Derby rounds continued over the Christmas period in the URC. Unfortunately, the round only featured 6 games, as the South African derbies will be held at a later, more appropriate date. Round 8 included a number of notable results, as Glasgow punished Edinburgh late to hold the 1872 Cup for yet another year, while Leinster ground Munster down at Thomond Park. Interestingly, Round 8 was particularly low scoring in terms of fantasy points, and spots in the TOTW have never been this easy to earn.
Mendy has claims to be the most in-form player in the URC at the moment. His silky running and clever positioning continually leave defenders in his wake. He has made more line breaks than any other player in the URC, and only Jacob Stockdale has beaten more defenders. His try was yet another brilliant finish, as he collected the ball from Zuliani before beating the fullback with footwork and holding off the covering defender – 54 points
OB: Ellis Mee – Scarlets (1 try assist, 2 line breaks, 4 defenders beaten)
This was Mee’s first start at fullback in over 2 years, and his first ever at URC level – he did not look out of place at all. Mee was a constant threat ball in hand, as he racked up north of 100 run meters and beat a handful of defenders – 61 points
Ulster’s back 3 is on fire this season. Ward is the fourth Ulster OB to make a TOTW after Lowry, Kok, and Baloucoune. Ward accomplishes this on the back of scoring a double away in Galway, and beating more defenders than any other player across the Christmas fixtures. He is a very difficult man to stop when he gets sight of the try line and finished two near-identical tries in the left corner – 61 points
CE: Tomasso Menoncello – Benetton (3 line breaks, 6 defenders beaten, 113 meters carried) – Player of the Round
A superb attacking performance from one of the premier young talents in world rugby. It is no surprise that Toulouse have snapped him up for next season. He, along with an out-of-position Mason Grady, made more line breaks than any other player in Round 8. He also made 113 meters, of which over 90 were post-contact, from just 12 carries – 65 points
Farrell showcased his all-round game to rack up enough points to feature in TOTW8. He did not stand out in any individual metric, but earned points across a number of areas. He stood up on defence against a physical Leinster outfit as he made all 6 of his tackles and secured a turnover. He was also busy on attack, as he made 37 post-contact meters while also distributing well with 3 offloads and 8 passes – 52points
FH: Jacob Umaga – Benetton (6/6 goal kicks, 16 carries)
Benetton are a team who like to apply scoreboard pressure. Not many club or franchise teams in 2025 would repeatedly take shots at goal over kicking to the corner. This past weekend exemplified this, as Umaga kept the scoreboard ticking across the first half. However, his role went far beyond that, particularly when Benetton opened up in the second half, as he carried 16 times – significantly more than the next highest fly half in the round (10). Furthermore, he passed 25 times, only topped by Cardiff’s Calum Sheedy, reflecting Benetton’s dominance over their country rivals – 55 points
The TOTW scrumhalf position inevitably alternates between the two Glasgow half backs. This week, Dobie outscored his teammate Horne with a masterclass on the wing in the return leg of the 1872 Cup. His second score demonstrated his scintillating pace as he grubbered in behind to score off turnover ball. He was also top class on defence, making cover tackles and forcing two turnovers – 62 points
Zuliani is simply one of the biggest breakdown threats in world rugby. He entered into that conversation after the 2025 test season, but he has been one of Benetton’s best players for the past few seasons. He was a menace in that area again, coming away with 2 turnovers. He also made a remarkable 3 dominant tackles from just 8 tackle attempts. His try assist demonstrated his ball-carrying ability, as he took 3 defenders out of the game before brilliantly offloading to Mendy – 45 points
Anderson is proving to be an excellent import by the Scarlets. In his first West Wales derby, he carried the ball an impressive 26 times, significantly more than any other player in Round 8, often into heavy traffic. The work rate and desire to impress are clear for all to see – 43 points
Playing counter to Anderson was Deaves, who one-upped his opponent by making 27 tackles. The Ospreys were under the pump for long periods, but Deaves never took a backward step. Not only did he make an impact on defence, as he beat more defenders than any other forward (5), and even made a line break – 56 points
LK: Joe McCarthy – Leinster (15 tackles, 2 dominant tackles)
A physical performance at the heart of Leinster’s gritty away win against Munster. McCarthy topped the charts among locks for dominant tackles (2) and defenders beaten (2), while only 2 others made more passes than him (7) – 50 points
Favretto earns his spot in TOTW8 off the back of an impressive attacking performance. He made more offloads than any other lock (2) and carried 10 times for 38 meters – 43 points
Benetton are spoiled for choice at loosehead prop with two Test quality options in Spagnolo and Thomas Gallo. This week, Spagnolo got the number 1 jersey and fully repaid his coaches’ faith. Spagnolo stepped up on both sides of the ball. He made impactful carries and tackles, while making no handling errors nor conceding any penalties – 48 points
A disappointing result for Connacht at home, but Heffernan can hold his head high. Heffernan had a fantastic game ball in hand, with 7 of his 8 carries crossing the gain line and racking up 35 post-contact meters. He also held his own at the set piece, as both the lineout and scrum operated at 100% while he was on the field – 48 points
Schoeman is becoming a bit of a fixture in the TOTW – and his fantasy owners will be mightily pleased. Across the 8 rounds, he has made the TOTW on 4 occasions – a phenomenal strike rate. It was much of the same from Schoeman, who has yet to register a try or try assist this season, as he gained points by racking up carries and tackles, while limiting point deductions from lost scrums, handling errors, penalties, and missed tackles – 55 points
