Rugby Championship - Team of the week - Round 4

This is from Planet Rugby:-

15 Willie le Roux (South Africa): Drew the defender and timed the pass expertly to set up Aphiwe Dyantyi’s first try before following that up with an intercept try shortly afterwards in a game-changing 10 minutes for the Springboks. Joined the line to good effect for his seven carries. A much-improved performance from last weekend by the Wasps full-back. Comes in ahead of the Wallabies’ Dane Haylett-Petty and Pumas’ Emiliano Boffelli.

14 Aphiwe Dyanti (South Africa): The Lions winger was in scintillating form on the weekend, bagging two tries and producing a try-saving tackle on All Black captain Kieran Read. Showed a fantastic step off his left foot to cut inside for his second try. Too good to leave out, so he shifts to the right wing despite having played on the left. Beats out the Wallabies’ Israel Folau and Pumas’ Bautista Delguy, both of whom scored excellent tries.

13 Reece Hodge (Australia): The versatile back was a creative force for his side, coming away with two try assists as he showed plenty of vision, especially to find Genia for the first. Got the Wallabies out of trouble regularly with his accurate tactical kicking game. Has managed to fill the void left by the absence of injured duo Samu Kerevi and Tevita Kuridrani.

12 Jeronimo de la Fuente (Argentina): Produced a fantastic offload while falling to the floor to set up Nicolas Sanchez’ try as he showcased that rare ability to get the hands free in the tackle on more than one occasion. Was one of his team’s top tacklers, making 11 hits in total on the day. Comes in ahead of the Boks’ Damian de Allende, who was stout on defence and hard-running on attack.

11 Rieko Ioane (New Zealand): Unfortunate to be on the losing side as he made five clean breaks while beating six defenders. His run down the blindside for his second try was simply world class as he managed to keep himself within the field of play despite all odds. Similar to Folau’s score in the other match. Meanwhile, Ramiro Moyano also impressed, beating a match-high eight defenders against the Wallabies.

10 Nicolas Sanchez (Argentina): An excellent game from the fly-half, who scored one try after taking an excellent line, but was unfortunately denied another when Ramiro Moyano’s foot was deemed to be in touch. Sanchez was once again a threat with ball in hand, running for 26 metres, while the pivot also made seven tackles in defence. There were not too many players that stood out in this position, with Kurtley Beale and Beauden Barrett both underwhelming, but Handre Pollard did his bit for South Africa.

9 Faf de Klerk (South Africa): The Sale Sharks player must be horrible to play against, particularly for opposing scrum-halves, and he gave Aaron Smith little respite. Although De Klerk missed a few tackles, he also made nine and put pressure on Smith as the All Blacks struggled to get front-foot ball for much of the contest. Elsewhere, Gonzalo Bertranou was impressive for Argentina and had a slightly more effective game in attack, but the South African’s energy set the tone for the Springboks and earns him the position.

8 Warren Whiteley (South Africa): Not a particularly destructive ball-carrier but the number eight is an intelligent player, covers the ground well and, as a result, was absolutely monumental on Saturday. Whiteley was simply superb in defence against New Zealand, making 20 tackles in all, with one in particular standing out as the Lions man showed impressive athleticism to track down TJ Perenara and prevent the replacement scrum-half from scoring.

7 Marcos Kremer (Argentina): Starting to reproduce his early season form from the Jaguares’ Super Rugby campaign following another excellent display. Kremer was a prominent and effective ball-carrier in traffic, running for 23 metres in total, and also did his duty defensively by making 10 tackles as Argentina secured a landmark win. Along with Pablo Matera and Javier Ortega Desio, they are a fine back-row trio and it made a difference against an Australia team that have struggled to find the right players to complement David Pocock and Michael Hooper. Kremer’s selection is tough on Siya Kolisi, who produced a captain’s performance, but Kremer deserves his spot.

6 Pieter-Steph du Toit (South Africa): Played at seven but, as is South Africa’s wont, he featured as a blindside flanker and the Stormers’ back-five forward brilliantly led their defensive effort. Was in tears at the final whistle and you can see why after a performance which saw him give his all – mentally and physically – to the cause. Topped the tackle charts alongside team-mate Franco Mostert on 24 and also carried well when given the chance, making 18 metres from five surges. Argentina’s Pablo Matera was very much in contention after his barnstorming display on the Gold Coast but Du Toit epitomised the Springboks’ efforts.

