Here are eight standout performances from another epic weekend of international rugby.
Will Jordan (New Zealand)
Doug Howlett’s all-time try record for the All Blacks has been under threat for a while, and it really was a question of when, not if, Will Jordan would eventually crack the 49-try barrier and become New Zealand’s highest scorer of all time.
Unfortunately for opponents Italy, it happened on Saturday. The record-equalling score summed up his brilliance, working hard after being dumped to the ground to get back on his feet and into position outside Josh Moorby to score.
Jordan finished the match with the third hat-trick of his career – and you can bet more will follow. He has 50 tries now in 56 tests for the All Blacks.
Aaron Grandidier-Nkanang (France)
What a start to his Test career for the Bromley-born Grandidier-Nkanang, showing the kind of speed that led to him being part of France’s gold-medal winning sevens side two years ago, as he hared after Romain Ntamack’s stabbed kick in behind to stun the Wallabies in the first half.
His second may end up being the easiest of his Test career, being in the right place at the right time to collect Matthieu Jalibert’s cross-field chip. Pau have churned out some thrilling backs for France in recent years – Theo Attissogbe, Emilien Gailleton, Fabien Brau-Boirie and Gregoire Arfeuil are all on Fabien Galthie’s radar – and now you can add Grandidier-Nkanang to that list.
Sean Jansen (Ireland)
Connacht back-row Jansen laid out a big hit on Takuro Matsunaga in the early stages of Ireland’s game with Japan to set the tone for an impressive debut.
Coming off an impressive season, the Dunedin-born Jansen packs plenty of punch with his ball carries, leading the way for Ireland against Japan with a dozen while also beating more defenders (five) than anyone else from either side.
No wonder head coach Andy Farrell was full of praise for his new cap. “The way Sean Jansen actually attacked the game as a debutant was there as a learning for everyone,” said Farrell, describing Jansen’s player-of-the-match award as “a massive credit to him”.
Guy Pepper (England)
Fin Smith was a deserved player of the match against Fiji, running things well with Henry Slade, but England’s pack deserve plenty of credit for the way they dominated the set-piece and breakdown to shut Fiji down at source for most of the first-half. That led to a sense of real frustration which boiled over with Simione Kuruvoli’s red card.
In a game where Fiji were well below par and England capitalised it was hard to make too many judgement calls, but Pepper looked sharp on his return to the starting side, applying pressure at the breakdown and scoring a first England try with a good finish by powering through two tacklers. Henry Pollock’s hat-trick was obviously eye-catching, but the starters showed some welcome dominance.
Handre Pollard (South Africa)
The two-time World Cup-winner is at the vintage stage of his career. At 32 and with 85 Springbok caps to his name, he is experience personified, and he helped steer South African through choppy waters against a fired-up Scotland side who made life very difficult for Rassie Erasmus’s much-changed XV.
Pollard is a world-class 10, as his deft nudge behind Scotland’s defensive wall to put Jesse Kriel in under the sticks showed, but his versatility in being able to play at 12, calm head under pressure and professionalism mean he could play the ‘Morne Steyn role’ in Australia next year.
Yes, they have superstar Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu to scorch the earth early on, but would you want anyone else to bang over a clutch kick with minutes to go?
Joaquin Oviedo (Argentina)
Such a punishing ball-carrier, the Perpignan number eight scored twice and racked up a hugely impressive 20 carries in Argentina’s win over Wales. For whatever reason Oviedo doesn’t get the credit of other back rows, but he is such a powerful runner, quality he showed along with good awareness and timing for his support runs.
No player beat more defenders in San Juan and while Argentina have been blessed with quality back-rowers over the years, there is a directness and aggression to the way Oviedo plays that defences cannot handle.
Combine that with Marco Kremer’s lineout ability and the work-rate of Santiago Grondona, and there is a nice balance to that Argentine back row.
Raimundo Martinez (Chile)
Two tries in round one against Romania and another two now against Hong Kong, which means that Martinez is going at an impressive rate right now in the Nations Cup.
The Chile number eight played his club rugby in the French third-tier Nationale for Bourgoin-Jallieu before returning to play for Selknam in Super Rugby Americas earlier this year. He has a big role to play in Los Condores’ pack building into next year’s Rugby World Cup, having previously featured in four of Chile’s games during the 2023 competition.
At 26, Martinez can become a key pillar for Chile heading into that tournament and beyond.
Raffaele Storti (Portugal)
The only surprise after Storti scored three tries in four Rugby World Cup matches back in 2023, while on loan with French ProD2 side Beziers from Top 14 giants Stade Francais, was that it didn’t prompt a top-flight flurry for his signature.
He returned to the Paris side the following season – but it didn’t work out, and he has rediscovered his best form at Grenoble, back in the French second-tier, scoring 15 tries in 17 matches.
There were signs that hot streak was continuing in the way Portugal ripped through Canada in Edmonton, with Storti finishing as one of their best attackers in terms of line breaks and defenders beaten. His two tries in the second half, as Canada tired, showed Storti’s finishing ability, with no other player on either side making more line breaks.
