Best XV in World Rugby for Weekend of May 22-24
England's heroes took prime placement in the rugby spotlight this weekend as the Premiership's post-season calendar kicked off north of the equator.
Gloucester built on their recent success with a win over Connacht to book their spot in the Champions Cup play-off final, and Saracens battled their way to a Premiership play-off final against Bath.
As per usual, though, the titans of Super Rugby impressed enough to account for some of our best XV, and the Top 14 normal campaign came to a finish with some standing out as worthy of recognition more so than others.
Back Three
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15. Anthony Watson, Bath
Stuart Lancaster may be tempted to give Anthony Watson increased playing time in England's No. 15 jersey after the Bath speedster led Mike Ford's men to a playoff semi-final romp past Leicester Tigers.
Watson wasn't pushed to commit often in defence but proved a key attacking instrument for Bath and claimed one try and another assist, cutting out three clean breaks for 123 carrying metres.
14. Jonny May, Gloucester
Extra-time tries from Jonny May and Darren Dawidiuk pushed Gloucester past the post first in their struggle against Connacht, emerging as 40-32 victors in the race to claim a Champions Cup play-off final berth.
And not only was May the finishing weapon his side needed so late in the fixture; he was a consistent terror to the Connacht defence, making 20 carries for a complete haul of 181 metres, beating seven opponents in the process.
11. Matt Banahan, Bath
It was largely thanks to a Matt Banahan hat-trick that Bath sealed their place at Twickenham in this season's Premiership play-off final—two tries were his barely a quarter of the way into the match.
No player managed more clean breaks than Banahan's three at the Rec, and the rampaging winger contributed from the first minute to the last, grabbing his first and third tries 74 minutes apart from one another.
Centres
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13. Bill Meakes, Gloucester
Gloucester centre Bill Meakes joined team-mate May in the extra-time scoring on Saturday to prod the Cherry and Whites past Connacht and into the Champions Cup play-off final against Bordeaux.
Meakes was left red-faced when his red card put Gloucester in danger of losing the Challenge Cup final to Edinburgh several weeks ago, but a result-turning display against Connacht will help to erase that moment from memory.
12. Samu Kerevi, Reds
His 97 carrying metres may not have been sufficient to stop the Sharks from claiming a 21-14 win in Queensland, but Samu Kerevi certainly did his bit to lead the Reds in defiance.
The inside centre scored the Reds' only try of the first half and beat 10 defenders altogether from 17 attempted runs—no other player in the fixture attempted more.
Half-Backs
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10. Damian McKenzie, Chiefs
Just when it looked as though a long-term injury layoff for Aaron Cruden might have its impact on the team, the Chiefs have been pleased to see Damian McKenzie emerge from their ranks as the successor to his fly-half throne.
Settling further into his entrusted No. 10 role, McKenzie raced for 149 carrying metres this weekend as his side overcame the Bulls 34-20—half-back partner Augustine Pulu (101) was the only other player to crack the 100-metre barrier.
9. Guillaume Rouet Piffard, Bayonne
Bayonne's 45-12 win over Rochelle may not have been enough to save the club from dropping back down to France's Pro D2, but it did coax up a wonderful performance from Guillaume Rouet Piffard.
The Spaniard set up several of Bayonne's seven total tries, not to mention acting as a frequent menace himself and setting his side on the right path thanks to his fourth-minute try.
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Back Row
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8. Antonie Claassen, Racing Metro
A 53-10 win over Castres gave Racing Metro the means to take their spot in the Top 14 play-offs on Saturday, when No. 8 Antonie Claassen acted as a key driving force for the Parisians once more this season.
His 52nd-minute try went a long way toward cementing Racing's foothold just as they began to pull away on the scoreboard, also setting up another try and ending with an admirable 11 tackles to his name.
7. Warwick Tecklenburg, Lions
A 40-17 win over the Cheetahs came mainly thanks to some superb countermovements from the Lions on Saturday, but it's little surprise they controlled territory with Warwick Tecklenburg playing in his current vein of form.
Again, the openside was a defining figure in defence for his side, and he got about to make an astounding 22 tackles and also acted as a lineout receiver on more than one occasion.
6. Juan Smith, Toulon
Juan Smith was at his pillaging best against Oyonnax this weekend, stealing possession not only from open play, but at the set piece on numerous occasions too.
Along with that sense of dominance brought to the lineout, the South African also made a stellar 18 tackles.
2nd Row
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5. George Kruis, Saracens
One half of this weekend's all-England lock partnership, George Kruis was splendid to get about Franklin's Gardens to make 17 tackles as Saracens beat Northampton Saints 29-24 in their Premiership play-off semi-final.
4. Dave Attwood, Bath
Dave Attwood looked like a man determined to start for England at this year's Rugby World Cup on Saturday, showing terrific stamina in what was an inexhaustible outing against Leicester.
The lock showed a few signs of surprising technical skill with ball in hand and made several barnstorming runs, but it was in his defensive accomplishment of making 17 tackles where his energy really stood out.
Front Row
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3. Francisco Gomez Kodela, Bordeaux
A burrowing try from tighthead Francisco Gomez Kodela was the early nudge Bordeaux needed to build a half-time lead at Toulouse on Saturday even if their opponent overturned it by the end of their clash.
Bordeaux battled fiercely at the set piece, and Argentina international Kodela took the initiative to give Bordeaux a fighting chance at least.
2. Deon Fourie, Lyon
Only Australia veteran George Smith posed more of a carrying threat than hooker Deon Fourie this weekend, when they came back from a half-time deficit to beat Grenoble 29-24.
Fourie beat four defenders from his 10 runs, carrying for 62 metres and crashing over the try line in the sixth minute, although he could have improved his lineout throwing.
1. Mako Vunipola, Saracens
Mako Vunipola is a monstrous force when at the top of his game, and Mark McCall was surely pleased to see the loosehead conjure up his finest form against Northampton Saints this weekend.
Saracens' victory was in some part due to a mistake-free set piece, and Vunipola's 16 tackles certainly went a long way in keeping the Saints from continuing their title defence.
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