Team of the Tournament: All Blacks rule
The champions have seven players in our team after they picked up their fifth title in six years. The Wallabies and the Springboks have four players each in our XV after they finished second and third respectively.
There are no players from Argentina in our team.
In the backline, we have Israel Folau, Nehe Milner-Skudder and Rieko Ioane in our back three. The midfield consists of Ryan Crotty and Kurtley Beale.
At flyhalf we have Beauden Barrett and Will Genia is our choice at No.9.
In the pack, Kieran Read, Michael Hooper and Siyamthanda Kolisi make up our loose trio. In the second row, we have Samuel Whitelock and Eben Etzebeth.
Coenraad Oosthuizen, Malcolm Marx and Joe Moody are our picks for the front row.
Team of the Tournament:
15 – Israel Folau (Australia):
He enjoyed a great tournament with ball in hand. He cut through defences with ease with his sheer power and speed out wide.
Bubbling under: Damian McKenzie (New Zealand)
14 – Nehe Milner-Skudder (New Zealand):
His ability to unlock defences out wide was fantastic to watch. His nifty footwork and skill with the ball was mesmerizing at times.
Bubbling under: Henry Speight (Australia)
13 – Ryan Crotty (New Zealand):
He is an important link in the New Zealand backline. He is a smart player who reads the game better than anyone in the midfield at the moment.
Bubbling under: Anton Lienert-Brown (New Zealand)
12 – Kurtley Beale (Australia):
The showcased his playmaking abilities with great success and he was definitely a standout performer for the Wallabies this year.
Bubbling under: Jeronimo de la Fuente (Argentina)
11 – Rieko Ioane (New Zealand):
An awesome finisher out wide and he showed great maturity for such a young player in the Test match arena.
Bubbling under: Reece Hodge (Australia)
10 – Beauden Barrett (New Zealand):
He is the best in the business when it comes to No.10s. He just takes the All Blacks to the next level with his decisions on attack and his overall game management.
Bubbling under: Nicolas Sanchez (Argentina)
9 – Will Genia (Australia):
He seemed to rediscover the form that made him such a star a few years ago. His distribution was excellent and looked to do more on the field than just pass the ball.
Bubbling under: Aaron Smith (New Zealand)
8 – Kieran Read (New Zealand):
He was probably one of the most consistent performers this year with his high work rate. He also made good decisions as a leader on the field.
Bubbling under: Sean McMahon (Australia)
7 – Michael Hooper (Australia):
The captain gave his all for his team in every match. He terrorised the breakdowns, tackled like a man possessed and carried the ball with great gusto.
Bubbling under: Jaco Kriel (South Africa)
6 – Siyamthanda Kolisi (South Africa):
This dynamic player stood up physically against abrasive opponents and he showed some great enterprise in open play as well.
Bubbling under: Pablo Matera (Argentina)
5 – Samuel Whitelock (New Zealand):
He is a key figure in the All Blacks pack, especially at line-out time where he reigned supreme.
Bubbling under: Adam Coleman (Australia)
4 – Eben Etzebeth (South Africa):
He was prominent physical stuff and you could say he somewhat led by example throughout the tournament.
Bubbling under: Brodie Retallick (New Zealand)
3 – Coenraad Oosthuizen (South Africa):
He was outstanding in the scrums for the Springboks before he got injured. He was also one of the go-to men for the Springboks as a big ball carrier.
Bubbling under: Nepo Laulala (New Zealand)
2 – Malcolm Marx (South Africa):
His performance against the All Blacks at Newlands was one of the best seen in the green and gold in a long time.
Bubbling under: Agustin Creevy (Argentina)
1 – Joe Moody (New Zealand):
He did his job well in the scrums, but it was his contributions in open play that really caught the eye this year.
Bubbling under: Steven Kitshoff (South Africa)
Our individual selections:
Jan de Koning XV: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Nehe Milner-Skudder, 13 Ryan Crotty, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Rieko Ioane, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Will Genia, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Michael Hooper, 6 Vaea Fifita, 5 Samuel Whitelock, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Coenraad Oosthuizen, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Joe Moody.
Tauriq Ebrahim XV: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Nehe Milner-Skudder, 13 Ryan Crotty, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Rieko Ioane, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Will Genia, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Michael Hooper, 6 Siyamthanda Kolisi, 5 Samuel Whitelock, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Coenraad Oosthuizen, 2 Agustin Creevy, 1 Joe Moody.
