Rugby
SA Investec Champions Cup Team of the Week – Round 4
All three South African teams triumphed in the final round of the Investec Champions Cup pool phase at the weekend, but only two advanced to the Round of 16, writes Quintin van Jaarsveld.
The Stormers were made to work hard for their 39-26 win over the Leicester Tigers in Cape Town, which punched their ticket to the playoffs, where they’ll be joined by the Bulls after the men from Pretoria stunned Pau 26-24 at Stade du Hameau to snap a seven-game losing streak.
The Sharks crushed ill-disciplined Clermont 50-12 at Kings Park to briefly move into knockout qualification, but were done in by Toulouse, who smashed the Sale Sharks 77-7, and Saracens, who lost 28-3 to the Glasgow Warriors but finished with a better points difference than JP Pietersen’s side. The Durbanites will now drop to the EPCR Challenge Cup playoffs.
Making up our Team of the Week are eight Bulls, four Stormers and three Sharks.
15: Aphelele Fassi (Sharks)
Heavily involved from the kick-off and highly influential. His world-class vision stood out as he called for a chip and collected it to score the opening try, set up another for Phiko Sobahle with a crosskick and bagged his brace from a quick tap. It also enabled him to make a perfectly-timed try-saving tackle on Kylan Hamdaoui.
14: Cheswill Jooste (Bulls)
The Junior Springbok standout offered a glimpse into the future with a fantastic showing, the highlight of which saw him show the gold dust running through his veins as he grubbered and left Nathan Decron for dead to score one of the tries of the season, which brought the Bulls back into the game.
13: Sebastian de Klerk (Bulls)
A red-hot rising star who can’t put a foot wrong at the moment, the winger’s selection at No. 13 came as a surprise, but he seamlessly made the switch. Sparked Jooste’s stunning score with a speedy break from inside his 22 and passed the challenging defensive test with flying colours, making a backline-best dozen tackles.
12: Jurenzo Julius (Sharks)
One of the most explosive young guns in the game, “The Boogie Man” had a ball, from his bustling 60-metre surge to scoring in the last play of the match. He also stood up well on defence, making 10 tackles, the most by a Sharks back.
11: Phiko Sobahle (Sharks)
Took his opportunity with both hands. Was particularly good on attack, where he matched Julius with a match-high four defenders beaten, one of which was a quality finish for a try.
10: Handre Pollard (Bulls)
All three flyhalves made mistakes, but Pollard came to the fore when it mattered most and controlled the game in the second half. The decorated veteran also slotted three of his four kicks at goal, including the decisive conversion.
9: Imad Khan (Stormers)
A small man who made a massive impact off the bench. Equal parts lethal and clutch, he kicked both a penalty and a conversion, and scored a try in a tense final quarter to ensure victory for the Stormers.
8: Nizaam Carr (Bulls) – Player of the Week
Such an underrated squad man, Carr always delivers when called upon, despite often having had precious few match minutes beforehand. He was extraordinary, scoring the match-winning try and putting up unrivalled numbers in carries (9), metres (48) and tackles (23) in a tireless 80-minute performance.
7: Jeandre Rudolph (Bulls)
Only two players, De Klerk and Rudolph, were consistently sublime for the Bulls during their horror run. Like De Klerk, Rudolph had a key hand in helping them break out of that streak with a Man of the Match cameo that culminated in him earning a match-sealing turnover at the death.
6: Paul de Villiers (Stormers)
A gift that keeps on giving for the Cape side, De Villiers added yet another Man of the Match award to his collection. On top of his usual high output and breakdown work, he also produced two slick try assists, the first for Evan Roos and the second for Lionel Zas.
5: Ruan Vermaak (Bulls)
Played at No. 4, but we couldn’t not include him and the next man in our team. It was his turnover that resulted in the Bulls’ opening try; he was good in the lineouts and worked his socks off, making 12 tackles.
4: JD Schickerling (Stormers)
With the Stormers down to 14 men and tension sky high, Schickerling thought it a perfect time to channel his inner centre, selling a dummy and trotting in for the bonus point try and to give his team an eight-point buffer with 12 minutes to go.
3: Zachary Porthen (Stormers)
It was the Zac attack as Porthen put on a powerhouse performance off the pine. His scrum dominance, which yielded four penalties, played a key part in the Stormers’ win.
2: Akker van der Merwe (Bulls)
Maximised his starting opportunity. The Bulls largely had “The Angry Warthog” to thank for their strong start as he put Mpilo Gumede in for the opening try with a beautiful long pass and scored the second with a well-timed and powerful breakaway from a maul. On the money in the set pieces, too.
1: Jan-Hendrik Wessels (Bulls)
A game that highlighted his athleticism and the value of his versatility as he excelled at loosehead and when he moved to hooker to replace the injured Van der Merwe in the 67th minute. Made no less than 18 tackles.