Rugby World Cup: Three Georgians named in Team of the Week

Three players from Georgia’s national rugby team made it into the 2015 World Cup Team of the Week for the tournament’s opening weekend, with the youngest ever World Cup player, Georgia’s Vasil Lobzhanidze among them.

The multi-national side – compiled by international rugby online forum planetrugby.com – features Lobzhanidze alongside team captain Mamuka Gorgodze and prop Mikheil Nariashvili alongside other players from various teams who had an outstanding first game.

The website praised Lobzhanidze for his mental preparedness in his record-breaking World Cup debut, while also noting Gorgodze’s "match-winning performance” and Nariashvili’s share in Georgia’s "dominance in the scrum”.

In a daily round-up on Monday of the first round of games, www.rugbyworldcup.com revealed Georgia’s captain Gorgodze made 24 tackles during Saturday’s game against Tonga, Giorgi Nemsadze made 23 tackles and Vito Kolelishvili made 21 tackles in the same game.

The Georgian athletes took the top three places, followed by Irish player Iain Henderson (with 19 tackles) and Japan’s Michael Leitch with 17 tackles.

The news was also shared on the tournament’s official Twitter account:

TOP TRIO three of @GeorgianRugby's key men are leading the way with their physicality so far in #RWC2015pic.twitter.com/ltOSH303Op

— Rugby World Cup (@rugbyworldcup) September 21, 2015

Ireland was the only other team to have three players chosen for the Team of the Week.

The top fifteen also included two players from Japan, the tournament’s biggest surprise team, who shocked the world by beating South Africa on the opening day of play.

Meanwhile three Georgian players were also recognised as making the most tackles of all tournament players during their first game by Rugby World Cup 2015 officials.

Georgia play their next Pool C game on Friday, September 25 against Argentina. The game will kick off at 7.45pm (Georgian time).

See the full Team of the Week here.