5 Tomas Lavanini (Argentina): The Pumas hardman finished off a superb shift against the Wallabies on the Gold Coast by making the match-winning tackle on Israel Folau in that Test’s dying moments. After spending plenty of time on the sidelines in previous seasons due to ill-discipline, Lavanini has cleaned up his act in recent times and his game has shown remarkable improvement. Gave his all in the tight exchanges on Saturday and was particularly impressive on defence, making 11 tackles.

4 Franco Mostert (South Africa): South Africa’s entire pack deserve credit for taking the fight to the world champions’ forwards but some Boks deserve special praise and Mostert is one of them. Although not one of the biggest locks in the Test arena, Mostert put his body on the line in Wellington and emptied the tank during a hard-working 80-minute shift. Led the way on defence for South Africa with a joint team-high 24 tackles and beats out Guido Petti, who also played well for Argentina.

3 Frans Malherbe (South Africa): The Stormers stalwart delivered a superb all-round performance in Wellington which has helped him cement the number three spot in the Springboks’ starting line-up. Malherbe was solid in the scrums but also carried well and finished with 21 metres gained which included one clean break and a defender beaten. Also did his bit defensively and finished with an impressive 12 hits in that department.

2 Malcolm Marx (South Africa): Returned to South Africa’s run-on side and was at the forefront of all that was good about his team’s forward effort against the All Blacks. The 24-year-old showed great mobility around the park but also knuckled down to do the hard work at the coalface of the Boks’ forward effort. Eventually gained 18 metres on attack and crossed for a deserved try off the back of a lineout maul. Marx also impressed on defence with seven tackles. Argentina’s captain Agustin Creevy was next best.

1 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro (Argentina): This was a difficult decision as Steven Kitshoff also caught the eye in the Springboks’ superb triumph over the All Blacks but the Puma gets the nod after a fine effort against the Wallabies. Came to the fore with an impressive scrummaging display but also shone on defence and finished with eight tackles.

The above is a bit slanted in favour of the winning side and the selection of only 1 NZ player is to my mind unfair.  I tried  review the performance of the NZ players and found that the team as a whole functioned better than individual players making it very ahrd to select individuals.  

I think that some of our local odd-ball members will go bananas when reading the comment and some would attack the selection of Du Toit and Malherbe all out.   He would ultimately loose it because Du Toit is selected at 6 - the number used in Australia and NZ to identify the blind-side flanker.    Watch outfor persistent idiocy.   

This is the Team of the week from Rugby 365:-

15 – Willie le Roux (South Africa):
Many will point to the yellow card. However, that try in the 24th-minute – when he ripped the ball out of Rieko Ioane’s hands, after a stray Jordie Barrett pass – was a big moment in the match.
Bubbling under: Emiliano Boffelli (Argentina)

14 Ben Smith (New Zealand):
Pure class. Even in a losing cause, he troubled the Springbok defensive lines.
Bubbling under: Bautista Delguy (Argentina)

13 – Reece Hodge (Australia):
He has so much more than just a big boot – although that helps.
Bubbling under: Anton Lienert-Brown (New Zealand)

12 – Ryan Crotty (New Zealand):
Another mainstay of the All Black team. The glue that keeps the Kiwi backline together.
Bubbling under: Damian de Allende (South Africa)

11 – Aphiwe Dyantyi (South Africa):
He has been erratic and weak on defence this year, but stepped up in a big way. That last play was a match-saving rush out of the line, plus he also won a turnover.
Bubbling under: Rieko Ioane (New Zealand)

10 – Nicolás Sánchez (Argentina):
A master tactician and the key to Argentina’s successes in this competition – especially at the weekend.
Bubbling under: Handre Pollard (South Africa)

9 – Francois de Klerk (South Africa):
He won two turnovers – not bad for a scrumhalf. But there is so much more to his game, energetic and unpredictable.
Bubbling under: Will Genia (Australia)

