What we learned in ASX Sports fantasy rugby round three as debutants score big

Round three of the Guinness Six Nations produced some surprise performances in ASX Sports fantasy rugby that few people would have seen coming.

Two debutants made the top five performers, while some familiar names also turned up as well. That means with two rounds remaining in this year’s Championship, plenty of players have thrown their hat into the ring for you to invest in.

Top Five
It will come as no surprise to learn that Ireland dominate the top five performers given their lopsided 57-6 win over Italy, with debutant Michael Lowry topping the list after scoring two tries and registering an assist, as well as running over 100 metres in 13 carries.

1. Michael Lowry (Fullback- Ireland) $60.10 divs
2. Jamison Gibson-Park (Scrum-half- Ireland) $55.40 divs
3. Damian Penaud (Wing- France) $48.70 divs
4. Ryan Baird (Second-row- Ireland) $44.70 divs
5. Rory Darge (Flanker- Scotland) $39.40 divs

What we learned from round three

Scotland versus France
France took a giant stride towards their first Six Nations title, and possibly Grand Slam, in twelve years on Saturday with a 36-17 win over Scotland.

There are potential dividends across the entire France squad- their forwards run hard, making plenty of carries and metres while there is a nice spread of dividends across their back line. Given how slick and cohesive the French backs look, particularly in counter-attacking situations, shares in any of them are likely to pay off.

With that said, winger Damian Penaud may be the best option, not only because he is one of the best wingers on the planet, but he has the ability to finish and create opportunities that any of his teammates could not. With France’s attacking play looking so lucid, owning wingers is a necessity. Penaud also finished the match almost $20 cheaper than scrum-half Antoine Dupont, which is why he is a slightly more attractive asset.

From Scotland, try scoring debutant Rory Darge could be one to look out for for the rest of the Championship. Of course a try helped his dividends a lot, but he also made the most carries in the Scotland team, the second-most tackles and more turnovers than the rest of his team combined. All in all that makes him a great investment, particularly when taking his relatively cheap price into account and the fact that Scotland face Italy in round four.

1. Damian Penaud (Wing- France) $48.70 divs
2. Rory Darge (Flanker- Scotland) $39.40 divs
3. Jonathan Danty (Centre- France) $37.30 divs
4. Paul Willemse (Second-row- France) $27.20 divs
5. Blair Kinghorn (Fullback- Scotland) $24.80 divs

England versus Wales 
When looking at the top performers of England’s contest with Wales, anyone could be forgiven for thinking the Welsh actually won as they had four of the top five performers. But in a match when Twickenham’s visitors scored three tries to the host’s one, that is likely. Bearing that in mind, English backs may not be a great investment given their apparent inertia. Only Marcus Smith seems a sensible option as he kicks a large volume of penalties and can still sniff out a try for himself.

England’s pack looks to be a richer source of dividends though, with Alex Dombrandt coming second in the match’s performers. The No.8 backed up a high scoring performance against Italy with a try scoring display against Wales, albeit a fairly fortuitous try.

From Wales’ top performers, Nick Tompkins proved to be a great option as he was the third best performer but was almost a third of the price of the top performer Josh Adams. That would provide the opportunity to invest far more heavily in the centre, which could be a wise option with Italy on the horizon.

1. Josh Adams (Wing- Wales) $38.20 divs
2. Alex Dombrandt (No.8- England) $31.30 divs
3. Nick Tompkins (Centre- Wales) $25.70 divs
4. Kieran Hardy (Scrum-half- Wales) $25.30 divs
5. Will Rowlands (Second-row- Wales) $23.00 divs

Ireland versus Wales
It might be hard to draw any conclusions from Ireland’s win over Italy in Dublin, as the visitors played the majority of the match with 13 players, and were even down to twelve at one point. Italy were already at the foot of the Six Nations table and being so heavily depleted only compounded their misery while also creating a field day for Ireland.

While Lowry earned the most dividends for Ireland, and in the entire round, it is unlikely that he will start in the next two rounds. The same applies for Ryan Baird and Joey Carbery. However, Jamison Gibson-Park did prove once again what a good buy he could be. The scrum-half scored a try for the second consecutive match, so he could certainly be a player to look out for.

As Italy were in such difficulty throughout the match at the Aviva Stadium, there is not much to learn from their performance, certainly in terms of dividends earned, but their captain Michele Lamaro was hugely impressive given the circumstances.

1. Michael Lowry (Fullback- Ireland) $60.10 divs
2. Jamison Gibson-Park (Scrum-half- Ireland) $55.40 divs
3. Ryan Baird (Second-row- Ireland) $44.70 divs
4. Johnny Sexton (Fly-half- Ireland) $35.30 divs
5. Joey Carbery (Fly-half- Ireland) $30.40 divs

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