Grégory Alldritt (France), Huw Jones (Scotland), Tom Curry (England) and Jamison Gibson-Park (Ireland) are the quartet in the running for the award after the opening weekend of action.
With fan voting now open, the power is in your hands to crown round one’s standout performer. Take a closer look at the nominees, then cast your vote at the bottom of the page.
Grégory Alldritt (France)
Alldritt was a standout performer in Frances 43-0 opening-round victory over Wales last weekend, topping the charts in carries (18), metres carried (90) and successful tackles (19), as well as crossing for France’s last try of the match in the 78th minute.
The French number eight was also named Guinness Player of the Match in a truly epic performance.
Huw Jones (Scotland)
Saturday was a day that Scotland centre Jones won’t forget anytime soon, as his hat-trick helped seal Scotland’s victory over the Azzurri and get their Championship off to the perfect start. While the Scots played the more expansive rugby, a second-half resurgence from Italy briefly threatened an upset before Jones took control.
Jones carried 13 times for over 130 metres, the second most out of anyone in the game.
His first try came from a fortunate ricochet off Juan Ignacio Brex following a Duhan van der Merwe break, putting Scotland 12-3 ahead. His influence grew in the final quarter, just as the match hung in the balance at 19-19, after Tommaso Allan’s boot and Brex’s interception try had dragged Italy level.
With momentum shifting, Darcy Graham's incisive break from deep turned the tide. Jones latched onto his pass to restore Scotland’s lead, before sealing his treble minutes later, showcasing his footwork and strength to score despite the attentions of Danilo Fischetti.
Tom Curry (England)
On a day when the Curry twins made English history, elder brother Tom – he was born 90 minutes before Ben - produced a barnstorming display in England’s narrow loss to Ireland.
Curry carried seven times, while putting in a defensive shift with 11 successful tackles and one dominant hit. He was also a menace at the breakdown, stealing possession on several occasion.
The Sale Sharks back rower also showed good supporting play, collecting an inside ball from debutant Cadan Murley to cross the line for England’s last try.
Jamison Gibson-Park (Ireland)
The Leinster scrum-half produced the sort of performance that bolstered his claims to be the starting nine on this summer's British and Irish Lions tour to Australia.
As well as scoring his team's first try in a significant moment just before an otherwise scoreless first half for Ireland, Gibson-Park was an all-round force for the home side, his pace, defence and kicking game very much to the fore.
