Team of the Week: Black waves

RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND TWO: Never before has a team been as dominant as the current New Zealand outfit.

They have dominated the tournament and it is again reflected in rugby365’s famous weekly selection.

There are 11 All Blacks in our starting XV.

The only other team to be represented is Argentina – with four starters.

There is some reward for Los Pumas in our back-up squad. They have eight players bubbling under.

The numbers are made up by Australia (four) and New Zealand (three) – with not a South African in sight.

Eight players return from last week – Ben Smith (New Zealand) on the right wing, after being at fullback; Waisake Naholo (New Zealand) in the left wing after being No.14 last week, flyhalf Beauden Barrett (New Zealand), scrumhalf Aaron Smith (New Zealand), flanks Sam Kane (New Zealand) and Pablo Matera (Argentina), lock Sam Whitelock (New Zealand) and Joe Moody (New Zealand).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PyXR3w6Xvc0

Team of the Week – Round Two:

15 – Jordie Barrett (New Zealand):
Pure class – beating defenders at will, beating brother Beauden in the race for metres made with the ball in hand.
Bubbling under: Emiliano Boffelli (Argentina)

14 – Ben Smith (New Zealand):
What a luxury to have a player with so much class, who can seamlessly switch positions and still make a massive impact.
Bubbling under: Bautista Delguy (Argentina)

13 – Matías Moroni (Argentina):
Destroyed the reputations of the Springbok midfielders.
Bubbling under: Jack Goodhue (New Zealand)

12 – Ngani Laumape (New Zealand):
The spotlight was on his powerful running, but most pundits missed the fact that he also had a perfect defensive record.
Bubbling under: Bautista Ezcurra (Argentina)

11 – Waisake Naholo (New Zealand):
Naholo and Australian counterpart Marika Koroibete both had 10 runs with the -ball. Naholo made double the metres his rival did.
Bubbling under: Ramiro Moyano (Argentina)

10 – Beauden Barrett (New Zealand):
Simply the best!
Bubbling under: Nicolas Sanchez (Argentina)

9 – Aaron Smith (New Zealand):
Makes the difficult aspects of his job look so easy. His decision-making is what sets him apart.
Bubbling under: Will Genia (Australia)

8 – Kieran Read (New Zealand):
Was involved in so much, that you can be forgiven if you missed the fact that he made an astonishing 21 tackles.
Bubbling under: David Pocock (Australia)\

7 – Sam Cane (New Zealand):
Another player with a workrate that epitomises the All Blacks’ spirit.
Bubbling under: Michael Hooper (Australia)

6 – Pablo Matera (Argentina):
Powerful with ball in hand and near flawless on defence.
Bubbling under: Lukhan Tui (Australia)

5 – Sam Whitelock (New Zealand):
What a pleasure to watch a class player making the tough work in a game look so easy.
Bubbling under: Tomas Lavanini (Argentina)

4 – Brodie Retallick (New Zealand):
Not only did he have a massive workrate, but won an unusual number of turnovers for a lock.
Bubbling under: Guido Petti Pagadizaval (Argentina)

3 – Juan Figallo (Argentina):
Made a mockery of the Springbok scrum’s supposed power.
Bubbling under: Owen Franks (New Zealand)

2 – Agustin Creevy (Argentina):
The heart and drive of Los Pumas.
Bubbling under: Codie Taylor (New Zealand)

1 – Joe Moody (New Zealand):
`Not flawless, but clearly better than the rest.
Bubbling under: Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro (Argentina)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PyXR3w6Xvc0

Our individual selections:

Tauriq Ebrahim XV: 15 Jordie Barrett, 14 Bautista Delguy, 13 Matías Moroni, 12 Ngani Laumape, 11 Waisake Naholo, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Sam Cane, 6 Pablo Matera, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Juan Figallo, 2 Agustín Creevy, 1 Joe Moody.

Paul Dobson XV: 15 Dane Haylett-Petty, 14 Ben Smith, 13 Jack Goodhue, 12 Ngani Laumape, 11 Waisake Naholo, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Will Genia, 8 David Pocock, 7 Michael Hooper, 6 Pablo Matera, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Juan Figallo, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Joe Moody.

Jan de Koning XV: 15 Emiliano Boffelli, 14 Ben Smith, 13 Matías Moroni, 12 Ngani Laumape, 11 Waisake Naholo, 10 Nicolas Sanchez, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Sam Cane, 6 Pablo Matera, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Agustín Creevy, 1 Joe Moody.

https://soundcloud.com/user-645352503/rassie-post-boks-defeat-in-mendoza

Our previous selections:

Team of the Week – Round One: 15 Ben Smith (New Zealand), 14 Waisake Naholo (New Zealand), 13 Jack Goodhue (New Zealand), 12 Andre Esterhuizen (South Africa), 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi (South Africa), 10 Beauden Barrett (New Zealand), 9 Aaron Smith (New Zealand), 8 David Pocock (Australia), 7 Sam Kane (New Zealand), 6 Pablo Matera (Argentina), 5 Sam Whitelock (New Zealand), 4 Eben Etzebeth (South Africa), 3 Owen Franks (New Zealand), 2 Malcolm Marx (South Africa), 1 Joe Moody (New Zealand).

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