United Rugby Championship Round 3: South African Team of the Week

The Stormers continued their unbeaten start to the United Rugby Championship in Round 3 with an impressive 34-0 win over Scarlets.

However, things did not go as well for the rest of the South African teams as the Sharks were beaten 5-31 by Leinster, the Bulls went down 7-28 to Ulster and the Lions lost 15-41 to Italian side Benetton.

Which means the Team of the Week for Round 3 features a heavy dose of players from the Cape Town outfit but there were several players from the other franchises that made a strong impression.

Round 3 Team of the Week

15 - Rhyno Christo Smith (Benetton)

Was one of the standout players for Benetton in an impressive display against the Lions. Ran for around 80 metres in eight carries, broke the line on a couple of occasions. Scored a lovely try and kicked a conversion to contribute seven points, while also providing two try assists.

14 Ethan Hooker (Sharks)

Continuing his rapid rise to superstardom with another good performance despite a tough day out against an imposing Leinster side. Scored his team's only try of the game while running for nearly 100 metres in a match in which the Sharks' attack struggled to make many inroads

13 Wandisile Simelane (Stormers)

Terrorised Scarlets all game with powerful ball carrying and slick offloads to help the Stormers maintain their unbeaten start to the campaign. Ran for over 50 metres while also putting in a big shift in defence to keep the Welsh side off the scoresheet.

12 Ruhan Nel (Stormers)

Was the perfect partner for Simelane in midfield for the Stormers. Led from the front as captain and midfield enforcer with 12 brutal tackles to keep the Scarlets attackers on the back foot all game.

11 Angelo Davids (Lions)

Put in a workman-like performance on the wing for the Lions. Broke the Benetton line on a number of occasions to give the Joburg men some attacking momentum and ran for around 50 metres while also pulling his weight on defence.

10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (Stormers)

An eventful return to URC action for the Springbok superstar in the making. Contributed a try, two conversions, a penalty, made 11 tackles and spent 10 minutes in the sin bin in a truly all-round performance that showed off every facet of his game.

9 Stefan Ungerer (Stormers)

Shared time with Imad Khan but ran the show for the Stormers in the 61 minutes he was on the pitch. Was quick to the breakdown and to distribute, causing disarray among the Scarlets defenders and provided a crucial try assist.

8 Evan Roos (Stormers)

Was destructive in contact on defence and ran for over 70 metres, including scoring a try and was a key component in the Stormers' rollicking win over Scarlets.

7 Ruan Venter (Lions)

Venter was huge at flank for the Lions, played the full 80 minutes and didn't run out of gas. Took the ball to the gainline time and again trying to find a way into the match for his team and ran for over 60 metres in 14 carries. This spot might have gone to Ben-Jason Dixon of the Stormers if he hadn't got a yellow card.

6 Paul de Villiers (Stormers)

Only played 56 minutes but had a huge impact but was constantly in the action and ran his tank empty in that time. Contributed a try but his disruptive influence at the breakdown was more important to the win as he made it very difficult for Scarlets to build up any momentum.

5 Ruben van Heerden (Stormers)

Was disruptor-in-chief at lineout time for the Stormers with two crucial steals. He was also the tip of the spear when they opted to go for the powerful driving maul and was a physical presence that anchored the set piece.

4 Cobus Wiese (Bulls)

Ran for nearly 50 metres in eight brutal carries while also being a key outlet for the Bulls at lineout time. Pulled his weight on defence too with nine crunching tackles in a tough day at the office for the Pretoria men.

3 Wilco Louw (Bulls)

Despite the scoreline, the scrum was a solid set piece for the Bulls and Louw played a huge part in making that happen. Won a few important penalties and scored his side's only try of the game.

2 Johan Grobbelaar (Bulls)

Was accurate with his lineout throws and pulled his weight on defence with 10 tackles. Also put in a big shift at scrum time to help the Bulls get some momentum.

1 Gerhard Steenkamp (Bulls)

The scum was one of the few positive marks for the Bulls, which is represented in the tight five for this Team of the Week, and Steenkamp completes the set. Only played 53 minutes but the Bulls dominated the scrums when he was on the park and he also chipped in with five big tackles.

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