With the All Blacks v Ireland, and France v the Springboks, the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals showcased rugby of the highest calibre. Here’s a team that builds on the best of them.
15 Beauden Barrett (All Blacks)
Showed the classic fullback’s virtues by kicking and defending well throughout, while the chip and regather that sparked Leicester Fainga’anuku’s try was thoroughly modern. Beauden Barrett’s combo with Richie Mo’unga was lively and error-free, and when booting for position he made good territory gains.
14 Semi Radradra (Fiji)
A beast for the fabulous Fijians, Radradra was the most dangerous thing to threaten the English. His monster runs skittled tacklers and gave his side the momentum that kept them in striking distance of their tier-one opponents.
Unlucky: Will Jordan finished Richie Mo’unga’s break beautifully, but his flinch when Jamison Gibson-Park darted at the line led to the Irish try.
13 Jesse Kriel (South Africa)
South Africa’s defensive, Kriel rock showed a rare subtle touch with hard running and nice handling under pressure. His lovely grubber for Cheslin Kolbe to gather and score was genius.
12 Jordie Barrett (All Blacks)
Beefcake blokes Damien de Allende (105kg) and Bundee Aki (102kg) both scored tries and were sharp and brutal with the ball; they put hefty weight into short charges and gleefully piled into defensive hits. Barrett (106kg) matched their efforts, and it would pretty much be even-stevens between the three of them, but the All Black No 12 gets the nod for us on account of that unbelievable tackle – it’s hard to think of a better tryline save made by an All Black. Gregan-Wilson had nothing on this. As a bonus, he pings over long-range three-pointers.
Unlucky: De Allende and Aki.
11 Cheslin Kolbe (South Africa)
First name on the paper when selecting a Wee-Man XV for the tournament. Kolbe was always fast and dangerous with the ball in space and we’ll be telling stories about his charge down around the campfire for years to come – imagine how many times in his career the little winger has made that largely forlorn sprint in an attempt to block a kick. Perhaps 1000? And to pull it off in a Rugby World Cup quarter-final, killing a two-point chance in a match you go on to win by one point? Legend.
10 Richie Mo’unga (All Blacks)
Showing superb game management, Mo’unga kicked nicely from the tee and out of hand. The set-piece break that paved the way for Jordan’s try left was the best individual attacking moment in a high-tempo match. Reigning World Player of the Year Josh van der Flier, who doesn’t miss many tackles, was left chasing shadows.
9 Antoine Dupont (France)
The French skipper has a genius boot and is a terrific organiser, even if he faded from view a little as the game was pulled away by the Bok pack. At his best, when everything else around him was frantic chaos, Dupont seemed to operate at a cooler pace, picking runners and identifying channels two or three phases ahead.
8 Ardie Savea (All Blacks)
New Zealand has produced some handy No 8s over the years, and the Hurricanes hero is playing his way into the top echelon. His consistency of output is freakish. Savea was the most visible Kiwi on show, bringing a phenomenal workrate and impact to the match, delivering a lethal one-two, tackle-and-jackal combo with the All Blacks No 7. His athletic corner-post try was reward for a skilful performance.
Unlucky: Ben Earl has been the best Englishman on show throughout the tournament, but he wasn’t at Savea’s level.
7 Sam Cane (All Blacks)
The All Blacks captain played his finest game in a black jersey in the quarter-final, and whatever happens over the next fortnight, he’ll know he delivered his best when his team needed it most. Every tackle was a wrecking ball, and in a game won by inches it mattered a great deal that Cane could nudge Irish ball-carriers backwards at the gainline.
6 Marcus Kremer (Argentina)
Wore the No 7 jersey against hapless Wales, but packs down on either side and could happily do 80 minutes in any of the back-five pack positions. This route-one ball carrier gave a Frizzell-at-Mt-Smart performance in Los Pumas’ quarter-final clash and his direct charges bring a balance to our loose trio. At 2 metres, he’s a handy lineout option to boot.
5 Brodie Retallick (All Blacks)
The All Blacks’ big rig still has a young man’s lungs and the game nous of a seasoned loosie in the defensive pile-ups and breakdown snaffles. If he catches the eye less as a distributor at second receiver than he once did that’s because his side’s game has changed, rather than him fading. He’s still an absolute beast carting the ball into heavy traffic, with levers perfect for offloads.
Unlucky: England’s Maro Itoje was very good against Fiji, pulling off a dramatic intercept and throwing himself at breakdowns in a manner reminiscent of that brutal semifinal bashing they served up in 2019. But Retallick was shining on a bigger stage.
4 Eben Etzebeth (South Africa)
A performance to remember – one moment he’s somehow dodging a yellow card and penalty try on his own line, the next he’s leaping for a high ball in the French half and disrupting defenders for a teammate to burn away for a cheeky try. A towering lineout presence and breakdown beast, Etzebeth later bagged a try of his own – and eventually a head-clash yellow card.
3 Tyrel Lomax (All Blacks)
Ever since last year’s series defeat to Ireland, Kiwi fans have been fretting about the front-row clash that would come if the two sides met again in the quarter-finals. On the day, Lomax was immense, subduing the much-vaunted Andrew Porter to bag scrum penalties that mattered and working hard in the collisions and breakdowns.
2 Peato Mauvaka (France)
France’s second-choice hooker is first choice for this line up. Mauvaka scored an excellent early try in the frantic early exchanges and blazed around the field like an extra wild-eyed No 8. He was accurate with his handling and his lineout targets.
1 Ethan de Groot (All Blacks)
Another to get the better of his famed Irish opposite, de Groot’s dominance of Tadhg Furlong might have been less dramatic than what was happening on the other side of the scrum, but no less significant. He put in a dynamic shift around the park before clocking out alongside Lomax late in the piece.
Unlucky: Steven Kitshoff was terrific around the park.
