he is allowed to focus on 7 for Hurricanes.
5 Go to commentsPencils “Thomas du Toit” into possible 2027 Bok squad.
1 Go to commentsDon’t see why Harrison makes the bench. Jones can play at 10 if needed, and there is a good case for starting her there to begin with if testing combinations. That would leave room for Sing on the bench
1 Go to commentsWhat a load of old bull!
1 Go to commentsOf 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 commentsIrish Rugby CEO be texting Andy Farrell “Andy, i found our next Kiwi Irishman”
5 Go to commentsI certainly don’t miss drinking beers at 8am in the morning watching rugby games being played in NZ.
1 Go to commentsThis looks like a damage limitation exercise for Wales, keeping back some of their more effective players for the last 20/25 minutes to try and counter England’s fresh legs so the Red Roses don’t rack up a big score.
1 Go to commentsVery unlikely the Bulls will beat Leinster in Dublin. It would be different in Pretoria.
1 Go to commentsI think it is a dangerous path to go down to ban a player for the same period that a player they injured takes to recover. Players would be afraid to tackle anyone. I once tackled my best friend at school in a practice match and sprained his ankle. I paid for it by having to play fly-half instead of full-back for the rest of that season’s fixtures.
5 Go to commentsJust such a genuine good bloke…and probably the best all round player in his generation. Good guys do come first sometimes and he handled the W.Cup loss with great attitude.
2 Go to commentsWord in France is that he’s on the radar of a few Top14 clubs.
5 Go to commentsGet blocking Travis, this guy has styles and he’s gonna make a swift impact…!
1 Go to commentsWhat remorse? She claimed that her dangerous tackle wasn’t worthy of a red! She should be compensating the injured player for loss of earnings at the minimum. Her ban should include the recovery time of the injured player as well as the paltry 3 match ban.
5 Go to commentsArdie is a legend. Finished and klaar. Two things: “Yeah, yeah, I have had a few conversations with Razor just around feedback on my game and what I am doing well, what I need to improve on or work-ons. It’s kind of been minimal, mate, but it’s all that I need over here in terms of how to be better, how to get better and what I am doing well.” I hope he’s downplaying it - and that it’s not that “minimal”. The amount of communication and behind the scenes preparation the Bok coaches put into players - Rassie and co would be all over Ardie and being clear on what is expected of him. This stands out for me as something teams should really be looking at in terms of the boks success from a coaching point of view. And was surprised by the comment - “minimal”. In terms of the “debate” around Ireland and South Africa. Nice one Ardie. Indeed. There’s no debate.
2 Go to commentsThere’s a bit of depth there but realistically Australian players have a long way to go to now catch up. The game is moving on fast and Australia are falling behind. Australian sides still don’t priories the breakdown like they should, it’s a non-negotiable if you want to compete on the international stage. That goes for forwards and backs. The Australian team could have a back row that could make a difference but the problem is they don’t have a tight five that can do the business. Tupou is limited in defence, overweight and unfit and the locks are a long way from international standard. Frost is soft and Salakai-Loto is too small so that means they need a Valentini at 8 who has to do the hard graft so limits the effectiveness of the backrow. Schmidt really needs to get a hard working, tough tight 5 if he wants to get this team firing.
3 Go to commentsSorry Morgan you must have been the “go to for a quote” ex player this week. Its rnd 6 and there is plenty of time to cement a starting 15 and finishing 8 so I have no such concerns.
2 Go to commentsGreat read. I wish you had done this article on the ROAR.
2 Go to commentsThe current AB coaching team is basically the Crusaders so it smacks of wanting their familiar leaders around. This is not a good look for the future of the ABs or the younger players in Super working their way up the player ladder. Razor is touted as innovative, forward looking but his early moves look like insecurity and insular, provincial thinking. He is the AB's coach not the Golden Oldies.
10 Go to comments