Super Rugby Pacific team of the week for round eight

Round eight of Super Rugby Pacific saw four fixtures as the Melbourne Rebels, Blues, Crusaders and Highlanders all had the bye week.

The Queensland Reds prevailed over Moana Pasifika 40-28 in a historic first Super Rugby match in Apia, Samoa, while the Brumbies were too strong for the Fijian Drua in Canberra 43-28.

The top of the table clash between the Chiefs and Hurricanes saw the visitors storm back to win 33-17 in Wellington.

The last game of the round between the Waratahs and the Force ended with a comprehensive 36-16 win for New South Wales.

Here is the team of the week for round eight:

15. Shaun Stevenson (Chiefs)

Once again Stevenson is named in the team of the week after a strong performance against the Hurricanes. He finished with one line break, three offloads and 80 running metres.

14. Suliasi Vunivalu (Reds)

Eddie Jones had a cattle prod for the flying Fijian at the first Wallabies camp but it was Vunivalu who torched Moana Pasifika in Apia. The right wing had a spectacular intercept try along with three line breaks and 120 total running metres.

13. Izaia Perese (Waratahs)

The Waratahs centre tore up the Western Force with two tries and a try assist in Sydney which led to a late call-up to the Wallabies camp after Len Ikitau was a late withdrawal after suffering a concussion.

12. Kalaveti Ravouvou (Drua)

The Fijian Drua second five-eighth was a handful against the Brumbies, carrying well for 99 run metres on 12 carries and four defenders beaten. He bagged a key try in the second half on an inside support line but it wasn’t enough to stop the home side getting the win.

11. Ben O’Donnell (Brumbies)

The rapid left wing scored a hat-trick of tries against the Drua to propel the Brumbies to victory. He had two inside the first 15 minutes and scored his third right at the death.

10. Damian McKenzie (Chiefs)

The Chiefs playmaker guided his side to a big win in Wellington over the Hurricanes, looking dangerous with ball-in-hand and managing the game well. He scored a late try to put the win beyond doubt, crashing over between two big men. He finished with 67 run metres, at try, and two defenders beaten.

9. Cam Roigard (Hurricanes)

The in-form halfback played well again against Super Rugby’s best team. He sliced through the defence for a try to show the All Black selectors his running game once again and passed accurately from the base of the ruck. He had two clean breaks on five snipes, and beat a handful of defenders with 3.

Jake Gordon deserves a mention for his play against the Force, responding to his Wallabies camp omission with a try assist and an individual effort after a charge down to scoop and score after a 50-metre run.

8. Ardie Savea (Hurricanes)

Savea was one of the best players of the round in a losing side for the Hurricanes, making 16/16 tackles and 14 carries on attack. He won two turnovers on defence but his performance couldn’t save his team against the Chiefs.

7. Fraser McReight (Reds)

The Wallaby openside came up with a big performance in Apia registering three turnovers won, 14/14 tackles and 12 carries in the Reds’ 40-28 win.

6. Miracle Faiilagi (Moana Pasifika)

The towering blindside was one of the stories of the week as the local product scored two tries in front of his home crowd in Apia. His double ignited the crowd and gave them something to cheer about in the loss to the Reds. He also won three turnovers on the defensive side of the ball and had three lineout takes.

5. Darcy Swain (Brumbies)

He may have been yellow carded, but the Wallaby lock was the big body the Brumbies needed to combat the Drua’s physicality. He made nine from nine tackles in the middle channels while adding stability to the lineout with five takes. He moved the ball as a good link forward with five passes and played a key role off-the-ball on the first maul try.

4. Brodie Retallick (Chiefs)

The All Black lock demonstrated his strong work ethic as he dominated up front against the Hurricanes. He hit a high number of rucks, completed 8 of 9 tackles, took 7 lineouts and made 10 carries to lay the platform for the win.

3. Harry Johnson-Holmes (Waratahs)

The Wallaby tighthead got through a big workload with seven carries, barging over for a try from close range with a pick and go. On defence he completed eight from eight tackles and was instrumental at set-piece time.

2. Samisoni Taukei’aho (Chiefs)

The All Black hooker was incredible on Saturday afternoon, winning ‘every contact’ he was involved with and racking up plenty of post-contact metres on 18 total carries. He completed 10 of 12 tackles and had the Chiefs set-piece firing with 10 lineout throws won.

1. Aidan Ross (Chiefs)

The Chiefs prop fronted up against the improving Hurricanes’ pack. The scrum was solid as a rock throughout the match, providing clean ball. Ross contributed more than a handful of tackles with eight and hit a couple of balls at pace for Brad Weber.