Champions Cup Team of the Week: Seven Leinster players included after dominant display  

By Charlie Elliott

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The Champions Cup swiftly returned for the quarter finals, just a week after the round of 16 was played out. 

Now that the competition has reached a crucial stage, the standard of rugby shown across the weekend was brilliant to see. 

Some of the best in Europe battled it out for a place in the last four, with Leinster, Toulouse, Northampton Saints and Bordeaux Begles the four who got through. 

Leinster were the standout side, with a 52-0 win over reigning URC champions Glasgow Warriors, but all four of the games played had their own unique dynamics. 

Toulouse got a last-gasp winner against Toulon, winning 21-18 thanks to a Thomas Ramos penalty with the clock in the red. 

Overall, we saw four very different games that each had their own dynamic to it. 

Here is Charlie Elliott’s Team of the Week from a very varied set of games. 

Outside Backs

15- Melvyn Jaminet (Toulon) 

Jaminet has been a man possessed since returning from his ban and is enjoying rugby again following his 34-week hiatus from the sport. 

Very unlucky to be on the wrong side of the result against Toulouse, all 18 of Toulon’s points came from his boot. 

Against his former club, he was cold as ice from the tee and scored from all ranges. 

As it happened, Thomas Ramos’ last-gasp winner for Toulouse will be the moment that is remembered, but Jaminet put in a serious performance. 

Good across the park to complement it, he will take confidence from this game into the run-in for the Top 14 title. 

14- Tommy Freeman (Northampton Saints) 

Freeman has been unstoppable recently and has well and truly put himself in contention for starting a Lions Test. 

Saints saw off Castres 51-16 to reach the semis, with a very professional performance at Franklin Gardens. 

A well-taken try after a great link-up with George Furbank opened the scoring early on. 

Someone whom the opposition genuinely feared, you could sense an air of anticipation every time he got on the ball. 

11- Tommy O’Brien (Leinster) 

Another Leinster back who makes it in is debutant O’Brien, who shone in his first Champions Cup start. 

With a try to his name and some strong involvements overall, it was a game to remember for the 26-year-old. 

Not an easy try to take on the wing, he turned past the last man for a really tidy finish. 

A powerful runner despite his relatively small stature, he clearly wanted the ball and had an air of confidence impressive for someone with a lack of experience compared to the rest of his team. 

Leinster just get better and better and have a new weapon to call upon. 

Centres

13- Garry Ringrose (Leinster) 

The first of many backs from the Irish side, which is unsurprising given that they won 52-0 against reigning URC champions Glasgow Warriors. 

Ringrose was super consistent as he so often is and showed why he is so key in this Leinster team. 

Jordie Barrett and he were unstoppable, and while Barrett may steal the headlines, it would not be possible without the work of Ringrose. 

Got himself on the scoresheet with a try early in the second half, with a neat run through the heart of the Warriors’ defence. 

12- Jordie Barrett (Leinster) 

As mentioned, Barrett lit up the Aviva Stadium and was unstoppable in Leinster’s huge victory. 

With effectively the Ireland national team alongside him, having the All Black added to the mix just seems unfair to everyone else. 

What a class player and someone who is key to the dominance that the Dublin team have shown this season. 

He was unbelievable on both sides of the ball with a couple of turnovers won and some powerful running with the ball in hand. 

Also a great passer and distributor, he is simply unreal. 

Halfbacks

10- Sam Prendergast (Leinster) 

Prendergast continued his hunt for a Lions jersey with a barnstorming performance as part of the Leinster win. 

He kept things ticking and kept the Warriors’ defence guessing with a multitude of different moves that all seemed to come off. 

Everything he touched turned to gol,d and he was one of the main focal points in such a potent attack. 

As long as he and the rest of his team keep this up, it could be another title for them. 

9- Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster) 

A beneficiary of the rest of his team being so good, Gibson-Park didn’t put in his best performance, but still makes it into this team. 

Overall, he was very good and kept the tempo high in similar fashion to Prendergast, but he did make a couple of wayward passes that tarnished an otherwise very good game. 

Will be looking to improve for the semis. 

Front Row

1- Emmanuel Iyogun (Northampton Saints) 

Played very well against Castres, maintaining the basics in the scrum impressively while also delivering some good work around the park. 

A modern-day prop that can do it all, the 24-year-old really helped Saints put their French opponents to the sword. 

2- Curtis Langdon (Northampton Saints) 

Took his try brilliantly after just 14 minutes, when he controlled a grubber kick from George Furbank to give Saints a very comfortable early lead. 

Generally solid from set pieces with some hard work throughout the game, it was a good shift from Langdon. 

3- Tadhg Furlong (Leinster) 

Not too much to report regarding any of the tightheads this weekend, with Furlong making this side largely by virtue of the huge margin that Leinster won by. 

Great in the scrum like he so often is, his hard work allowed the backs to do their thing. 

Second Row

4- RG Snyman (Leinster) 

An absolute freak of nature not only is Snyman absolutely massive and powerful, but he is a very good rugby player as well. 

This Leinster team is unreal with just Irish players, let alone with Jordie Barrett and RG Snyman added to the mix. 

His ability to gain key yards through his running and then offload to create space is uncanny, with it being key to the unstoppable attack that his side produced against Glasgow. 

5- Emmanuel Meafou (Toulouse) 

Easily the best performance for his side in a scrappy game and one of the key reasons that they stayed close enough to Toulon to be able to score their late penalty winner. 

Although he wasn’t on the field at the end, coming off with 10 to go due to fatigue, he laid the foundations for the grandstand finish. 

Dominant defensively, a maul turnover was probably his best moment of the match, but his carry that led to a penalty just before half time arguably changed the game. 

His side were very slow in the first period, but his involvement in the three points put them within a try of the hosts at the break. 

Back Row

6- Henry Pollock (Northampton Saints) 

The phenomenon that is Pollock continues to reach new heights and was brilliant yet again against Castres. 

His two tries were very well taken and helped to put the game beyond doubt. 

Similar to Freeman, it really feels like something is going to happen every time he touches the ball, and his willingness to make an impact really shows. 

Sometimes that willingness gets too far, as he also conceded three penalties, but his good work far outweighed the bad. 

7- Guido Petti (Bordeaux Begles) 

Bordeaux were made to work hard against Munster in their 47-29 victory, with the back row being involved in a lot of the good work from the Begles. 

So much of the hard work came from Argentine Petti, who will join Harlequins next season. 

Also adept in the second row, he had six lineout takes and was a physical force that Munster struggled with. 

8- Pete Samu (Bordeaux Begles) 

Samu was brilliant in the back row for a much different reason to Petti, with his playmaking being the key attribute shown. 

He linked up the backs and forwards very well and had some good runs himself with the ball in hand. 

Felt like the perfect man to fill the position for this Bordeaux side.