Rugby World Cup Fantasy Rugby: Absolute chaos

Round three of the Rugby World Cup was absolutely chaotic. France’s demolition of Namibia came at a price as Antoine Dupont picked up an injury that may rule him out of the quarter-finals, whilst Australia all but crashed out of the tournament after their biggest-ever loss against Wales.

Meanwhile, Georgia and Portugal shared one of the games of the tournament with their 18-18 draw whilst Ireland edged past South Africa in one of the most physical games in recent memory.

In the fantasy world, England and France’s superstars provided the goods as Damian Penaud, Henry Arundell, Marcus Smith and Dupont all crossed the 100-point mark.

The remarkable efforts of Portugal and Uruguay continued as well with Raffaele Storti, Manuel Ardao and Felipe Etcheverry handsomely rewarding fantasy owners who opted to take a risk with the cheaper players.

Gameweek four is where we will see the top sides sharpen their tools as they look ahead to the knockout stages whilst others have a golden opportunity to capitalise on their matchups and get their first win of the campaign.

Round 4 News

Fixture List:

Uruguay vs Namibia

New Zealand vs Italy

Argentina vs Chile

Fiji vs Georgia

Scotland vs Romania

Australia vs Portugal

South Africa vs Tonga

The four teams that won’t be a part of round three are Wales, England, France and Ireland meaning players from those countries should not be part of your plans heading into this week.

A reminder that if you haven’t yet used one of the three ‘boosters’ on offer (Triple Captain, Super Kicker and Defensive King), you need to apply one this week. As the boosters reset after the pool stages, there is no benefit to saving them and with two pool stage rounds remaining, you would be wasting a key advantage if you haven’t yet applied a booster, given only one can be used per round.

And as always, make sure to keep an eye on the starting lineups as they’re released to make sure you’re not leaving out any valuable points.

Here is your complete position-by-position fantasy guide for the fourth week of the tournament.

Props

Ben Tameifuna (Tonga): 4.5 Credits
For a man nicknamed ‘The Planet’ based on his sheer size, Ben Tameifuna gets through a mountain of work.

As well as recording the highest points tally of any prop last round with 53 points, the Tongan behemoth also averages the highest fantasy score of any prop with 39 points per round.

Tonga face another brutal test this week against South Africa but after scoring 25 points against Ireland and 53 against Scotland, Tameifuna has proven he can rack up the points even if Tonga are beaten comprehensively.

Beka Gigashvili (Georgia): 4.5 Credits

Gigashvili is one of just three props to average over 30 fantasy points per game alongside Tameifuna and Argentina’s Thomas Gallo, and that comes after just one start this tournament.

Georgia are expected to have their hands full defensively against a potent Fiji attack which means defensive points will come thick and fast for Los Lelos’ forwards.

When you pair Gigashvili’s work rate in defence and the fact he scored 15 points from outright scrum wins alone last week, it makes him a premium pick this week.

Luke Tagi (Fiji): 3.5 Credits

Tagi has been one of the discoveries of the entire World Cup.

He has started both games for Fiji, averaging 69 minutes in the process and has provided a shot of momentum for the pacific islanders with his rampant ball-carrying and stable scrummaging.

Whilst he averages a respectable 23 fantasy points, this could be the game Tagi breaks the 30-point barrier given Fiji are expected to be on the front foot more than they were against Wales and Australia’s stringent defences.

Hookers

Julian Montoya (Argentina): 7.5 Credits
Argentina are still looking to bust out their attacking weapons after two tough opening contests against England and Samoa. This should be the week.

If Los Pumas can mirror the same success as England did against Chile, Montoya will be in for a big score.

The Argentinian captain has tallied the most points of any hooker that is starting a fixture in gameweek four and is one of the best in the world at scoring from the back of a maul.

Montoya scores points in almost every fantasy facet and should be one of the top point-scoring hookers this week.

German Kessler (Uruguay): 4.5 Credits

If you’re looking for a cheaper option at hooker to free up cap space to splash on the outside backs, Kessler is an excellent option.

Uruguay have been one of the stories of the tournament after their spirited performances against France and Italy.

This week, Uruguay can flex their muscles as they enter their matchup against Namibia as big favourites.

Kessler recorded 24 points last week in his tournament debut, making 13 tackles and winning six points from scums won outright.

With Uruguay expected to have the edge over a Namibian defence that has struggled, Kessler can add valuable attacking returns on top of his base points.

Locks

Nicolas Martins (Portugal): 3.0 Credits
Martins is almost an automatic fantasy selection at this point and has undoubtedly been the best value player in the fantasy world.

He has averaged 51 points this tournament, the most of any lock by some distance, and has the highest points per credit ratio of any player this World Cup.

There is absolutely no reason not to trust Martins to deliver again this week against a wounded Australian outfit.

Scott Barrett (New Zealand) 8.0 Credits

It feels like a long time ago that France beat New Zealand in the most highly anticipated World Cup opener of all time.

