Planet Rugby’s #5 of the tournament

5 Franco Mostert (South Africa): The unsung hero of Springbok rugby racked up the third most tackles in the competition with an incredible breakdown work rate. He goes under the radar for many.
Runner-up: All Blacks veteran Brodie Retallick had another stellar tournament; he always rises to the occasions in his brutality on either side of the ball. He was immense in the final game, dismantling the Boks’ set-piece. A word for South Africa’s RG Snyman, who was huge in every way and rose to the occasion in the semi-final to score a match-winning try.

I wasn't initially a fan of Mostert. He just didn't seem to stand out for me. Then he appeared for the Boks. Whenever I did a tactical breakdown he was a key contributor, he was so often at critical points in the game making big plays, the kind the pseudo fan and ignorant pundits never see. Another player I wasn't keen on was Louw. Again, he became a more favoured player. Not a name that'd fill a fan team of the week/month/year/comp, but a player who is always there adding value. These are but two names who have contributed immensely for the Boks. I haven't assimilate the numbers for the past season, but for the rest of the Erasputin years, Mostert ranks as the best Bok defender. He gives you volume without the errors. Steph can soak up tackles purely by being around the fringes, Mostert is often one of those players to mops up after a classic Steph lapse. There have been many times where Mostert has been criticised on defence, and I just rewind film to a prior tackle or phase, and sure enough, there was a Steph lapse, or one from Damian et al. Without Mostert the Boks would have been a much weaker team. I would place him as an all time great Bok. A player with production, a player who I can ascribe great moments to. It doesn't take any effort to defend his place in Bok lore. Without the likes of Mostert, we wouldn't have been able to achieve some success in spite of Erasputin! That's something to think about. 

Lood? Mr hands of stone? You defended Lood coughing up possession against Wales in the 2015 WC. Two very promising positions and he coughs it up. It was a trademark. If he wasn't coughing it up, he was driven sideways or backwards. Such an underpowered plodder. Lood really is the worst lock I've seen play for the Boks. Literally nothing about his game was good. One of the reasons the Boks were so soft and vulnerable under Erasputin. He was also one of the key reasons why NZ knocked us out in 2015, alongside Damian. Two class acts letting the team down for years.

PS - A shoutout to another Saddex list. He just blurts out random names as if it has anything relevance to anything. 

Lomp who missed the tackle for the first AB try of WC2015 Semi?

Mostert was also mentioned in several other WC teams as a second choice.

Whenever you look for problems in a Bok performance, Lood has consistently been one of the faces who is at the scene of the crime. How has Erasputin been unable to isolate these issues? Someone needs to sit him down and teach him how to analyze film, as he is clearly incapable at this time. 

Balls Lomp was good for about 15 minutes and then totally out of gas. Be honest for a change.