The 6 Nations kicks off on Friday night, but before then you might want to set up your fantasy rugby team for what is set to be another belter of a campaign.
The rest of the week be like…
Wednesday – ?
Thursday – ?
Friday – ?
Saturday – ?
Sunday – ?#GuinnessSixNations pic.twitter.com/fJi7gKLaUv
— Guinness Six Nations (@SixNationsRugby) January 30, 2025
Things are a little different this year in terms of the scoring and it has made for a more interesting system. Here’s a short run through.
Firstly, and most importantly, you are given a budget of 240 stars to spend on your perfect 18-man squad. With players ranging from nine to sixteen stars in value.
In terms of the scoring, there are team points awarded to players with a home win worth 12 points, while an away win will bag a player 18 points. The margin of a victory or loss will give you +/- 0.5 points respectively.
The individual marks have been improved from last season, with tackles being doubled and now counting as one point per tackle. For every defender beaten a player will receive two points.
The most noticeable marks are for a try, with a forward being awarded 18 points for touching down, while a back will gain you 15. A man of the match performance by a player will get you 15 points too.
The things to avoid are players that are prone to receiving yellow or red cards as they will see you lose five or eight points respectively.
There are a few other ways to gain points such as a kick from the tee counting as three points be it from a penalty or conversion. Have a look at the other ways to gain points if you are interested.
Before going through players be sure to remember that you can only have a maximum of four players from any nation.
So, who leads the lines in terms of players? Price wise, last years grand slam winners, Ireland, have four players costing 16 stars (Rory Best, Conor Murray, Johnny Sexton, Jacob Stockdale), with Wales’ George North the only other player to cost the same.
When picking your team, it is vital to remember that you are looking for a balance between who is good defensively, with an eye towards who is good going forward.
Who would make your fantasy team? This is the most selected back-three so far!
? Stockdale on 43% of teams
? Hogg on 50% of teams
? North on 28% of teamsPick yours now – https://t.co/WleK2Lohtj pic.twitter.com/NwMnHCrFyX
— Guinness Six Nations (@SixNationsRugby) January 29, 2025
You must select a captain each week, it is advised to pick a player that is a first-team regular as they receive an extra 20 points and their score gets doubled.
The likes of Sexton, Stockdale, Owen Farrell, Stuart Hogg and so on are likely to get the most game time and score plenty of points. So, it may be worthwhile investing some stars in a reliable captain.
Some players that might be worth while taking a punt on would be Italy’s Tomasso Allan, Scotland’s Peter Horne, or England’s Joe Cokanasiga. All of which are 11 stars and are in with a shout of starting most games.
The top players cost the most and are who you want in your team but, there are some bargains to be had. Especially when it comes to the bench with a “super sub” now available.
This is a player that you select on your three-man bench who, if they come on, will have their score tripled.
When looking for players here it is hard to look by Irish and Munster duo, Tadhg Beirne and Joey Carbery. With huge competition for places in the Irish starting 15 it will be hard for either to play the full 80 minutes but are likely to come off the bench.
Beirne will cost you 11 stars, with Carbery a deal at only 10.
Outside of the Irish, Uini Atonio of France, a powerhouse, is worth 10 stars, while Wales’ Jake Ball and England’s Brad Shields only cost nine.
Going into week one, check out who is playing who and keep an eye out for team announcements as the deadline to change your team isn’t until the first game kicks off at 20 00 on Friday.
One other tip would be to select players that may not be a No 10 but kick as they will gain more points.
So, that’s it. As if you needed anything else to look forward to before Friday, here’s something else.
