Planet Rugby’s breakout XV as France young guns and Canan Moodie star
While debates over XV of the year, GOATs and other such hyperboles tend to rage on and dominate as the year nears its end, it’s also worth considering whose last 12 months served as the curtain raiser to a potential entry into the aforementioned lists.
So here’s a XV of players who really left their mark on their respective teams for the first time and of whom more will surely be heard over the coming 12 months…
Breakthrough XV of the year
15 Ilaisa Droasese (Fiji and Fijian Drua): The Drua full-back is one of the big beneficiaries (there’s a long list, mind) of the emergence of the Fijian Drua in Super Rugby. Having struggled to breakthrough at the Reds up to 2022, he became a regular for the Drua this year as they made their run to the quarter-finals and earned a spot in Fiji’s World Cup squad after impressing in the Pacific Nations Cup. Was rested for the pool match against Portugal but started all Fiji’s other group games and the quarter-final against England and barely missed a minute of the encounters he started in, testament to both his ability and fitness. A real threat from the back and highly capable with the boot and under the aerial assault.
14 Louis Bielle-Biarrey (France and Bordeaux-Begles): Equally capable of playing on the wing or at full-back, Bielle-Biarrey is the epitome of the modern back three player. But he’s shot through to prominence. Theoretically, he should have been with the all-conquering French U20 team in South Africa earlier this year, but instead was being groomed for bigger things at the global showpiece – the only player to really have made a change in Fabien Galthie’s four-year plan for his initial squad. Bielle-Biarrey rarely waits for his opportunity. Having debuted in senior rugby with a hat-trick against the Scarlets for Bordeaux last year and debuted for France with a try against Scotland in August, he was one of the very few to emerge with credit from France’s troubled showing against Uruguay as well.
13 Canan Moodie (South Africa and Bulls): Another Springbok talent to use the rugby skills of speed, evasion and quick wits acquired from activities far, far removed from a rugby field in South Africa. Moodie’s big moment of the year actually came in the warm-up shellacking of New Zealand with a glittering performance, including an otherworldly try (sadly, chalked off by the TMO for something or other). Didn’t feature at the World Cup as a regular starter, but assuming the current trajectory continues, he surely will at the next edition.
12 Joe Hawkins (Wales, Exeter Chiefs and Ospreys): The Exeter centre made his breakthrough during the 2023 Six Nations with starts and impressive displays against Ireland and Scotland, and his decision to pursue a better salary at the Chiefs rather than playing for Wales was the most glaring symptom of the country’s financial problems. Remarkably, despite being Wales’ starting number 12, he was still on an academy contract at the Ospreys. It’s difficult not to imagine Warren Gatland making the return of Hawkins once his Exeter contract has run down a priority; Welsh fans everywhere will be salivating at the thought of a Hawkins-Tompkins partnership, while it should not be forgotten he is gaining occasional experience in the number 10 jersey at Exeter, a position which is currently wide open in Wales.
11 Mark Tele’a (New Zealand and Blues): If it seems strange to have a 27-year-old in this list, you can put that down to how difficult it is to break into the All Blacks team. But Tele’a has been tearing it up for a while at the Blues, yet just seemed unable to make the final step. That all changed at the World Cup, when Tele’a scored the tournament’s opening try within 90 seconds and continued to terrorise defences throughout. One of the slipperiest wings to tackle and with a deceptively languid stride, Tele’a should be hanging about on New Zealand’s wings for a couple of years – as long as he adheres to team protocols…
10 Luka Matkava (Georgia and Black Lion): Announced himself in 2022 as a youngster who could handle pressure when he nailed the penalty that saw Georgia down Wales in Cardiff. But he’s made the Georgia pivot position his own and was a standout performer on the biggest stage of all in France under a lot of pressure, earning plaudits especially for his performance against Australia. Now using his chance to showcase his talents more for Black Lion in European competition, it is unlikely that Matkava will not be snapped up by one of Europe’s heavyweight clubs sometime soon.