In that game, Scott Barrett continued his World Class form and racked up 36 fantasy points. He then came off the bench against Namibia before the All Blacks rest last week.

This week, Barrett serves as an excellent option.

Italy’s fixation on playing from inside their own half has opened them up to a litany of turnover opportunities, as we saw with Uruguay’s Manuel Ardao last week.

Barrett forced two turnovers against France whilst also beating five defenders and those stats should be boosted against an inferior Italian defence.

Loose Forwards

Manuel Ardao (Uruguay): 2.5 Credits
Manuel Ardao has rocketed onto the international stage behind his elite turnover abilities.

He has made six turnovers in his opening two games, including four against Italy last week and has averaged over 36 fantasy points.

This week, the matchup suits him perfectly as Namibia have struggled enormously at neutralising turnover threats meaning Ardao should have a field day and could assemble another 50+ fantasy score.

Levani Botia (Fiji): 6.0 Credits

In the past few seasons, Botia has cemented himself as one of the most dynamic loose forwards on the planet after converting from inside centre.

In Fiji’s historic win over Australia, he recorded three turnovers, 12 tackles and three offloads in his 33-point fantasy performance.

This week against Georgia, we should see those statistics mirrored.

Scrum-Halves
Simione Kuruvoli (Fiji): 5.5 Credits
Kuruvoli announced himself at this World Cup against Australia after slotting four penalties and a conversion in the historic win.

Outside of the kicking statistics, he recorded a host of attacking statistics including a try assist and a linebreak assist in his 40-point haul.

With Fiji’s attack set to shift into gear this week against Georgia, Kuruvoli could be the bargain of the round at his price.

Fly-Halves
Finn Russell (Scotland): 13.0 Credits
Scotland should run riot this week against a Romanian side who have conceded the second most points of any country this tournament and are littered with injuries in key positions.

Alongside the kicking points, Russell’s electric attacking abilities should rip open Romania’s defence, as we saw in his 59-point fantasy performance against Tonga last week where he recorded two try assists and four linebreak assists.

If you’re willing to spend the credits, Russell will compile a big score this week.

Felipe Etcheverry  (Uruguay): 5.0 Credits

A heavy theme of this week is including Uruguayans given they should be too much for Namibia this week.

Etcheverry has been at the heart of Los Teros’ two valiant efforts against France and Italy and has averaged 47 fantasy points in the process.

Selecting Etcheverry this week opens up so many different avenues to spend credits elsewhere given he is the cheapest fly half in the game and should take advantage of Namibia’s poor defence.

Centres
Josua Tuisova (Fiji): 8.0 Credits
This is a selection that doesn’t need overthinking.

Tuisova is one of the most destructive players in world rugby and can wreak havoc against a Georgia defence that struggled to cope with Portugal’s pace of play last week.

It wouldn’t surprise me if Tuisova racks up one of the highest scores of the entire tournament this weekend.

Lucio Cinti (Argentina): 7.0 Credits

Cinti hasn’t been able to inject himself fully into the tournament yet but I’m expecting a big response this week from one of the most electric young talents on the planet.

This feels like the week where Argentina break out of their shackles and deliver an attacking performance that we know they’re capable of against a Chile side low on confidence.

England’s outside backs ran riot last week and if you think Argentina can match that, Cinti is a must-have.

Semi Radradra (Fiji): 10.0 Credits

We are going to see an all-Fiji centre pairing from a lot of fantasy owners this week, and I don’t blame them.

Radradra couldn’t fully establish himself into the game last week against Australia, recording just 13 fantasy points, but should bounce back against Georgia given their defence has wavered against fast-paced attacks.

Fiji’s adrenaline-inducing style of play should prove too much this week and I expect Semi Radradra to be at the forefront of Fiji’s attacking dominance.

Outside Backs
Mark Nawaqanitawase (Australia): 7.0 Credits

The Wallabies are still recovering from their thrashing against Wales last week, a loss that all but confirms they won’t make the knockout stages for the first time this century.

However, they will be desperate to finish the tournament on a high and give Australian fans a glimmer of hope that the talent is there to turn their fortunes around in years to come.

Nawaqanitawase has been one of Australia’s shining lights and can replicate his opening fantasy score of 57 points against Georgia this week as he faces a Portuguese side vulnerable out wide.

Makazole Mapimpi (South Africa): 10.0 Credits

Mapimpi has fallen slightly out of favour in the Springboks rotation and wasn’t selected for their clashes against Scotland and Ireland.

However, in his solo start against Romania, he ran in three tries, two try assists, two linebreaks and scored 119 fantasy points.

Tonga have had a bitterly disappointing tournament and have shipped 104 points in two games, I’m expecting the Springboks to exploit their defensive weaknesses and provide ample opportunities for Mapimpi to collect a wealth of attacking returns.