TEAM OF THE TOURNAMENT
15 Beauden Barrett
(New Zealand)
The All Blacks might have seen their 12-year unbeaten World Cup record end against England, but Barrett was still fighting the good fight until the very end.
14 Kotaro Matsushima
(Japan) Matsushima was consistently excellent in a side that captured the hearts of all rugby fans
13 Semi Radradra
(Fiji) Is there a more joyful sight in rugby than Radrada in full flight? He made most of his most telling contributions from the wing, but plays outside centre in our team
12 Damian de Allende
(South Africa)
Few knew how skilled Lukhanyo Am was until his fine cameo in the final, given the ball rarely makes it past De Allende in South Africa’s backline. There is a reason for that. He is so reliable
11 Josh Adams
(Wales) Bounced back from being bulldozed by Josua Tuisova to score three tries against Fiji, finishing with seven in the tournament
10 Handre Pollard
(South Africa)
It felt inevitable this guy would be a World Cup winner at some point. Immaculate from the tee in the semi-final against Wales, and a 22-point haul against England in the final
9 Yutaka Nagare
(Japan) Japan’s scrum-half could get into this team based exclusively on the fact he passed the ball 75 times and did not kick once in the epic win over Scotland.
1 Tendai Mtawarira
(South Africa)
“The Beast” had moments of anxiety in the tournament, but he was colossal in the final, as the Boks established a forward dominance that was the platform for their win
2 Shota Horie
(Japan) Representative of the modern trend towards having adept playmakers in the front-row. Horie even cropped up in attacking play executing neat grubber kicks
3 Kyle Sinckler
(England) His early exit with concussion from the final was a key blow for England
4 Lood de Jager
(South Africa) Remarkably, the Springboks lost just one lineout on their own throw in the whole tournament. De Jager, who ended it with a dislocated shoulder, was at the forefront
5 Maro Itoje
(England) His was the standout performance in a display by England against New Zealand that many are describing as the most complete performance in the country’s history
6 Pieter-Steph du Toit
(South Africa)
While Ardie Savea, Michael Leitch and Tom Curry all excelled, Du Toit edges it on account he is going home with the winners’ medal
7 Sam Underhill
(England) The template for how a modern openside flanker should play – and also a decent poster boy for safe tackle technique, too
8 Duane Vermeulen
(South Africa) No-one typifies the Boks’ gameplan better than their granite-hard No 8.