The final round of a thrilling Rugby Championship saw South Africa claim the title ahead of New Zealand, who defeated Australia.
Without further ado, here’s our Team of Round Six as the champions lead the way with eight nominations, while the All Blacks are next best with five.
Rugby Championship Team of the Week
15 Will Jordan (New Zealand): A feature of his play this week was working almost as a secondary fly-half, attacking the blindside off the outstanding Cam Roigard. Our runner-up is Argentina’s Santi Carreras, a threat all afternoon in the Twickenham wind.
14 Bautista Delguy (Argentina): Another try-scoring outing, two of them, in fact, for Los Pumas’ flyer as he shone in defeat for his country. Cheslin Kolbe was always threatening for South Africa, but once again, overambitious play cost his side a try as the all-time great had another little brain fade.
13 Quinn Tupaea (New Zealand): A blockbuster display off the bench at Eden Park and he repeated the effort in Perth, with his selection seeing off his direct opponent, Joseph Suaalii, who did all he could in the Perth monsoon.
12 Jordie Barrett (New Zealand): Again, we find ourselves tossing a coin between Barrett and the formidable Puma, Santi Chocobares. Both players were outstanding, and Damian de Allende also delivered a classy shift at Twickenham.
11 Leroy Carter (New Zealand): This guy’s work rate is absolutely phenomenal. He’s everywhere for the All Blacks with involvements that will get any coach purring. Ethan Hooker did brilliantly in the air for South Africa and looks to be the man they need with the aerial game such an important facet of Test rugby.
10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (South Africa): A more under-the-radar performance but still one of immense poise and confidence as he drove his team home. Argentina’s new boy, Geronimo Prisciantelli, showed great promise in a classy first start and we’ll be sure to see a lot more of him in the colours of Los Pumas.
9 Cobus Reinach (South Africa): Brilliant. As he’s slowed in feet ever so slightly, his rugby brain seems to be thinking faster than ever. A consummate display, although Cam Roigard once again impressed in his performance for the All Blacks.
The forwards
8 Jasper Wiese (South Africa): His return to Bok green has transformed South Africa and, once again, he was glue for them in carrying and clearing. Peter Lakai was physical and powerful for New Zealand as he made a big impression in his first All Black start.
7 Ardie Savea (New Zealand): Superb once again and revelling in the seven shirt, which gives him a tad more freedom around the park. Fraser McReight gave him hardly anything in another assured performance, whilst Siya Kolisi left nothing in the tank in his 98th appearance.
6 Marcos Kremer (Argentina): Simply immense. The man racks up dominant hits like Mike Tyson and his carrying was also a big feature of the Twickenham Yest. Pieter-Steph du Toit was brilliant with ball in hand, whilst Bobby Valetini made a big impact off the bench for the Wallabies.
5 Ruan Nortje (South Africa): Nortje is fast becoming a nailed-on starter for South Africa and that’s amazing given their lock stocks. Fabian Holland’s trajectory continues as he had a decent day at the coalface for the All Blacks.
4 RG Snyman (South Africa): If Eben Etzebeth doesn’t flatten you, RG will! Offloads galore, power carrying – a huge shift for South Africa off the bench. Scott Barrett made a welcome return for New Zealand and was as spiky as ever in a classy display.
3 Thomas du Toit (South Africa): A much-improved scrummaging performance and his usual work rate around the park sees him selected this round, although Wilco Louw pushed him all the way in another impactful bench cameo.
2 Malcolm Marx (South Africa): Back to his world-class best, it’s as simple as that. He dominated our runner-up, the ageless Julian Montoya, as the Bok grabbed two tries and nailed his darts in an all-action display and is our Player of the Week.
1 Ox Nche (South Africa): Possibly their match-winner, given that Los Pumas were all over South Africa in the backline and needed their scrum to come to the party. Our final word must go to Wallaby James Slipper, one of the most enduring props and popular men in the game, and we’re sorry to see him leave the Test arena he’s graced with such dignity for so long.