It was announced earlier this week that the newly-formed RugbyX competition will employ a revolutionary one-on-one decider in any cases of drawn matches. The contest – labelled rugby’s version of the ‘Super Over’ that yielded such drama in July’s Cricket World Cup final – will see an attacker start with the ball 30 metres from the line, with 10 seconds to score past a solitary defender. That got us thinking: who would be the Guinness PRO14’s ultimate finishers, and last-ditch defenders in the instance of a sudden-death one-on-one competition? ATTACKERS Jordan Larmour – Leinster Much has already been said on the freakish fleet-footedness of Leinster flyer Jordan Larmour – he is a must-have when assembling the ultimate Guinness PRO14 finishing unit. Bursting onto the scene back in 2017, the 22-year-old has everything in his locker to make him a perfect back-three player. With 12 tries in 39 matches for Leinster, opposition defences can be forgiven for feeling beleaguered as Larmour once again darts around their reaches. And, as his famous kick-and-chase score over Scarlets in the 2017⁄18 Guinness PRO14 final evidenced, Larmour can do it all. Johnny McNicholl – Scarlets What a season it was for the Kiwi-born speedster. Eleven tries for the Welsh region was enough to see him finish second in the overall standings, and the nature of his scores is quickly illustrated with a glance at the stats. No man throughout the Guinness PRO14 beat more defenders last season than the 28-year-old – his 73 edging him ahead of Monty Ioane – while 32 clean breaks again goes to show his devastating ability with the ball in hand. Duhan van der Merwe – Edinburgh Rugby If McNicholl had not posted the season of a lifetime in west Wales, Duhan van der Merwe’s campaign in the Scottish capital would have attracted all-the-more attention. Edged out by the Scarlets man in both men beaten and clean breaks, the South African still notched up 65 and 28 in the respective categories. With a trio of finishers featuring van der Merwe, Larmour and McNicholl, there would be few defenders fancying their chances in a one-on-one, although this trio would give it a good go. DEFENDERS Jarrad Butler – Connacht Rugby The defender’s job in the one-on-one format may well prove to be something of a thankless task, but there appear to be a couple of skills that would prove vital in order to stop a jinky flyer at full tilt. With athleticism and handy pace, as well as a rapacious tackling ability, Connacht flanker Jarrad Butler appears to possess that very set. His 281 take-downs in last season’s Guinness PRO14 put him top of the pile overall; he would no doubt come in handy were he tasked with stopping the last man. James King – Ospreys While he does not quite rank up there with the likes of Butler and Ollie Robinson in terms of total tackles, it is his efficiency that marks out Ospreys back-row James King. Making 224 tackles last season, he missed only eight for a 96.6% completion rate – surely a statistic in high-demand when it comes to selecting one-on-one defenders. The last thing a team wants to see is their defender get a hand to the finisher, but for his grasp to slip – something that King nigh-on never allows to happen. Owen Watkin – Ospreys A slightly different approach, Owen Watkin could nevertheless make a strong case to be involved as a defender, with numbers alone suggesting that he can mix it with the big boys in the pack. His 20 turnovers, using his unique ‘chainsaw’ technique put him fourth overall for last season, and could offer a novel option of stripping a finisher of the ball. One thing is for certain, at least, Watkin would back himself to keep pace with some of the nippier attackers looking to dart past him. ***Cardiff City Stadium will play host to the 2020 Guinness PRO14 Final on June 20 as one of the most exciting days in the club rugby calendar comes to Wales! General sale tickets are available from http://bit.ly/PRO14Cardiff2020 and prices start at just £13 for concessions and £26 for adults (subject to booking fees), that’s a 15% early bird discount. Family ticket (2 adults / 2 children) prices begin at £64 and fans are encouraged to buy early to get the best value tickets.
