Fans have voted for the 2023 Guinness Six Nations Team of the Championship, and it is about as strong as a XV can get.
Following their remarkable Grand Slam, ten of Ireland’s heroes have been selected in the side, complemented by three stars from France and two players from Scotland.
Several Guinness Six Nations icons were unlucky to miss out, with the likes of Finn Russell, Grégory Alldritt and Duhan van der Merwe all absent from the team.
However, there was a place for all three in the 2023 Guinness Six Nations Team of the Championship 2nd XV, a side made up of each player who finished second in the fan vote.
A superb collective in its own right, both teams would be a match for any country in the world, but how do they compare?
Jump on our channels and let us know who you think would come out on top if the 2023 Guinness Six Nations Team of the Championship and the 2nd XV went head-to-head.
Front row
The Team of the Championship featured an all-Ireland front row, with Finlay Bealham and Andrew Porter lining up either side of Dan Sheehan.
All three deserved their place in the side, with Bealham impressing in place of Tadhg Furlong, Sheehan standing out in attack and defence, and Porter proving a reliable option at the set-piece.
Pierre Schoeman started all five of Scotland’s games at loosehead during Rugby’s Greatest Championship, impressing with his skill around the park.
He starts in the 2nd XV alongside France’s powerhouse hooker Julien Marchand, and Furlong, who stood out enough in his two starts to finish second in the voting.
Second row
France and Ireland link up in the engine room in both the Team of the Championship and the 2nd XV.
Fans went with James Ryan and Thibaud Flament for the Team of the Championship, the former rock solid at the scrum and lineout and the latter destructive in the loose.
Tadhg Beirne and Paul Willemse start in the second row of the 2nd XV.
An equally devastating duo, Beirne led from the front in 2023 while Willemse made an incredible 42 tackles in defence, missing just four.
Back row
Andy Farrell’s side dominates the Team of the Championship’s back row as well.
Peter O’Mahony and Josh van der Flier start either side of No.8 Caelan Doris, who picked up the Player of the Match award following a superb display in the win over France in Round 2.
That is an incredible trio, but the 2nd XV is not bad at all either.
France’s world-class No.8 Grégory Alldritt starts after a typically superb Championship, and he is joined by his compatriot Charles Ollivon, who crossed the whitewash twice against England.
Jamie Ritchie completes the back row as the only Scot in the pack after putting on a defensive masterclass during the 2023 Guinness Six Nations, making 64 tackles.
Half-backs
Imagine Johnny Sexton and Antoine Dupont lining up alongside each other in a Guinness Six Nations game.
The 2023 Player of the Championship and the Championship’s record points scorer on the same side would be a sight to behold.
They start in the Team of the Championship, but after setting up four tries for Scotland, Russell is incredibly unlucky to miss out.
As is Conor Murray, who featured in all five of Ireland’s games at scrum-half.
Centres
Huw Jones and Sione Tuipulotu’s inclusion in the 2023 Team of the Championship is a testament to Scotland’s attacking impetus.
Jones scored four tries this term, one behind the Championship’s top scorer Damian Penaud, while Tuipulotu set up three for his teammates.
The 2nd XV’s centre partnership is made up of Ireland’s Bundee Aki and Garry Ringrose.
Ringrose scored one and set up another to push Jones all the way in the fan vote, while Aki impressed enough off the bench in Rounds 1 and 2 to win his starting shirt back.
Back three
Wingers lit up the 2023 Guinness Six Nations, scoring some of the most spectacular tries in the history of Rugby’s Greatest Championship.
James Lowe notched tries against Wales, France and Scotland and that helped earn him a spot on the left wing, while Hugo Keenan starts at full-back following his Player of the Match display against Wales.
Penaud completes the back three in the Team of the Championship on the right wing after reminding everyone why he is one of Europe’s elite wingers, finishing as the top try-scorer with five.
Van der Merwe scored the Try of the Championship, but it was only enough to see him start on the left wing in the 2nd XV.
He is joined by Thomas Ramos, who was brilliant in place of the injured Melvyn Jaminet, and Ireland’s Mack Hansen, who was a threat throughout the Championship, the latter two both nominated for Player of the Championship