9 Baptise Jauneau (France U20 and Clermont Auvergne): If Welsh rugby history is remembered for its fly-half factory, France’s current era will surely be remembered for scrum-halves. France has Antoine Dupont and Maxime Lucu, Baptiste Couilloud, Nolann Le Garrec… and also now Baptiste Jauneau, whose displays at this year’s U20 World Championship were, well, Dupont-esque. Now competing hard to be a starter for Clermont in the Top 14 against the experienced Sebastian Bezy, it’s tough not to imagine that once Dupont heads off to the Olympics, Jauneau will at least get a taste of national team training camp action.
8 Marko Gazzotti (France U20, Bordeaux-Begles and Grenoble): Another Bordeaux player on this list, Gazzotti also made a name for himself at the U20 global showpiece in June; a month later Bordeaux had snaffled him for four years. Primarily an eight, Gazzotti can also play openside, where he’s started twice for Bordeaux recently. His style and adaptability are both reminiscent of one Charles Ollivon, whose career is entering its twilight. Expect Gazzotti to start getting some national team look-ins in the June or November Tests.
7 Jac Morgan (Wales and Ospreys): It seems bizarre to be naming the Welsh team national captain on a breakthrough list, but 2023 has been a special year for Morgan, who struggled to break into the Wales squad under Wayne Pivac and endured a frustrating 2022 despite his obvious talent. It’s all changed under Warren Gatland, and Morgan has become one of the foundations around which a new Welsh team is planned to grow. Was brilliant at the World Cup.
6 David Odiase (Italy U20 and Oyonnax): Italy’s U20 captain gave a team talk that went viral during the U20 World Championship, not to mention a number of other interviews where he displayed a ‘heart on the sleeve’ type of leadership that fits perfectly to his style of play. Endless energy and presence on the field, reminiscent of Serge Betsen in his prime at times, surely, along with Dino Lamb and Lorenzo Cannone, a cornerstone of an emerging Italian team that is, in Odiase’s own words “coming for all of you”.
5 Dafydd Jenkins (Wales and Exeter Chiefs): Another youngster brought through at speed under Warren Gatland (he did get a debut under Wayne Pivac), Jenkins’ career is on a rapid upward trajectory. Not barred from international selection like Hawkins because he was picked for the first time when already signed up in England, Jenkins is an obvious long-term succession plan for Alun Wyn Jones, with leadership skills already highly-praised in public by both club and country coaches. He became the Premiership’s youngest-ever captain in late 2022.
4 Dino Lamb (Italy and Harlequins): English-born and raised he may be, but one of former Italy coach Kieran Crowley’s many parting gifts was to snaffle Lamb, who has an Italian father, for his World Cup squad. Lamb has been a long-term project at Harlequins, with injury curtailing some early development but time spent in sevens helping not only his recovery, but also his ball skills and endurance. Not only at the World Cup, but also this season in the Premiership, Lamb has emerged as an especially athletic and versatile lock and back-row option, fitting completely into Harlequins’ open style of play. He will only benefit from having the experience of Joe Launchbury alongside him, while the forthcoming Six Nations should be a further launchpad.
3 Zaccharie Affane (France U20 and Bordeaux-Begles): It’s been a long time since Carl Hayman became prominent as the world’s best tighthead prop, but when he did, it was often-remarked at his exceptional height. Affane, another of the Bordeaux youngsters (and another developed in Grenoble), matches Hayman for height and adds an extra 5kg to it, an astonishing size for a teenager. Yet to make a Top 14 debut, Affane made a habit of destroying opposing looseheads during the U20 Six Nations last year. Keep your eyes open. You can’t miss him!
2 Theo Dan (England and Saracens): A year ago, Dan was enjoying life in Saracens’ first team as a regular for the first time, following an injury to Jamie George. Now he is enjoying the same for the England team as well as Saracens, as George enters the twilight of his career. Won his first Premiership in May as George’s replacement (after 10 minutes), subsequently doing enough on his international debut against Wales to be called up to the World Cup squad two days later. Notched three tries in two starts at the World Cup and has a knack of finding the whitewash. At 22, has a long and fruitful career stretching out ahead of him.
1 Georgi Mamaiashvili (Georgia U20 and Grenoble): France has a scrum-half factory, Georgia does props – often who end up in France. Grenoble’s Mamaiashvili is a shining example of the genre. Monster in the scrum, a destructive runner as well with a surprising lick of speed, the future of Georgia’s scrum is secure…
