Who benefited from the new scoring model the most? Did the big names deliver? On the evidence of Round 1, are there any players we should be targeting for Round 2? All this and more to come.
From a fantasy perspective, England and France players are still key to target. While many are expecting another England and France top 2 finish, they did not necessarily have things all their own way in week one. Italy put up a good fight against the Red Roses, keeping things very close in the first half, going in at the break only 10 points down, before play opened up in the second half to allow England to secure a 48-0 victory.
Despite the 38-17 final score, Ireland also put up a strong performance in the second half and gave France a stern test. In all, however, players from the “Big 2” still delivered some considerable fantasy scores, with 6 English players and 5 French players scoring over 25 points (the real benchmark of an outstanding fantasy score).
Leading the way was the highest scoring player of the week, Ellie Kildunne, who scored 75 points in a performance that included 205m carried, 7 defenders beaten and 2 tries, as well as a Player of the Match bonus. Other impressive scores for England came from Zoe Aldcroft, Helena Rowland, Abby Dow, Abbie Ward and the irrepressible Marlie Packer.
For France, Player of the Match Madoussou Fall was their top scorer on 34 points, with Pauline Bourdon Sansus, Marine and Romane Ménager, and Charlotte Escudero also impressing. France and England should continue to form the spine of most fantasy teams this round.
Second lesson learnt is that Scotland look the real deal. They entered this Guinness Women’s Six Nations with a spring in their step after having won the WXV2, and they have built and grown on this with what was an excellent victory in Cardiff against Wales. While the whole team delivered on the field, from a fantasy perspective, three players who really impressed were Coreen Grant, Evie Gallagher and Helen Nelson.
Grant was Scotland’s top scorer with 50 fantasy points, in a game that gave her plenty of opportunity to demonstrate her blistering pace. The wing scored a try and carried for 132m and beat 5 defenders (as well as getting the Player of the Match award). Dominating in the back row was Evie Gallagher, who made 14 tackles and contributed 2 breakdown steals as well as 54m carried and 3 defenders beaten. Finally, Helen Nelson impressed at 10, going 4/4 from the tee, carried well and also added a breakdown steal into the mix. All in all, there were positives from all teams this weekend, and already the general performance gap seems to be closing across the competition.
Ireland in particular showed great progression from 2023, and they have already almost equalled their total try count from 2023 in just one match. Catching the eye for Scott Bemand's side were Neve Jones (as usual, the top tackler of all countries with a huge 23 tackles), Aoife Wafer and Aoife Dalton.
Next up, we need to talk about that Welsh back row. One of the recurring themes of the Guinness Men’s Six Nations was the defensive performances of the likes of Tommy Reffell, Aaron Wainwright and Alex Mann. The women’s team have certainly picked up where the men left off. Two players worth highlighting are Alex Callender and Bethan Lewis. In 2023, Callender was Wales’s top fantasy performer, scoring 2 tries, beating 8 defenders, carrying for 320m, making 58 tackles and 6 breakdown steals. Close behind last year was Lewis on a try, 2 assists, 5 defenders beaten, 51 tackles made, 7 breakdown steals and 2 lineout steals. Round 1 was an absolute carbon copy of last year’s performances. They both recorded 19 tackles, and both topped the breakdown steal rankings (Lewis top with 3 and Callendar joint-second with 2). Callender also scored a try to deliver a huge 40 fantasy points. The Welsh back row seems to be a crucial area in which to invest your stars.
The impact of kickers should be examined. In the men's Championship the kickers were regularly the highest-scoring players in the game. In Round 1 however, there was one kicker, Helen Nelson, in the overall 20 highest fantasy scorers. Something to consider if you are looking to load up with some kickers instead of some more attack-minded players.
Finally, onto a subject that is the root of much joy and despair in any fantasy rugby player’s weekend: rhe Supersub. After the men's Championship, we learned that when it comes to the Supersub, it is always best to go with players that are likely to get a long run off the bench. However, many fantasy players saw the prospect of Scotland’s world-class attacker Chloe Rollie on the Scotland bench and put the Supersub tag on her. In the end, Rollie only got 3 minutes off the bench, which, even for an exceptional talent like hers, was just not enough time. As always, there were great Supersub options to choose from in the pack, including the top subs, Connie Powell (22 points), Mackenzie Carson (22 points), Maude Muir (16 points), Élisa Riffonneau (15 points) and the top-scoring back off the bench, Holly Aitchison (13 points). Next week, make sure you play it safe with a forward!
So there are five big lessons learned for Round 1. Round 2 comes around straight away, so stay tuned for more fantasy rugby content this week, including the Round 2 picks, which will go live on Friday.
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