URC Fantasy Rugby: Who to Pick?
The best fantasy rugby picks for your team this season.
We give you the best player tips for your fantasy rugby team this 2022/23 season. Staring with the upcoming URC season, here’s who will hopefully bring you the most points!
Words: Edward Tristram (Superbru I.D - Paulshinfo)
United Rugby Championship (URC) Fantasy - Superbru
The URC Fantasy is a lot more straightforward than its salary cap-based counterparts. With the Superbru competition, you pick your squad each week with no salary constraints to worry about. Your only restriction is a limit on how many players you can use from each team, and your squad must be chosen by the start of the first game of the weekend. You have a "bench", but they score no points and they are generally used as a reserves list for squad rotations. You have a captain (double points scored) and a nominated kicker that you can select to score your points off the tee. You also have a vice-captain and a backup kicker but these are in place for if any of your captains or kickers pull out during the lockout period.
The selections below are based on a Fantasy Rugby philosophy of consistency, mixed with a healthy dose of flashiness and flair. Whether you are seduced by stats or guided by your gut, I hope that these players will give you some inspiration for the upcoming season.
Elrigh Louw / Number 8 / Vodacom Bulls
The 22-year-old back row has had a bruising inaugural season with the URC and has relished the physicality of the competition. His fantasy attacking record has been impressive; 4 tries scored, 218 carries, and 639 meters made. With all of these excellent stats comes the unfortunate fact that he is the number-one ranked player for penalties conceded. A statistic that might put a lot of people off when compared to the wealth of back-row options out there. So why do I pick him over Super Stormer Evan Roos, or top try scorer Marcell Coetzee? I don't. Superbru lists Elrigh Louw as a Lock - a generally low-scoring position. Favourable out-of-position picks are gold dust when picking your team as you can add an extra player from a high-scoring position (such as the back row). If Louw is listed as a lock again this season, he will be the first on my team sheet.
Jimmy O' Brien / Centre / Leinster
Picking a consistent Leinster player is always hard because of the sheer amount of squad rotation that goes on in that club. Leinster can play their first, second, and third-choice XV within 3 rounds of the URC and still come away with 3 wins from 3. As a team, Leinster also loves scoring tries so it's a good idea to have a few of the men in blue in your team every week. To be honest, I could pick any one of Leinster's star-studded players and be in with a good chance of success but I am going to go with Jimmy 'O' Brien. 'O' Brien is a backline player who is on the rise in a position that has fierce competition in Ireland. He may not score the most tries in the URC (4 tries from 10 appearances) but he made an average of 74 meters per game last season! A tasty statistic for a competition that rewards players for meters made. He is also listed as a centre on Superbru which allows you to have more than 3 backline players in your squad. A great person to see on the pitch...unless you are a Bath supporter.
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Wes Goosen / Wing-Centre-Fullback / Edinburgh
Edinburgh are apparently not content with having two world-class wingers in their ranks with Boffelli and Graham, so they decided to complete the set by signing the Hurricanes flyer. Goosen has racked up 30 tries in his 66 appearances for the NZ-based Super Rugby side and you would expect him to carve things up in the URC. So why would I pick him over the other world-class wingers in the Scottish capital? Goosen will not be affected by international windows/rest periods and should feature in more games throughout the season. Having a consistent player who is settled in their position is a big positive for your squad rotation during the season. Expect to see him start in their opening game against Dragons R.F.C.
Dewi Lake / Hooker / Ospreys
The Ospreys hooker has been catapulted into the spotlight due to his hard carrying, harder tackling, and ability to score tries in games where he has no right to cross the line (much like in the 77th minute against South Africa with only 13 men on the field). He is currently in fine form and plays for an Ospreys team who like to grind out wins with forward-driven power. The Ospreys love a hat-trick hooker so don't be surprised if he features in the top list for try-scorers this season - if the Ospreys can build on their impressive end-of-season form.
N.B. Superbru offers forwards 2 points each if they win 90% of their own lineouts. Considering that the Ospreys' lineout has been a problem area over the last season, this may cause you some trepidation in picking Lake but this is all part of the risk/reward of Fantasy Rugby! If this puts you off, take a look at Johan Grobbelaar or Dan Sheehan for some high-scoring hookers.
Lukhanyo Am / Centre / Cell C Sharks
I don't know if you've noticed but Lukhanyo Am is a bit good. Best in the world good perhaps? He is in scintillating form and he lights up the pitch whenever he steps foot on it. The Springboks are going to want to defend their title of world champions and Lukhanyo Am will be at the heart of their 12-month plan. He might not feature in every game for the Sharks, but when he does he will make an impact. Expect a big, big season from the electric Springbok.
Rhys Webb / Scrum Half / Ospreys
Now, I might seem biased in picking two Ospreys players here but I can't help it when it comes to Rhys Webb. He has come back to The Ospreys after a stint in the South-West and he seems to have found his calling. He has ended the season tied with Munsters' Craig Casey as the top try-scoring scrum half but the key difference is that he made more clean breaks, more offloads, more carries, and nearly 3x the meters gained. He consistently performs well in a position where points are scarce and with the Ospreys showing a glimpse of what they are capable of in the tail-end of last season, we could be in for a special year for Webb. Fellow Welshman Keiran Hardy is also in fine form so he might be a player to look at too.
Emiliano Boffelli / Fullback / Edinburgh
My High-Risk Player of the URC : This is the selection that I know will be the hardest for me moving forward this season. Boffelli is a player who is currently in the form of his life. He already made a big impact in Edinburgh last season and has personally dismantled Australia and The All Blacks in the Rugby Championship; all whilst racking up a points tally that is putting some of the biggest names in the Southern Hemisphere to shame. He is no doubt going to be bringing this form into The URC this season so why am I so hesitant to pick him? Well, Boffelli is a utility player in Superbru Fantasy for all of the wrong reasons. Boffelli plays Fullback for Edinburgh but shares the kicking duties with Kinghorn and Van Der Walt. In any given game, he may take some, all, or none of the kicks. Seeing as Superbru will only award kicking points to one player, you may be left with a gamble on who is going to be kicking for goal. I no-doubt will be picking Boffelli in some games but I am going to be gambling on kicking points whenever I pick him. Fantasy Rugby choices are a headache enough without having multiple kickers to worry about!
So there we have it. My recommendations for the URC 22/23 Fantasy game. Remember: Always pick players who are going to start, get your try-scorers in, and look for consistent performers. You can take your risks on strike players week by week but a truly great fantasy team is built on consistency and knowing when to select a strike player. Your captain will also play a huge part in your points gained so pick wisely.
Thank you for reading and I'll see you in the pools.
