Best XV in World Rugby for Weekend of June 5-7

The quiet before the storm of this year's Rugby World Cup is an agonising one, but the giants of France and the Southern Hemisphere ensure fans still have plenty of action to enjoy.

Europe's campaign now sits largely in the backdrop, and only those still vying for Top 14 glory compete on the continent. Meanwhile, the Hurricanes' march toward Super Rugby success continued this weekend.

Their triumph over the Highlanders cemented a first-place finish in the New Zealand conference and a home semi-final as a result, but there were other star displays to watch out for as we broke down the team of the week.

Back Three

15. Israel Folau, Waratahs

Starting off this week's XV with our choice for performance of the week, Waratahs full-back Israel Folau didn't miss a beat during his team's 58-33 throttling of the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein.

The Australia No. 15 scythed and bulldozed his way to a hat-trick of tries and also helped in the creation of a couple more, having a direct hand in no fewer than five of the 'Tahs' total nine scores.

From his 11 carries, Folau made four clean breaks and beat eight defenders in all for 101 metres made with ball in hand, ensuring opponents Coenie van Wyk and Cornal Hendricks had torrid days at the office.

14. Nehe Milner-Skudder, Hurricanes

The calls for Nehe Milner-Skudder as a potential All Blacks World Cup inclusion are gathering quite a bit of pace, as the Hurricanes winger had another dazzling outing during Friday's 56-20 win over the Highlanders.

The 24-year-old didn't match team-mate Julian Savea in tries scored—The Bus managed one—but Milner-Skudder was far more dominating in defence, succeeding in all tackles, while Savea missed two of his attempted three.

Milner-Skudder may not have crossed the whitewash, but match-high sums of 131 metres and seven defenders beaten from his 11 carries tell us tries aren't the only statistic worth paying attention to.

11. Matt Carraro, Waratahs

Another centrepiece of the Waratahs' back three this Saturday was Matt Carraro, who outdid the aforementioned Folau in line breaks made (five) and carrying metres (117).

The journeyman winger hasn't had a wealth of chances to shine under Michael Cheika since returning to New South Wales in 2014, but his two tries against the Cheetahs showed what an efficient finisher he can be.

Centres

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13. Francois Venter, Cheetahs

After conceding 58 points to the Waratahs on Saturday, numerous players on the Cheetahs are deserving of any criticism hurled in their direction, but Francois Venter is not one of them.

The centre proved to be one reliable asset for coach Naka Drotske, succeeding with 12 of his 13 attempted tackles, making 10 carries—the joint-highest of any Cheetahs player—and finishing with two tries to his name.

12. Rey Lee-Lo, Hurricanes

The Highlanders' centre partnership of Richard Buckman and Jason Emery were dumbfounded in Napier this Friday, making a grand total of three metres with ball in hand before the latter was withdrawn just before half-time.

That stifling came mostly as a result of some superb pressing from Hurricanes pair Rey Lee-lo and Conrad Smith, but the former was also a nuisance to reckon with, managing 99 carrying metres and four clean breaks.

Half-Backs

10. Beauden Barrett, Hurricanes

The apparent heir to the All Blacks' fly-half throne was once again in superstar mode against the Highlanders this weekend, as Beauden Barrett stood out as the rare No. 10 commodity this sport already knows him to be.

While full-back James Marshall took care of kicking duties, Barrett ravaged the Highlanders defence to make 90 metres with ball in hand and provide a prolific platform in attack, failing to miss any of his seven tackle attempts.

9. Augustine Pulu, Chiefs

The race to claim a playoff spot kicked the Chiefs into an extra gear this Saturday as they walloped the Reds 24-3 in their own backyard. Augustine Pulu was the man pulling the strings throughout.

The scrum-half enjoyed a seamless display in which he managed to set up two Chiefs tries, make 11 tackles and impress with his own direct tactics. He tallied 61 metres from three breaks and forced three turnovers.

Back Row

8. Victor Vito, Hurricanes

A throttling win for the Hurricanes on Friday came largely thanks to a busy performance from their back row, with Victor Vito numbering among the most highly involved players against the Highlanders.

The No. 8 showed the Napier crowd time and again what a willing runner of the ball he is, making 87 metres from his 19 carries—no player attempted more—and taking two steals from the line-out.

Italy captain Sergio Parisse was also at his best as Stade Francais managed an upset of Toulon in their Top 14 playoff semi-final.

7. David Pocock, Brumbies

There's a good chance no player will score a hat-trick of tries this season while making less of a carrying impact than David Pocock did against Western Force on Friday. He put up a triple despite managing just 12 metres.

Irrespective of that lack of involvement in open space, the resurgent Wallaby is displaying some superbly clinical ability when peeling off the back of mauls, with this being his second hat-trick of the campaign.

Of course, it wouldn't be a Pocock performance without an absurdly high tackle count either, and the flanker didn't disappoint with his contribution of 15—missing none—more than any other player as the Brumbies romped to a 33-20 win.

6. Liam Messam, Chiefs

One would hardly believe Liam Messam had spent any time out with injury after he made his triumphant return to fitness against the Reds this weekend, scoring the second of the Chiefs' tries in Brisbane.

EatSleepRugby shows the expert line cut by Messam to glide over in what was a masterful, mature outing, where the veteran finished with 14 tackles and led by example—especially during Michael Leitch's stint in the sin bin.

Team-mate Sam Cane just misses out on a place in our back row after another dogged display, pitching in with an incredible 19 tackles while missing none. In addition, 32-year-old Schalk Burger made 23 tackles against the Lions.

Second Row

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5. Eben Etzebeth, Stormers

Open space proved hard to come by in Cape Town on Saturday as the Stormers and Lions went to and fro in a tense collision, but the bulldozing methods of Eben Etzebeth proved effective.

His 50 metres made from just nine carries were a welcome relief for the hosts' back line, and a spotless record of 14 successful tackles further eased the Stormers' pains.

4. Rory Arnold, Brumbies

The Brumbies' set piece worked as a crucial component as part of their win over the Force, and Rory Arnold claimed no fewer than six of his side's total 19 throws, not to mention stealing some of the hosts' input.

Front Row

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3. Rabah Slimani, Stade Francais

Those who feel Rabah Slimani should be a shoo-in for the France XV will sense their calls were justified by a commanding set-piece performance from the Stade tight-head on Friday.

It was Slimani who came out on top in his anticipated head-to-head with international team-mate Xavier Chiocci. Toulon lost five of their nine scrum feeds in total and suffered numerous penalty slip-ups to give Morne Steyn his chances from the tee.

2. Mbongeni Mbonami, Stormers

It's something of sad day when a team's hooker outdoes the rest of his men in stamina and iron-lung defence—or at least that was the old way of thinking, with Mbongeni Mbonami a prime example of what today's line-throwers can achieve.

Put simply, the Stormers juggernaut was ever-present en route to a 19-19 draw against the Lions, putting in 19 tackles during an 80-minute outing, the highest tally of any player in Cape Town on Saturday.

1. Thomas Domingo, Clermont Auvergne

As another name some may debate is deserving of more plaudits in the French national team, Clermont Auvergne's Thomas Domingo helped dispatch Toulouse in the other Top 14 playoff semi-final on Saturday.

Domingo was unfortunate not to have stayed on for longer against Toulouse, but he was one of Clermont's more effective carrying weapons in his 50-minute outing and didn't miss his mark in defence.

All statistics come courtesy of ESPN Scrum.