8 – Warren Whiteley (South Africa):
Contrary to popular perception, he is playing a lot tighter and more physical – making 20 tackles on top of his work around the park.
Bubbling under: Kieran Read (New Zealand)

7 – Pieter-Steph du Toit (South Africa):
His emotional outburst at the end of the game epitomised the effort that went into the game – including an amazing 24 tackles.
Bubbling under: Marcos Kremer (Argentina)

6 – Pablo Matera (Argentina):
The spark that fires up the Los Pumas engine. Plenty of carries and tackles made, along with three crucial turnovers.
Bubbling under: Siya Kolisi (South Africa)

5 – Franco Mostert (South Africa):
Has been one of the unsung heroes for some time. His workrate is amazing and like teammate Du Toit made an astonishing 24 tackles.
Bubbling under: Tomas Lavanini (Argentina)

4 – Samuel Whitelock (New Zealand):
This was a tough call to make between two monsters of the second row. Whitelock’s workrate saw him just edge his Springbok rival.
Bubbling under: Eben Etzebeth (South Africa)

3 – Frans Malherbe (South Africa):
He has been under fire all year, but finally came good. Solid in the scrums, some good carries and effective on defence.
Bubbling under: Santiago Medrano (Argentina)

2 – Codie Taylor (New Zealand):
Plenty of carries and made all his tackles. Also, no missed line-outs.
Bubbling under: Agustin Creevy (Argentina)

1 – Steven Kitshoff (South Africa):
It may well be the end of the Beast. He has been knocking on the door and finally bashed it down – relegating Tendai Mtawarira to perhaps a permanent bench role.
Bubbling under: Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro (Argentina)

Minor differences and another selection that would drive Mozart utterly mad.   How dare anybody to be crazy enough to mention Du Toit and Malherbe when the world experts have condemned them outright.   And both selections name De Allende as runner-up at 12 - they must be really pissed  off by that because they attacked him all out as having been useless . 

Just a question dimwits - who made the possession turnover that ultimately led to Le Roux's try - the only one by the Springboks in the whole match?

Rugby365's team. Is quite close. Though, I'd be tempted to give more backs from Argentina places. The endeavour amongst the backs in the Aussie-Puma test was significantly better than the Kiwi-Bok test. Ours was more about the forwards. New Zealand used them heavily on attack. 

Damian was "hard-running on attack" with his one run for 2m. Sometimes you have to wonder what game these people were watching. Crotty's critical error in not sending Goodhue away for the match winner as well as his leaky defense should disqualify him as well.

What a  load of utter BS by Pakie.   Even though De Allende went off early due to injury his tackle count was good and his mtr acceptable - so another totally baseless attack on De Allende.  By t he time Goodhue came on De Allende was gone off injured - so what has the reference to do with De Allende?

This kind of hysteria is really funny but expected from the kind of members Pakie associates with.  But then we must remember he is a member of site identified by Mozart as a expert analyst better than world experts on rugby analysis.      

By the time Goodhue came on De Allende was gone off injured - so what has the reference to do with De Allende?

Huh? The Goodhue comment has nothing to do with De Allende. Read what I wrote slowly again, maybe it sinks in. The first sentence is about De Allende. The second sentence is about Crotty.

Pakie take it from Beeno Allende thus far has been our best inside center. Try and be objective Pakie rather than beating your drum incessantly! Rassie chose Allende because he was the best. You trying to make out Allende is useless reflects badly on YOU!

Beeno lending a much needed helping hand to the Pakstar!

Just a question dimwits - who made the possession turnover that ultimately led to Le Roux's try - the only one by the Springboks in the whole match?

Am did you fucking moron. It was already established on another thread that Duh Allende was no where near the turnover and that it was Am.

Pakie what had the mistake by Crotty to do with the discussion of  De Allende?   If you want to deal with that start a thread on the issue.

It had nothing to do with the Players of the Week lists by the two websites anyway.      

Beeno

The attack on De Allende has been orchestrated by the four silliest prejudiced  idiots on site.   There is no truth to their accusations at all - but they are sworn enemies of the truth anyway.

No use debating anything with them anyway.