Six Nations team of the weekend: two from England, one from Wales

Seven Irishmen, three Scots, two from England and one each from France, Italy and Wales, here is our XV from round one

Three away wins punctuated a thrilling first round in this year’s Six Nations. We can only help that the excitement continues over the remainder of the Championship. Here are the individuals who stood out over the weekend.
Tommaso Allan finished a beautiful, flowing counter to confound England’s new defensive system. Keenan’s energy and commitment, however, were vital for Ireland.
We could shift Duhan van der Merwe here, but he and James Lowe are specialist left wings. That would be a cop-out. And Freeman deserves recognition anyway. His roaming return to the Test fold, featuring 69 metres with ball in hand, was a roaring success.
Henry Slade grew into the contest at Stadio Olimpico, leading an increasingly convincing England defence and making some clever and decisive reads. Brex, his opposite number, shades it on the basis of some neat touches and slick interplay with Paolo Garbisi.
Tommaso Menoncello would have been here but for another tour de force from Aki, who picked up where he left off at the World Cup. His poise in contact, even on the most crowded gain-lines, is quite remarkable. Sione Tuipulotu was integral to a great deal Scotland did well.
Lowe’s long, left-footed kicking or the scything runs of Van der Merwe? Both were pivotal in wins for Ireland and Scotland, respectively. Van der Merwe shades it. He is such a potent runner, and almost bagged a hat-trick at the death.
Jack Crowley is absolutely made of the right stuff. The 24-year-old emerged from the other side of tricky moments, such as an early charge-down, to direct Ireland confidently. Russell was masterful as Scotland amassed a 27-0 advantage. His post-match interview, in which he refused to sugar-coat the team’s subsequent capitulation, was also excellent.
Tomos Williams was one of Warren Gatland’s brilliant bench men and Alex Mitchell troubled Italy in a try-scoring performance. Gibson-Park also crossed for Ireland, showcasing his cute support running, and contributed hugely in the all-important kicking exchanges.
An opportunistic, close-range try, some more punchy carrying, scrummaging strength and 14 tackles. Schoeman enjoyed his day out at Principality Stadium.
Although Elliot Dee was a key protagonist of the Wales comeback, staking his claim for a start at Twickenham, another explosive effort from Sheehan edges it. He registered a double-figure tackle-count and scored from a runaway maul, which rubber-stamped Ireland’s line-out improvements.
Their successes in scrummaging and mauling will be two positives that France take up to Murrayfield and the 33-year-old Atonio, who eked penalties out of Andrew Porter in the set-piece battle, remains so important to Fabien Galthié. Zander Fagerson lasted 70 minutes for Scotland, underlining his stamina.
Probably the player of the entire round, McCarthy delivered a statement performance of some style. The mulleted lock possesses genuine stopping power and ensured that Ireland were the bullies rather than the bullied, albeit against an undermanned France pack. He is an imposing menace in every area and helped shore up the line-out.
Maro Itoje was among England’s most disruptive defenders. He and Ollie Chessum made life awkward for Italy’s line-out as well. That said, all-action Beirne was never in serious danger of losing his place. His slicing angle off the shoulder of Crowley for a first-half try was one of myriad moments, from charge-downs to jackals via line-out steals, to catch the eye.
Steve Borthwick is not comfortable with singling out players, so his praise for Roots spoke volumes. A prominent line-out target from first whistle to last, the muscular Exeter Chief also carried dynamically and frustrated Italy at the breakdown. The bopping blindside has seized his chance. Peter O’Mahony was very close.
For a flanker who is a reasonably understated presence on the pitch, Reffell is developing a knack for altering the course of matches; even now at the highest level. His jackalling is a craft and his influence with ball in hand remains widely underappreciated.
It is rather tricky to put Grégory Alldritt in the shade and France’s skipper still had his moments in Marseille, but the class of Doris shone through again. Aaron Wainwright had a monstrous game in Cardiff, too.