As England continue on their undefeated run since the tail end of 2015, coach Eddie Jones has quickly built up a core of players to take on the best teams in the world.
However, the Premiership is continuing to provide the Australian with a conveyor belt of talent for him to choose from. So which players stood out in last weekend’s action? We take a look at the stats once more.
Top EQP Tacklers
| Matt Symons | Wasps | 20 |
| Calum Clark | Northampton | 19 |
| Calum Green | Newcastle | 17 |
| Tommy Taylor | Wasps | 17 |
| Alex Rieder | Wasps | 16 |
Wasps lock Matt Symons continues to impress for his club and must surely be pushing for a spot in England’s summer tour squad to Argentina with several big name second rows likely to be away with the Lions. Indeed, clubmates Tommy Taylor and Alex Rieder also feature despite their team going down 34 – 28 to a resurgent Sale Sharks side.
Newcastle’s much improved form should also not go ignored, with second row Calum Green the third best English tackler last weekend as his club stormed past Northampton Saints 46 – 31.
Top EQP Carries
| James Short | Exeter | 21 |
| Brad Barritt | Saracens | 17 |
| Mako Vunipola | Saracens | 16 |
| Jackson Wray | Saracens | 16 |
| Mike Williams | Leicester | 16 |
| Teimana Harrison | Northampton | 16 |
It seems Exeter Chiefs’ James Short is desperate to get into the England team and has been putting in some impressive performances for his club in recent weeks. In terms of attacking ability the winger is currently second to none in the Premiership and must be pushing the likes of Marland Yarde and Semesa Rokoduguni for a spot in England’s squad come the summer.
Even though Saracens went down 31 – 23 to Gloucester in a second successive defeat, they still included some of the best carriers in the league with three players featuring here, including the fit-again Mako Vunipola. Leicester Tigers’ back rower Mike Williams’ domestic form has now been rewarded with a spot in England’s 28 man squad to take on Italy.
Top EQP Metres Made
| James Short | Exeter | 152 |
| Jason Woodward | Bristol | 101 |
| Aaron Morris | Harlequins | 91 |
| Ben Foden | Northampton | 81 |
| Semesa Rokoduguni | Bath | 78 |
New Zealand-born England-qualified back Jason Woodward makes a couple of appearances this week and has brought his form from his homeland to his adopted nation. This is all the more impressive given how his team has struggled in recent weeks, with Bristol going down to Leicester 50 – 17 last weekend.
Top EQP Lineouts Won
| Geoff Parling | Exeter | 8 |
| Charlie Ewels | Bath | 5 |
| Charlie Matthews | Harlequins | 5 |
| Christian Day | Northampton | 5 |
| Matt Symons | Wasps | 4 |
England squad member Charlie Ewels continues to prove his worth for his club Bath as they thwarted Harlequins 22 – 12. Yet it is old head Geoff Parling that stole the show with 8 lineouts taken for his club as they defeated Worcester 32 – 48 at Sixways.
Top EQP Defenders Beaten
| James Short | Exeter | 9 |
| Semesa Rokoduguni | Bath | 7 |
| Alex Rieder | Wasps | 5 |
| Sam Simmons | Exeter | 4 |
| Gareth Steenson | Exeter | 4 |
| Aaron Morris | Harlequins | 4 |
| Tom Homer | Bath | 4 |
| Joe Marchant | Harlequins | 4 |
| Adam Thompstone | Leicester | 4 |
Watch out for Harlequins fullback Aaron Morris who is quickly making a name for himself down at The Stoop. Could he be challenging Mike Haley for an England squad spot soon?
Top EQP Offloaders
| Mako Vunipola | Saracens | 2 |
| Matt Mullan | Wasps | 2 |
| Semesa Rokoduguni | Bath | 2 |
| Thomas Waldrom | Exeter | 2 |
| Will Addison | Sale | 2 |
| Jason Woodward | Bristol | 2 |
| Max Clark | Bath | 2 |
| Magnus Lund | Sale | 2 |
It’s no real surprise to see Mako lead the stats here, but keep one eye on Welsh-born but England-qualified centre Max Clark, who scored his team’s only try in their win over Quins.
Top EQP Turnovers Won
| Mark Wilson | Newcastle | 2 |
| Charlie Ewels | Bath | 2 |
| Ryan Mills | Worcester | 2 |
| Alex Waller | Northampton | 2 |
| Dave Ward | Harlequins | 2 |
| Nathan Catt | Bath | 2 |
Forgotten man Mark Wilson is at the back of the England number eight queue behind Vunipola, Hughes, Beaumont and even Ben Morgan, but the man deserves his chance. He has made the most tackles of any player in the league this year (180), has made 128 carries and won 13 turnovers.
Top EQP Clean Breaks
| James Short | Exeter | 5 |
| Jason Woodward | Bristol | 4 |
| Adam Thompstone | Leicester | 4 |
| Denny Solomona | Sale | 4 |
| Max Clark | Bath | 3 |
Finally, a mention must go for soon-to-be England-qualified winger Denny Solomona. The rugby league convert is making waves for Sale and rightly so: his hat trick against Wasps was simply outstanding and Solomona is already one of the best finishers in the league.
All data is provided by Opta on behalf of Premiership Rugby.
Paul Wassell, Pundit Arena
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