15 Jack Nowell (Exeter Chiefs): It was an electric performance from the Chiefs full-back as he enjoyed 55 minutes of rugby on Sunday. He opened his team’s try account with a wonderful individual score and sees off impressive Saracens stalwart Alex Goode. Nowell made 138 metres from his 11 carries and looked incredibly dangerous on his return from injury, which is great news for both Exeter and England.

14 Darcy Graham (Edinburgh): Munster wing Andrew Conway deserves a mention from the get go as his consistent performances are surely leading to Joe Schmidt picking him in his Six Nations squad. However, Graham was a big reason why Edinburgh saw off Toulon at Stade Mayol. He made 92 metres and three clean breaks in the win as Edinburgh continue their excellent season, sitting pretty at the pool summit.

13 Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs): Like team-mate Nowell, Slade was one of the stars of Exeter’s superb showing against Castres. Slade’s strong fend, power in close quarters, side-step, kicking game and pace were all on show at Sandy Park as he sees off three excellent performers from the round, Nick Tompkins, Kieron Fonotia and Virimi Vakatawa. Slade’s assist for Tom O’Flaherty’s try was something special.

12 Ollie Devoto (Exeter Chiefs): The Exeter flavour continues here as Devoto stood out alongside Slade, with his offload for Joe Simmonds’ try out of the top drawer. The underrated back could prove an unsung hero for the Chiefs in the second part of this campaign as they look to challenge on both domestic and European fronts. Munster centre Rory Scannell impressed but we settled on Devoto as our 12.

11 Jacob Stockdale (Ulster): Two wonderful tries from the Ireland international as his first saw him slip the tackle for an easy run-in before his second was another level up. Again busting out of a Racing tackle, he then showed pace before chipping over the top and regathering to send Kingspan Stadium delirious. Ulster and Ireland will hope moments like these continue…you wouldn’t bet against it.

10 Joey Carbery (Munster): One of the performances of the round came in the opening game at Kingsholm. Carbery oozed quality against Gloucester and finished with 26 points thanks to two tries, five conversions and two penalties. Ireland’s future long-term fly-half.

9 Conor Murray (Munster): Playing alongside Murray will obviously benefit Carbery and Murray was a calming presence on Friday. Quality players seem to have more time in possession and Murray looked like he was strolling against the Cherry and Whites. A mention for Montpellier veteran Ruan Pienaar for the direction he gave them in a big win over Newcastle but we opt for the Ireland international star.

8 Bill Mata (Edinburgh): The big Fijian has become somewhat of a cult figure at the Scottish capital side and it’s no surprise after delivering performances like the one he produced in their win at Toulon on Saturday. Was superb on attack, gaining 72 metres from 17 runs which included one clean break and two offloads, one of which will live long in the memory of Edinburgh supporters as it helped James Johnstone to score a well-taken try. Mata also did well on defence with seven tackles and comes in ahead of Munster hardman CJ Stander.

7 Hamish Watson (Edinburgh): The Scotland tearaway gave good support to Mata in the Edinburgh back-row and produced a busy performance at Stade Felix-Mayol. Watson made a nuisance of himself at the breakdown and won a turnover for his efforts but also impressed on attack and finished with 24 metres gained from 10 runs.

6 Rhys Ruddock (Leinster): Was immense in a bruising forward battle against Toulouse at the RDS Arena. Leinster’s forwards took the challenge to their French counterparts on attack and defence, and Ruddock was superb in both departments. Finished the game with 45 metres gained from an incredible 20 carries and made 15 tackles. Taulupe Faletau also caught the eye on his return to action for Bath.

5 Tadhg Beirne (Munster): Yet another outstanding display from the Ireland international which helped pave the way to his side’s win over Gloucester. Beirne did well in the line-outs and put in an excellent defensive shift. Eventually finished with 15 tackles and is preferred to Jonny Hill, who also impressed for Exeter Chiefs.

4 Scott Fardy (Leinster): The Wallaby got through plenty of work at the coalface of his side’s forward effort in their win over Les Rouge et Noir. As usual, Fardy did his bit in the line-outs and also did well with ball in hand, but made his biggest impact on defence where he completed 14 tackles. Nico Janse van Rensburg of Montpellier also impressed.

3 Stephen Archer (Munster): Was one of the the Irish province’s standout performers during an impressive victory over Gloucester at Kingsholm. Munster’s forward pack were in a rampant mood, particularly in the scrums, and Archer was the cornerstone of their set-piece where he came out on top in his direct duel with Josh Hohneck.

2 Sean Cronin (Leinster): Although the entire Leinster pack deserve a mention for a brilliant collective showing against Toulouse, Cronin was particularly outstanding. He carried superbly especially at close quarters and scored a smart try before being replaced on the hour-mark. Eventually gained 23 metres from 10 carries and beats out Edinburgh skipper Stuart McInally.

1 Alec Hepburn (Exeter Chiefs): The England international came to the fore with a fine all-round performance at Sandy Park. Apart from a solid showing in the scrums, Hepburn also caught the eye as a ball carrier and he finished with 28 metres gained from nine carries. Mako Vunipola of Saracens and Munster’s Dave Kilcoyne were next best.