The Rugby Championship will get underway in just under two weeks and there are a number of players to keep your eye on.
There is a plethora of talented players that will take to the field in this year’s Rugby Championship from grizzled veterans such as Kieran Reed and Schalk Britz to fresh new faces like Joe Powell and Domingo Miotti.
Our scribe takes a look at four players who he thinks may be the ones to look out for at this year’s tournament.
Nicolas Sanchez
Country: Argentina
Position: Fly-half
Age: 30
With all the young Argentine talent strutting their stuff at fly-half for the Jaguares in Super Rugby one would be forgiven for having forgotten about Argentina’s Nicolas Sanchez.
The Pumas incumbent pivot left his homeland last year to go ply his Trade in France for Stade Francais. And while his first year with the Top 14 outfit was a bit of a disappointment Stade failed to qualify for the Top 14 play-offs – he still put in some solid showings.
It will be interesting to see how Sanchez adjusts to the pace of Southern Hemisphere Test match rugby. The French top tier is a much slower beast, and Sanchez won’t be afforded as much time when it comes to decision making. He’s a classy operator though and should be able to adjust.
Tom Banks
Country: Australia
Position: Wing/Fullback
Age: 25
With Israel Folau now out of the Australian national picture, a door has been opened for Tom Banks to secure a spot in the Australian starting XV, whether that be on one of the wings or at fullback.
The Brumbies man enjoyed a superb Super Rugby campaign with his counterattacking ability coming to the fore. He also likes an away game having scored seven tries in eight away games during the Brumbies run to the Super Rugby semi-finals.
While it’s going to be hard for Australia to place infamous Israel, young Tom is a man who the Wallabies can bank on.
Sevu Reece
Country: New Zealand
Position: Wing
Age: 22
This season’s most exciting Super Rugby player has been the 22-year-old Sevu Reece. The Crusader’s flyer has scored 13 tries to date.
Reece has pretty much come out of nowhere having been called up to the Crusaders squad as an injury replacement just before the start of the 2019 Super Rugby season. He hasn’t looked back since he was handed his Crusaders debut back in March and a solid showing in the Rugby Championship could see him book a spot on a plane to Japan later this year.
Francois Steyn
Country: South Africa
Position: Utility Back
Age: 32
The oldest man on this list, and arguably the most talented, Francois Steyn has been included in the Springboks Rugby Championship squad and could make a real impact for the South Africans, whom he last turned out for back in 2009.
The extremely gifted utility back may provide a solution in the troublesome inside-centre berth. While Damian de Allende and Andre Estheuizen both have their pros neither has the all-around game that Steyn has.
Like Sanchez, Steyn will need to get reacquainted with the fast pace nature of international rugby, but if there’s one man who has the talent to cut it at international level it’s definitely the former Sharks stalwart.
