Five of the best: The top performers in round nine of Super Rugby AU

The Super Rugby AU finals series is beginning to take shape after the Brumbies defeated the Western Force in Canberra, and the Melbourne Rebels finished with a losing bonus point against the Waratahs.

The Brumbies came into their fixture against the winless Force knowing that a victory would secure them a home final in a few weeks’ time.

The Force came to play, turning down two early shots at goal which led to the opening try of the night. But once again, they couldn’t make the most of their promising start and were played out of the game by a better team, losing 31-14.

In the other match, it was effectively a quasi-quarter final with both the Waratahs and Rebels able to lock in playoff berths depending on the result.

The Tahs led by 14 points with 20 minutes to go, but a late fightback saw the Rebels trail by just two with just under 10 minutes to play.

The game finished 38-32 to the Tahs, with the losing bonus point keeping the Rebels in control of their destiny ahead of a clash with the Force next Saturday.

While a number of players impressed last week, here were just five of the standouts from round nine.

Irae Simone (Brumbies)

Simone has played himself into national contention after being named in Dave Rennie’s most recent PONI list earlier this month.

His performance on Friday night was another classy showing, and the 25-year-old must be getting even closer to his test debut week to week.

He’s simply outstanding when he’s on song.

While Simone was impressive in attack, finishing with the second-equal most running metres of the round with 46, it was his playmaking that really impressed. His control and comfortability around the park when stepping into the first receiver role was admirable, and led the Brumbies well.