Cyril Baille (France, prop)

Props are usually thought of as gnarly old veterans, not fresh-faced choirboys. Baille is in the latter group, although I would never trust a French prop at the bottom of a ruck if the referee was looking the other way. Old habits and all.

Baille is happy to take you on physically but if he can spot a soft inside shoulder he will take it, knowing he can create space for the ever-willing

French support runners straight down the middle of the field.

He had an offloading field day against Wales. The Welsh could not shut down the French in and around the contact area, especially Baille, and with it the French, when they got their game going, were close to untouchable. He was able to ride big tackles and find his support runners time after time, and with Antoine Dupont ran riot.

Never seems to have a bad game. Having struggled at Leinster, he unbelievably found himself genuinely thinking about a different career. I love these kinds of players. Nothing given to them, they have earned every cap, every selection, grafted and kept turning up and believing.

He has worked on his game away from the international arena and had enough rugby IQ to look natural when the moment of international recognition came. He has an unbelievable ability to jackal and get his tall frame in awkward positions and still come out with the ball.

He is a classic hybrid, just as comfy in the loose as he is in the tight. But he prioritises his role according to his shirt number. He can dial up the close-quarter work as a second row or give himself some flexibility if he is in the back row.