The weeks are creeping closer to mid-season now that we’re past Round 8. Seems like a good time for a G&GR Fantasy update. We’re still going strong overall, but have juuuuust slipped into second place (out of 2,604) in the league rankings. I’m confident we’ll make up the one-point difference and reclaim the throne.
Our current overall leader is The Force Is Strong, and while that’s only a nice theory in real life rugby, it’s proving to be very true when it comes to fantasy. Well done in placing 17th globally as well. Meeks Gold is coming in strong as well at 20th globally. And to illustrate just how badass we are, G&GR’s top six players are all in the top 60 globally. Not too shabby at all!
Some Fantasy Observations:
- The Cheetahs props WP Nel and Coenraad Oosthuizen are putting up some great numbers for not much price. The funny thing about Oosty is he still does it while being a penalty magnet. He has 22 long arm penalties without being sin-binned (a minor miracle there). The next highest penalty total is 14.
- Sonny Bill Williams, the king of fantasy rugby, has 28 offloads in 5 games. The next highest total is 14 by the cunning Luke Burgess. SBW averages 47+ points per game so far.
- Andries Bekker somehow managed to collect an outragious 13 lineout takes against the Reds. That’s a lot even for him, the leading lineout taker among locks.
- Quade Cooper easily leads the stats for linebreaks created with 12, which is a testament to his ability to find gaps for his runners. Cipriani is actually 2nd on that list, which one might not have expected considering how he has played in England in the past.
- Colin Slade has looked in nice form since his return from injury, although it has been against the Brumbies and Cheetahs. He’s cheap though, and playing like the talented five-eighth that the Highlanders were hoping for when they signed him. He’s got a good kicking boot too.
- Jono Jenkins of the Force scored 35 points in the losing effort against the Tahs — 33 from the defensive side of the ball. One point for his minutes played, one run, 3 points for forcing a turnover, and 30 TACKLES! 30!!! Think he was tired after the game?
