Charlie Elliott: Best head-to-head matchups of the weekend

With plenty of international games on the agenda this weekend, there is set to be a good mix of household names and youthful inexperience.

Some teams are playing full-strength with many players that fans will be familiar with, while others are fielding weaker teams to give newer members of the squad a chance.

Whatever the situation, this is international rugby, so every team will be looking to win and get one over on their opponents, whoever they may be.

Here are some of the best head-to-head matchups to look out for this weekend.

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Andrew Kellaway v Blair Kinghorn

The Waratahs are without many of their Wallabies for their game against the Lions, with Joe Schmidt opting to keep most of his stars in camp with Australia ahead of the Test series.

Winger Kellaway has played almost 40 times for his country and is one of the more experienced players in the lineup, and has an opportunity to impress and play himself into a gold shirt.

Up against him is recent Top 14 winner Blair Kinghorn, who has only just joined up with the squad after Toulouse beat Bordeaux-Begles in Paris on Saturday.

Despite being a comfortable player across the back three, Kinghorn has been viewed by many as being a potential Test fullback, but this position change could convince fans that he may be better off out wide.

After a long season in France, he will be match fit, but the amount of games played may take its toll in Australia.

Hugh Sinclair v Ben Earl

Back row, Sinclair is the captain for the Tahs in what will be his final professional game in the sky blue.

The 32-year-old has been at the franchise since 2019, and this game will be a fairytale ending to what has been an impressive career, playing in front of a packed stadium in Sydney against some of the biggest names in the world.

Opposing him is Ben Earl, who still has a huge opportunity to play himself into a Test shirt at the No.8 position, with the position still completely wide open following a mixed bag of performances and the lack of an out-and-out No.8 outside of Jack Conan.

Santi Carreras v George Ford

Argentina are filled with household names in England, with Santi Carreras being one of them. The versatile back has been a star for Gloucester and has earned himself a move to reigning champions Bath.

Los Pumas are an outstanding team and currently sit fifth in the World Ranking, one place above England. With home advantage on their side too, they will be backing themselves in the two-Test series against Steve Borthwick’s side.

A pacey back who has a great kicking ability, Carreras, who is usually at fullback, starts at fly-half opposite Ford.

George Ford is set to make his 100th England appearance in this series opener and although it is unfortunate that he has missed the Lions tour, this accolade will be some consolation to the disappointment that being left out of Andy Farrell’s plans would have had on him.

Both of these players will be tussling to keep momentum in their side’s favour and this will be a key battle.

Cullen Grace v Ben Muncaster

The Maori All Blacks team features plenty of players who may not be household names in Europe, but are some of the best talents in Super Rugby.

One of those is back row Cullen Grace, who plays for the holders of the league, the Crusaders.

Also adept in the second row, Grace brings plenty of physicality to the team and will cause Scotland some problems.

Up against him at No.8 is Ben Muncaster of Edinburgh. Muncaster hasn’t had much of a breakthrough at Test level and is given a huge opportunity by Gregor Townsend to impress and potentially establish himself as a key member of this squad.

It won’t be easy for him and his team, but they will be quietly confident of getting a result against the hosts.

Jordie Barrett v Gael Fickou

The All Blacks have named an extremely strong squad against France, while France are heavily rotated and are effectively playing with a B team.

Centre Gael Fickou will captain the side and is up against Jordie Barrett, in what will be one of the closer matchups in an otherwise one-sided game on paper.

Fickou plays for Racing 92 and has made almost 100 international appearances, representing one of only a few France players who are established internationals.

He will have to lead from the front, but against such a big name as Barrett, that could prove difficult.

Michael Leitch v Alex Mann

One of the biggest legends of Japanese rugby, Michael Leitch, captains the side in their first game against Wales this weekend.

The flanker has been playing internationally since 2008 and is still going strong at 36 years old, and is up against someone who is at the complete opposite end of their career.

Alex Mann is only 23 and already has five Wales caps to his name, but with Jac Morgan away with the Lions, he looks set to add to that tally in the two games against Japan.

A product of Cardiff, Mann scored a try on his international debut against Scotland in the 2024 Six Nations, so he is no stranger to the big occasion.

Playing this game at his more natural blindside means he will be able to showcase his talent.

By Charlie Elliott

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