Paul Dobson XV: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Nehe Milner-Skudder, 13 Ryan Crotty, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Rieko Ioane, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Will Genia, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Michael Hooper, 6 Pablo Matera, 5 Samuel Whitelock, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Coenraad Oosthuizen, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Joe Moody.
Warren Fortune XV: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Nehe Milner-Skudder, 13 Ryan Crotty, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Rieko Ioane, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Jaco Kriel, 6 Pablo Matera, 5 Samuel Whitelock, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Coenraad Oosthuizen, 2 Agustin Creevy, 1 Joe Moody.
Leezil Hendricks XV: 15 Damian McKenzie, 14 Nehe Milner-Skudder, 13 Ryan Crotty, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Rieko Ioane, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Will Genia, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Michael Hooper, 6 Siyamthanda Kolisi, 5 Adam Coleman, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Nepo Laulala, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Steven Kitshoff.
Previous selections:
Team of the Week – Round Five: 15 Damian McKenzie (New Zealand), 14 Waisake Naholo (New Zealand), 13 Anton Lienert-Brown (New Zealand), 12 Kurtley Beale (Australia), 11 Rieko Ioane (New Zealand), 10 Beauden Barrett (New Zealand), 9 Will Genia (Australia), 8 Kieran Read (New Zealand), 7 Michael Hooper (Australia), 6 Pablo Matera (Argentina), 5 Scott Barrett (New Zealand), 4 Eben Etzebeth (South Africa), 3 Nepo Laulala (New Zealand), 2 Agustin Creevy (Argentina), 1 Kane Hames (New Zealand).
Team of the Week – Round Four: 15 Israel Folau (Australia), 14 Nehe Milner-Skudder (New Zealand), 13 Ryan Crotty (New Zealand), 12 Kurtley Beale (Australia), 11 Rieko Ioane (New Zealand), 10 Beauden Barrett (New Zealand), 9 Aaron Smith (New Zealand), 8 Tomas Lezana (Argentina), 7 Michael Hooper (Australia), 6 Pablo Matera (Argentina), 5 Samuel Whitelock (New Zealand), 4 Brodie Retallick (New Zealand), 3 Nepo Laulala (New Zealand), 2 Dane Coles (New Zealand), 1 Scott Sio (Australia).
Team of the Week – Round Three: 15 Damian McKenzie (New Zealand), 14 Israel Dagg (New Zealand), 13 Anton Lienert-Brown (New Zealand), 12 Kurtley Beale (Australia), 11 Nehe Milner-Skudder (New Zealand), 10 Bernard Foley (Australia), 9 Tomás Cubelli (Argentina), 8 Kieran Read (New Zealand), 7 Jaco Kriel (South Africa), 6 Vaea Fifita (New Zealand), 5 Pieter-Steph du Toit (South Africa), 4 Eben Etzebeth (South Africa), 3 Coenraad Oosthuizen (South Africa), 2 Agustin Creevy (Argentina), 1 Joe Moody (New Zealand).
Team of the Week – Round Two: 15 Israel Folau (Australia), 14 Ramiro Moyano (Argentina), 13 Jesse Kriel (South Africa), 12 Kurtley Beale (Australia), 11 Rieko Ioane (New Zealand), 10 Beauden Barrett (New Zealand), 9 Will Genia (Australia), 8 Sean McMahon (Australia), 7 Ardie Savea (New Zealand), 6 Siyamthanda Kolisi (South Africa), 5 Samuel Whitelock (New Zealand), 4 Eben Etzebeth (South Africa), 3 Coenraad Oosthuizen (South Africa), 2 Malcolm Marx (South Africa), 1 Tendai Mtawarira (South Africa).
Team of the Week – Round One: 15 Israel Folau (Australia), 14 Henry Speight (Australia), 13 Ryan Crotty (New Zealand), 12 Kurtley Beale (Australia), 11 Rieko Ioane (New Zealand), 10 Beauden Barrett (New Zealand), 9 Aaron Smith (New Zealand), 8 Kieran Read (New Zealand), 7 Jaco Kriel (South Africa), 6 Liam Squire (New Zealand), 5 Samuel Whitelock (New Zealand), 4 Eben Etzebeth (South Africa), 3 Coenraad Oosthuizen (South Africa), 2 Agustin Creevy (Argentina), 1 Joe Moody (New Zealand).
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