If you are new to Fantasy Rugby Geek, then welcome to our first instalment of our weekly pre-match updates for the Guinness 2026 Six Nations. This where we analyse the weekend’s lineups, crunch the stats and see what the bookies are thinking to help you optimise your lineups for peak performance this weekend! By the time you finish this article you should have all the insight you need to score big fantasy points this weekend.
Before we do however, a word from the FRG editor…
FRG Premium – Join today to elevate your Fantasy Rugby performance
Now live on Buy Me A Coffee, unlock further fantasy rugby insights with Fantasy Rugby Geek Premium! Covering The Rugby Championship, URC, Premiership Rugby, Champions Cup and Men’s and Women’s Six Nations. With your subscription, you’ll see the exact teams that I am playing with, get access to further private posts, and I will also offer you a personalised review of your teams, outlining any opportunities for improvement. All your subscriptions go back into the costs of running fantasyrugbygeek.com!
Also in 2026, all members have access to an exclusive members only prize league.
Prize for 1st Place
- A £100 voucher to spend at The Rugby Shop
- A lifetime premium membership for the Gainline iPhone app
- A free rugby mystery box from Blindside Box
- A voucher to spend at Old Novo
- A voucher to spend at Rugby Wardrobe
- Six Months Membership to FRG Premium on Buy Me A Coffee
- FRG Trucker Hat
Prizes for 2nd and 3rd Place
- Membership to FRG Premium on Buy Me A Coffee for the 2027 Men’s Six Nations
- One year premium membership for the Gainline iPhone app
- FRG Trucker Hat
Elevate your fantasy rugby game – subscribe to Fantasy Rugby Geek Premium today and embark on a winning journey like never before! Act fast, and seize your ticket to fantasy rugby glory today!
A big thank you to all the FRG Members who have signed up to FRG Premium (Keeping you anonymous in case anyone in your mini leagues is reading! 🤫)
Okay, back to the picks…
What will go down…
Into the third round of the 2026 Six Nations and we have 3 high fantasy potential matches to work from.
Round 3 opens with a blockbuster clash in London, as England host Ireland. Last year, Ireland edged a 27–22 win at home, but with Twickenham providing home advantage this time around, things could swing back England’s way. With both teams on a win and a loss, it is anyone’s guess, but the bookies are pretty bullish on England, expecting an England win by 11 points.
Next, it’s Wales v Scotland at the Principality. These two sides produced another thriller last year, with Scotland holding on for a 35–29 win. Scotland enter the game on a high while Wales are anything but on a high. The bookies are expecting Scotland to inflict more pain, backing a Scotland win by 19 points.
Round 3 wraps up with France hosting Italy. This was an absolute fantasy goldmine in 2025. France ran in a record 14 tries, winning 73–24, with 10 different French try scorers. It was France’s biggest-ever win over Italy and one of the most lopsided matches in Six Nations history. Dupont got 90 fantasy points that day, will anyone match that score this week? The bookies have this as the biggest mismatch of the week, with France backed to win by 28 points.
Expected to go well
*Players who are starting favourably out of position (i.e. Hooker in back row, Centre on wing, etc.)
PROPS
- Danilo Fischetti (Italy) – TBC
- Rhys Carre (Wales)
- Zander Fagerson (Scotland)
HOOKERS
- Luke Cowan-Dickie (England)
- Dan Sheehan (Ireland)
LOCKS
- Tadhg Beirne (Ireland)*
- Gregor Brown (Scotland)*
- Ollie Chessum (England)
BACK ROW
- Ben Earl (England)
- Rory Darge (Scotland)
- Henry Pollock (England)
- Aaron Wainwright (Wales)
SCRUM-HALF
- Antoine Dupont (France)
- Ben White (Scotland)
FLY HALF
- Mathieu Jalibert (France)
- Finn Russell (Scotland)
CENTRES
- Fabien Brau-Boirie (France)
- Huw Jones (Scotland)
- Tommaso Menoncello (Italy) – TBC
BACK 3
- Blair Kinghorn (Scotland)
- Thomas Ramos (France)
- Tommy Freeman (England)
- Louis Bielle-Biarrey (France)
Recommended Captain Picks
This week I’d suggest the following as Captain Pick options…
- Matthieu Jalibert (France)
- Louis Bielle-Biarrey (France)
- Thomas Ramos (France)
Supersub Strategy
For those playing the Official Game, we look at potential options for the SuperSub role.
Ultimately SuperSub is a bit of a lottery. You could luck out if one of the starting XV needs to go off in the early stages of the game, but likewise you could be at the mercy of a coach who decides to leave his backs on the bench for the entire 80 minutes, so you have to play the percentages and consider the risks.
As covered in detail in a previous post, for me the key areas to consider in a SuperSub are…
- Will they come on, and will they play a significant period of time
- How the team has used their bench in previous games
- The split of subs on the bench
Based on squads so far, the following will be in contention…
- Jack Conan – BR – Ireland
- Nick Timoney – BR – Ireland
- Charles Ollivon – BR – France
- Mickael Guillard – SR – France
Bargain buys on the Official game
The following players, valued at 11 stars or less, have been identified as potentially scoring well for their cost in the game and should be considered as good value enablers…
- Jamie Osborne (IRE) – 10.6 – Back Three
- Alex Mann (WAL) – 10.2 – Back Row
- Robert Baloucoune (IRE) – 10.1 – Back Three
- Fabien Brau-Boirie (FRA) – 9.7 stars – Centre – TBC
- Emilien Gailleton (FRA) – 10.3 stars – Centre – TBC
- Gregor Brown (SCO) – 9.6 stars – Second Row
- Dave Cherry (SCO) – 8.1 stars – Hooker
- Rhys Carre (WAL) – 8.4 stars – Prop
- Thibaud Flament (FRA) – 9.3 stars – Second Row – TBC
- Freddie Steward (ENG) – 9.9 stars – Back Three
- Gabriel Hamer-Webb (WAL) – 6.8 stars – Back Three
- Andrea Zambonin (ITA) – 9.6 stars – Second Row – TBC
Six Nations 2026 – Join the FRG Leagues!
The Six Nations returns on Thursday 5th January! The fantasy games are now live on both the Official Game and Superbru, so get signed up and join our leagues now!
To join on the Official Game, simply join my league directly here.
To join on Superbru, join my league directly here or by downloading the Superbru Rugby app and searching for the league with code: hidepoem
FRG Partners
Buy me a Coffee!
If you’ve been enjoying the FRG tips over the years, please consider supporting the blog and donating a coffee, all donators will receive a name drop on the next weekly tips, and your donations will help with the running of the blog (and keeping me fuelled to do so!) >>> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/FRugbyGeekBuy me a coffee
If you want some more sources to help you finalise your decisions, go to our resources page where you’ll find all the Six Nations fantasy games, all the stats sources, injury news, team news, fantasy relevant rugby betting odds and tons of other useful information.
Found this interesting or useful and looking for more Fantasy Rugby news, tips and advice? Follow @frugbygeek on Twitter, Like us on Facebook or sign up to the newsletter below to get fantasy rugby news delivered straight to you!