Who has made the cut?
The 2024 Six Nations has come to a close and Ireland have raised the trophy for the second consecutive year. They had an impressive tournament, particularly their result against France. However, they did not win the Grand Slam after England beat them in a shock result in round four.
The fixture was not the only surprise result to come from the tournament. Italy’s performances blew most away. They defeated Wales and an in-form Scotland team and they drew against France. The tournament is becoming more competitive with the uncertainty of who is going to win increasing.
The quality performances from most of the teams has made picking a team of the tournament difficult. There is at least one player from each nation included in the team but who has made Rugby World’s list?
Have a read of the team below.
Team of the tournament (Rugby World)
Six Nations team of the tournament – The Backs
15. Thomas Ramos – France
Ramos may have played the last two fixtures as a fly-half but his skills come into focus at 15. An expert kicker in play and at the sticks, he kicked 13 penalties and had 12 successful conversions. His boot steered him to become this year’s top point scorer with 63.
He also guided France’s attack superbly. Ramos’ skills were epitomised with his kick from a sloppy England lineout. He booted it down field which Damian Penaud picked up and Gael Fickou finished off. It was a divine bit of play.
14. James Lowe – Ireland
Not only has Lowe once again displayed his scoring prowess but he also highlighted how key he is in other parts of Ireland’s attack. He registered the most metres carried, 478, and more metres gained, 374.7, of any player in the tournament.
His consistency to play at such a high level is one of the factors why Ireland are firing on all cylinders.
13. Juan Ignacio Brex – Italy
Italy’s resurgence in this tournament has been a thing of beauty. At the heart of their good performances has been Brex. He was awarded Player of the Match in both of Italy’s wins against Scotland and Wales but he was dependable throughout.
12. Bundee Aki – Ireland
Ireland centre Aki was not involved in his team’s game against Italy but he played in the other four matches. His impact is felt every time he is on the ball, even if he does not carry that far he attracts multiple defenders which opens space for his teammates.
He also displayed expert tackling technique, particularly against Scotland.
11. Louis Bielle-Biarrey – France
Damian Penaud was close to making the team but the try Bielle-Biarrey scored against Scotland just squeaked him ahead of his France teammate. Bielle-Biarrey’s fast pace always has defences guessing and his ability to read play is world class. The scary thing for his opposition is that at 20-years-old he is only just getting started.
10. Finn Russell – Scotland
All of Scotland’s result may not have been the way co-captain Russell would have wanted them to turn out but he maintained his form. He finished as the second-highest point scorer with 55, was the joint-highest for try assists with three and kicked the most in play with 81.
He also brought an honest reflection when interviewed post-match.
9. Jamison Gibson-Park – Ireland
A clutch player that blows a game wide open in tough spots is what a title-winning team needs and Ireland have that in their scrum-half. The linchpin in attack, partnered with Jack Crowley, he dictated play effectively.
Gibson-Park had the joint top try assists with three and the most amount of passes with 333.
Six Nations team of the tournament – The Forwards
1. Ellis Genge – England
Prop Genge had to overcome injury, which ruled him out if the first round, to get back into the starting team. He started the second round on the bench but then finished the tournament in the starting XV.
He played well against Ireland but had one of his best performances in an England shirt for a while against France. The baby rhino are his thumping best.
2. Dan Sheehan – Ireland
There hasn’t been a time when hooker Sheehan has stepped onto a rugby pitch for Ireland and had a bad game. He certainly didn’t in this Six Nations tournament.
He proved nimble in attack, adopting a wing position on several occasions. He scored the joint-highest amount of tries with five, drawing with Scotland wing Duhan van der Merwe. This also meant he finished as the tournament’s fifth-highest point scorer with 25.
3. Uini Atonio – France
Prop Atonio impressed the most against Wales, which was the match where France felt like they had settled into the tournament. He is sometimes challenged at the scrum due to his size but on the whole he was a fierce competitor at set piece.
4. Joe McCarthy – Ireland
McCarthy’s best performance came in round one against France, where he won Player of the Match. But the dominant result against the French propelled Ireland’s campaign. He was consistent from then on but really fronted up in the opener.
5. Tadhg Beirne – Ireland
Beirne is always a solid option in a lock pairing and he demonstrated why, particularly at the lineout. Ireland’s lineout was one of the most successful when they had the throw but Beirne also recorded the joint-most lineout steals with three.
6. Michele Lamaro – Italy
Italy captain Lamaro not only make the most tackles of any player in the 2024 tournament but he has accumulated the most tackles made by a player in any singular Six Nations with 103. He has taken the record from Scotland’s Jonny Gray who made 100 in the 2018 tournament.
His tackling was impressive and his turnover ability shone through too, particularly against Wales.
7. Tommy Reffell – Wales
Reffell was the shining light in a disappointing campaign for Wales. He made eight breakdown steals, double the amount of the next highest in the tournament.
He also made the third-most tackles across the championship with 78.
8. Ben Earl – England
England’s best player by a mile. His best performance came against Ireland in round four but he has been consistent across all five matches.
Across the tournament he made the most carries of any player with 73. He also has the third-most metres made with 418.6 and scored two tries.
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