Dream Team: Joe Atkinson – London Scottish and ex-Cornish Pirates

1. Alan Paver – I’ve known Paves as a player and coach and he’s got a lot of time for the finer details. He sometimes talks about scrums as well.
2. Jack Walker – The England U20s captain was always a top performer when we played Yorkshire Carnegie. Leads by example week-in week-out and will have a lot more to offer in the future.
3. Harry Williams – His ‘Land Anchor’ nickname  says it all really. He’s had a storming season with the Exeter Chiefs.
4. Charlie Matthews – I played against the big lock at county level and then with him at Loughborough University. Great to see him doing so well at Harlequins.
5. Darren Barry – ‘Daz Baz’ is a great guy to run your lineout but he also loves a bit of the old French joué joué style rugby. You’ll recognise him on the pitch by his trademark hands on head stance.
6. Jack Lam – He had a great season for Bristol and deservedly won Championship Player of the Season. The Samoan Test star is a brick wall in defence and formidable with ball in hand.
7. Josh Navidi – I was lucky enough to play for Loughborough University against Josh when he represented the Barbarians. A class operator at the breakdown.
8. Josh Beaumont – The Sale No.8 captained the England Students in 2013 where I played in the back-row alongside him. He has gone from strength to strength since making a big splash in the Aviva Premiership.
9. Tom Kessell – Shared a couple of seasons with this top bloke who’s got an engine like no other I’ve seen. Proved how good he is in his first season at Northampton.
10. George Ford – I played with him back at age group rugby and already then you could tell he was going to go far.
11. Callum Wilson – I’ve seen this winger hit props harder than props hit props but he also has the agility and pace from his England Sevens days. The hardest worker I’ve ever met.
12. Owen Farrell – Skippered my England U16s side back in the day. He was a cut above the rest then and still is.
13. Tom Riley – I shared my time at Pirates with this Welshman. He had the experience which was invaluable for the team and you can definitely learn a thing or two from him.
14. Alex Lewington – Another I played with at age group level and then again in a couple of A-League games for the Leicester Tigers. The jets on the bloke are next level.
15. Matthew Morgan – The Bristol full-back had some great games against the Pirates and often exploited gaps in the defence we didn’t even know existed.