'Summer Tour Hopefuls' - Team of the Week: Premiership Round 17

Gloucester re-found winning form in a late push to return to the play-offs, with a bonus point win that could not have come at a better time for the Cherry and Whites. Newcastle Falcons were on the losing end of their Friday night fixture, whilst 150 miles away, their Northern England rivals Sale Sharks cruised to an impressive win over Bristol Bears in their own late-night kick-off.

Saturday's action began in the East Midlands, as Northampton Saints and Saracens clashed in a classic Premiership all-star affair. Numerous selected British & Irish Lions stars were out in force, but it was the uncapped England hopeful Tarek Haffar that stole the show with a late brace of tries, to secure a dramatic Saints comeback. Then, Bath battled Leicester at the Rec, as the blue, black and whites clipped the claws of the Tigers, with a solid win ahead of their incoming EPCR Challenge Cup Final.

Harlequins hosted Exeter Chiefs for the final match of the weekend, in what marked the end of an era for an icon of the Twickenham Stoop. Danny Care played his final match in the famous quarters, with the legendary scrum half given the honour of wearing the nine jersey one last time, despite starting off the match from the substitutes bench. Quins held firm for a long awaited win, that sent the home fans home happy after a difficult Premiership campaign.

A star attraction from a clear night in the North West, Sale fullback Joe Carpenter takes up the 15 jersey in our Team of the Week. Ruck's Northern Rugby Correspondent Charlie Elliott was at the AJ Bell, and he has the flyer tipped for a long-awaited England debut this Summer.

"Played with the intent and intensity that is so often seen by the England hopeful and this performance won’t have negatively affected his Test chances one bit. Plenty of great running from deep, that didn’t always result in tangible impacts, but so often disrupted Bristol. During Sale’s ascendancy, completed a class 50/22 and got the crowd going, which really boosted the atmosphere and got the crowd onside to push for an even more convincing win."

The man who continues to right his own headlines with consistent stand-out performances, the world certainly seems to be Tommy Freeman's oyster. The Northampton Saints man has had an incredible season, with a record-setting try in every round of the 2025 Six Nations, to his dutifully deserved Lions call-up, and a hat-trick against Leinster to book the Saints into the Champions Cup Final.

'Freemo' was at his best back in green, black and gold this weekend, and covering the action for Ruck was Ben Thorne; Freeman showed his class. The winger made 13 carries, with the vast majority in the second period, to spearhead a magnificent Saints comeback and be named as the TNT Sports ‘Player of the Match".

The England centre will be eyeing up a run with Steve Borthwick's side this Summer, after missing out on a spot upon the British & Irish Lions tour. Slade would bring an important element of experience to the predictably youthful touring squad, and the midfielder's latest outing was a reminder of how valuable his is in the toughest encounters. Despite coming away from the Stoop on the losing side of the score-line, Slade pulled the strings with his classy play-making, and he kept the Chiefs' score-board ticking over as Quins were pressed right to the final whistle.

An exciting young talent who could be well on his way to making his England debut this Summer, Seb Atkinson put the right foot forward in his penultimate match in Cherry and White this season. Atkinson lit up Kingston Park with a well taken first-half try, and seamlessly pulled the outside backs and crash-ball forwards into play with a linchpin's contribution. The pivot of Gloucester's high-octane back-line earned England A honours in recent months, and could be on his way to Argentina if Borthwick backs his talent.

From one established star of the Cherry and Whites to a new-coming face to the Gloucester attack, 19-year-old wing Jack Cotgreave made only his third Gloucester start this past weekend in what has been a break-through season for the young flyer. Cotgreave added a well-taken try to his tally for the season, with his personal trips across the whitewash now up to three in his 10 caps in all competitions. After taking a back seat to Jake Morris in Gloucester's recent defeat to Harlequins, Cotgreave led from the off and was over to celebrate at Kingston Park on the hour mark. Remember the name, Gloucester fans.

Now, over to a man who needs no introduction. George Ford would have been devastated to miss out on the British & Irish Lions squad, with Finn Russell, Fin Smith and Marcus Smith heading to Australia in his place. However, Ford needs to keep sharp, as he could well jet out 'down under' as injury cover mid-way through the tour. Ford showcased his quintessential best in Sale's win over Bristol, with Charlie Elliott left only to wax lyrical about the 99-capped England halfback.

