SA Investec Champions Cup Team of the Week – Round 1

The Stormers and Bulls suffered defeats later in the day. The Capetonians crashed to a 24-14 loss to Toulon in Gqeberha and the Bulls were blown away 27-5 by Saracens in gusty North London.

It should come as no surprise then that our South African Team of the Week is dominated by Sharks stars. Ten Durbanites cracked the nod, with four Stormers and a single Bulls standout completing our side.

15: Aphelele Fassi (Sharks)

Shook off a nasty head knock to deliver another superb showing. Super confident and elusive, he sparked Makazole Mapimpi’s try with lethal footwork on the counter-attack and continued to be a thorn in Exeter’s side.

14: Suleiman Hartzenberg (Stormers)

His half-break and offload created Warrick Gelant’s try while he also made a vital intercept to snuff out danger. 

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13: Ethan Hooker (Sharks)

Showcased his speed, power and skill to enhance his Bok hopes. The total package, his offload off the ground to put Grant Williams in for a try was tremendous.

12: Andre Esterhuizen (Sharks)

In addition to his usual hard running and setting targets, he dished up a delectable skip pass to put Kolisi over and won a turnover on the deck.

11: Makazole Mapimpi (Sharks)

Another week, another magnificent performance by an aggressive Mapimpi. Saved a try early on by winning the race to the ball, played a role in the Sharks’ first try, scored the next one and retained a box kick through determined chasing and leaping.

10: Jordan Hendrikse (Sharks)

Did good work nice and flat. Great try assist for Kolisi, feeding his No. 8 with a classy offload, and slotted six out of seven kicks at goal. Those 14 points proved crucial in the end. Good line kicks as well and a physical defender. His versatility saw him finish the game at fullback.

9: Grant Williams (Sharks)

Absolutely electrifying. Had a key hand in two tries, good support play to score one himself and balanced out his game with accurate box kicks.

8: Siya Kolisi (Sharks) – Player of the Week

A top-notch Man of the Match performance at No. 8 by the Bok skipper. A danger in the wide channel, cool, calm and collected to score his first try and had the pace to score a second. Made three line breaks in all.

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7: Phepsi Buthelezi (Sharks)

Replaced the injured Vincent Tshituka in just the sixth minute and had a blinder. Great power and athleticism to score the Sharks’ opening try and explosive carry and offload to Hooker in the lead-up to Williams’ try.

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6: Dylan Richardson (Sharks)

On after 12 minutes, the Scottish international brought great energy and an unrivalled work rate. Made a match-high 18 tackles and a dynamic break in the 62nd minute. His versatility also came in hand as he shifted to hooker at the death.

5: Ruben van Heerden (Stormers)

In the thick of the action. Prominent ball carrier with eight hit-ups, charged down Baptiste Serin’s kick, got around on defence and stole one of Toulon’s lineouts.

4: Ruan Vermaak (Bulls)

Took the fight to Saracens. A physical presence and a workhorse, making a Bulls-best 14 tackles. Managed a lineout steal in his 22 as well. 

3: Neethling Fouche (Stormers)

The Stormers skipper led by example and bled for the cause. Did the donkey work exceedingly well, great maul defence and won a pressure-relieving scrum penalty on his 5m line.

2: Joseph Dweba (Stormers)

Fired up for his 50th Stormers appearance and delivered in spades. His physicality was immense, which saw him make good post-contact metres and dominant tackles, his lineout throwing was spot on and he scored a timely try just before halftime.

1: Ox Nche (Sharks)

A world-class all-round effort by the leading loosehead in the game. Set the tone with a dominant first carry, great cleanout was crucial in the lead-up to Buthelezi’s try, bossed the scrums and worked hard on defence, making 11 tackles.