Team of the week: Munster, Leinster and Bristol feature after big wins

By Sky Sports Rugby Union

Image: Charles Piutau was superb for Bristol as they thrashed the Tigers

Big wins for Munster and Leinster in the PRO14 and Bristol in the Premiership see them represented in our team of the week...

15. Charles Piutau (Bristol Bears)

What a day for Bristol as they ran out 41-10 winners over struggling Leicester, and much of their attack was centred around Charles Piutau. The full-back carried 19 times at Ashton Gate, beating seven defenders on his way to making 103 metres with the ball.

14. Keith Earls (Munster)

Keith Earls played on the left wing but we are shifting him to the right. The Ireland international made two breaks and beat four defenders, but the most impressive stat of the day for the 31-year-old was his hat-trick - the 8 minutes and 20 seconds that it took made it the quickest hat-trick in Munster's professional history.

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13. Chris Farrell (Munster)

A mention for Alex Lozowski, who kicked 19 points with the boot in Saracens' 29-6 win over Wasps as Mark McCall's men continued their charge at the top of the Gallagher Premiership table. However, Chris Farrell's 12 carries which resulted in two tries in Munster's emphatic 44-14 victory over Edinburgh gets him into our team of the week.

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12. Romain Ntamack (Toulouse)

Image: Toulouse's Romain Ntamack caused headaches for the Stade defence

Toulouse are second in the Top 14 standings following their 49-20 win over Stade Francais on Sunday, and with a European date with Wasps looming, they will be grateful for the momentum. For his part in Toulouse's latest success, including a try that finished off a good all-round display, Romain Ntamack wears the No 12 jersey for us this week.

11. Ollie Thorley (Gloucester)

Ollie Thorley ran the ball more than any of his Gloucester team-mates in their 36-16 win over Worcester Warriors. His 17 carries saw 130 metres made with the ball, making four breaks and beating nine defenders to cross for two tries. A brilliant display from the left winger at Kingsholm.

10. Brandon Thomson (Glasgow Warriors)

Glasgow were left with a mountain to climb when prop Alex Allan was sent off at the end of the first quarter against the Scarlets. The Warriors managed to grind out a win, and it was largely thanks to fly-half Brandon Thomson, who registered all but five of his team's points in a 29-20 victory at Scotstoun.

9. Faf de Klerk (Sale Sharks)

In scrappy games you need scrappy players, and there are few out there that fit the mould better than World Player of the Year nominee Faf de Klerk. In atrocious conditions, the scrum-half's positional awareness was superb as he picked up the man-of-the-match award in a 7-7 draw between Bath and the Sharks at the Rec.

Image: Faf de Klerk covered all of the Rec in Sale's draw with Bath

1. Oli Kebble (Glasgow Warriors)

Oli Kebble came on as a replacement for the Warriors when Allan was sent packing at Scotstoun, and made a huge impact in the remaining hour of play. The South African made nine tackles and carried the ball 13 times for his team, and also formed part of a huge effort from the Glasgow men up front.

2. Harry Thacker (Bristol Bears)

Epalahame Faiva can consider himself desperately unlucky to miss out after scoring a hat-trick in Benetton's 22-19 win over the Kings on Saturday. In the end we've giving then nod to Harry Thacker for scoring twice against his former club Leicester and nailing his lineouts with nine out of nine throws on target.

Image: Harry Thacker made an enormous impact against his former club

3. Henry Thomas (Bath)

Bath stayed in the game at the Rec largely thanks to their scrum, which had the better of the Sale pack and won several penalties as a result. Tighthead prop Henry Thomas spearheaded that dominance by locking the scrum and allowing the power of the home forwards to tell.

4. Tadhg Beirne (Munster)

Ireland second rower Tadhg Beirne is an invaluable force at the breakdown. On top of doing his set-piece duty, Beirne also stole the ball four times against Edinburgh. Tom Savage was brilliant for Gloucester against the Warriors, narrowly missing out on a place in our team.

5. Lood de Jager (Barbarians)

Springbok Lood de Jager spun himself into a frenzy with his pre-match signing at Twickenham, and it clearly is the secret to his success, with the No 5 offering a try in the BaaBaas' comeback victory over Argentina. Rassie Erasmus is blessed with a few options at lock, and De Jager's performance will give the Bok boss even more to consider ahead of 2019.

6. Alex Dombrandt (Harlequins)

This was the position that caused to most debate. Steven Luatua led with conviction for the Bears, while Michael Rhodes impressed for Saracens. However, for his part in Harlequins' 28-26 win over Exeter on Friday night, Alex Dombrandt wears the No 6 jersey. Dombrandt carried 14 times and made 10 tackles for Quins, the latter putting him top of the pile for his team on the day.

Image: Alex Dombrandt made the most tackles by a Quins player against Exeter on Friday

7. Scott Penny (Leinster)

Leinster recorded a comfortable 59-10 win over the Dragons to extend their lead at the top of Conference B in the Guinness PRO14. Scott Penny not only scored a try to help his side pile on the points, but was also incredibly effective in defence - the flanker made 18 tackles to prevent the Dragons from gaining any momentum.

8. Caelan Doris (Leinster)

Jordan Crane was typically influential for the Bears, and Ben Morgan was a workhorse for Johann Ackermann's Gloucester. But the pick of the bunch was Leinster's Caelan Doris, who not only matched Penny's try with one of his own, but also made 14 carries and 13 tackles at Rodney Parade.

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