"An absolute Rolls-Royce of a fly-half. Converted every kick from the tee which really separated the sides for much of the game. Dictated the play, controlled the tempo, picked the right pass almost every time. Supremely underrated and a player who deserves more respect, he was a deserved Player of the Match."

There were a fair few deserving scrum halves this week, yet we've awarded Bath and England nine Ben Spencer the accolade after a stellar outing in blue, black and white. Spencer commanded a ferocious tempo of attack alongside Finn Russell, with the Leicester players frequently scrambling back to cover the freshly broken field. A nicely taken individual score showcased Spencer's skillset, with a bombardment of box kicks peppering Leicester's fly-zone all day long. Spencer is certainly a man who should be on the plane to Argentina, with TOTW honourable mention Alex Mitchell away on Lions duties.

Onto the forward pack now, and we kick off our eight-man selection with the player that turned the tide at Franklin's Gardens. Coming off the bench at the 55th minute for an empty-tank Immanuel Iyogun, Tarek Haffar packed down the loose-head of the scrum and steered the ship for the Saints scrum. Haffar popped up for his first try just four minutes after coming on, before the prop bagged his brace in the final play of the game. Steeling the show as well as a Saracens win, Haffar has bolstered his England tour hopes with such a marquee performance.

Having been on the England fringes for the best part of four years, Tom Dunn could well have lifted an eyebrow of the international selectors once again. Dunn muscled his way forward with an array of high intensity drives, and even bagged a try early in the second half to hammer home Bath's forward dominance. It takes a serious talent to go head-to-head with Argentina captain Julian Montoya, with Dunn proving that he can out-scrum the Leicester captain, in what could lead to a reunion with Montoya this Summer in Buenos Aires.

The stand-out scrummager from Bristol's defeat to Sale, England A capped George Kloska could take a great deal of personal pride home from the defeat in Greater Manchester. Kloska battled at the scrum with a fellow England camp hopeful, and he successfully held the highly rated Asher Opoku-Fordjour when the scrummaging cogs began to turn. Kloska could well be on his way to Argentina, as Will Stuart is away on Lions duties and Dan Cole could be rested by Borthwick ahead of the Autumn Nations Series.

Back to the brilliance of blue, black and white, lock Quinn Roux takes up a spot in the high-firing engine room our of Team of the Week. Getting over the try-line for a try just before the break, Roux's score not only added extra damage to the deficit, but it hindered the Tigers hopes ahead of half-time. Solid work around the park, coupled with a strong involvement in each of Bath's set-pieces, the Ireland lock could well get an involvement against Portugal or Georgia this Summer.

Back at his best with plenty of vacancies in England's locking order, Jonny Hill may well have played his way onto Steve Borthwick's training squad this past weekend. With George Martin injured, and Maro Itoje and Ollie Chessum set for the Lions, Jonny Hill could well make his first England cap since the 2023 Rugby World Cup warm-up matches this Summer.

Charlie Elliott added from the AJ Bell; "Hill played very well in his final home appearance at the Salford Community Stadium and will be a big miss for Alex Sanderson’s side next season. Brought some physicality and was a large part of Bristol often finding themselves bullied by endless phases of Sale attacks. Marked his final home game with a powerful try, following a quick-tap penalty that he took himself and burst over the line."

Sticking with Sale for our entry into the six shirt, and our man on the ground Charlie Elliott summed it up best. "A fitting performance in his final home game for Sale, where he played very well. Brought energy and power with and without the ball and came off to a deserved standing ovation that calls time on his career in Manchester. Won the penalty for Ford’s second kick and hurdled over Ernst van Rhyn in the buildup to a try."

Ben Thorne had this to say, after watching the back row tear up trees for the Saints; "Kemeny put in a really impressive and aggressive performance throughout the match, carrying the ball really hard – particularly when the tide started to turn for his team in the second half.

"The openside did really well to gather a bobbling ball and cross the line for the opening score of the match. Did really well to gather the bobbling ball and dot down for the opening try of the match, carried the ball really aggressively, particularly early in the second half."

Could this year finally be the year for Alfie Barbeary, to put a statement down upon the England eight jersey. His latest appearance in blue, black and white certainly puts himself in good stead ahead of tomorrow's England training squad announcement. Barbeary was a battering ram over the gain-line, yet added to his dimensions of attack with some clever passes having drawn in numerous defenders. The eight-man will have Tom Willis to compete with this Summer, should he want a starting role at the back of the England scrum.