Being the overall global champion of a fantasy rugby competition is a huge achievement, especially in a game as hotly contested as The Rugby Magazine’s Premiership game. We had the pleasure of getting in touch with the 2018/19 global champion on The Rugby Magazine, Ken Vernon, who gave us some insight into what it takes to beat thousands of other avid fantasy rugby players and take top spot as the tournament came to it’s close…
FRG: Are you a regular fantasy rugby player?
KV: Not before last season. Someone invited me to play and I then mentioned it to a group of people I used to play rugby with. We are all still unnecessarily competitive but can’t play anymore, so hitting the top spot in our private league instantly became more important than it reasonably should have!
FRG: Did you have a strategy in your team selection or was it more a case of going with your gut feeling?
KV: A combination of both really. The overall strategy I used was to think about the season as a whole, in order to avoid making short term choices or taking too many gambles. I didn’t win any single game week across the season but my scores stayed consistent. I made sure I had a broad squad full of reasonably cheap players, who got lots of game time and were consistent. This gave me lots of cover for when injuries and surprise international call ups happened (I had no idea Sam Skinner was Scottish!). I occasionally bought expensive players who would genuinely improve my squad but I tried to avoid too many internationals and made sure to keep an eye out for players who were falling out of form. Where I had selection decisions to make (which was not that often to be honest) I considered their form, if they were home or away, etc. but I mainly went with instinct and tried to not overthink it.
FRG: What was your best moment of the season in context of the fantasy game?
KV: Realizing that I was too far from the other players in my private league (The Purple Wasps) to be caught and knowing that I would have a whole summer of being unbearable on our WhatsApp group. So far, it has not disappointed!
FRG: Who was your best performing player of the season?
KV: Harry Thacker was great and could be selected in multiple positions, but I think Cobus Reinach was the best in terms of points for me.
FRG: How did it feel going into the final round knowing that you had a chance to win the whole thing?
KV: I hadn’t really been in the Top 10 mix until towards the end of the season so to be honest, no different to any other week. It was nice with it being mine to lose but it is just a silly game I play in my spare time.
FRG: At what point during the tournament did you begin to believe that you could win the league?
KV: There is so much that rides on things outside your control that I didn’t really think too much about winning.
FRG: If there’s one single tip that you’d give to a new manager playing The Rugby Magazine, what would it be?
KV: Get your friends involved! I have never missed a game week deadline and we keep getting better because we don’t want to lose to each other.
FRG: What players will be first on your team sheet next season?
KV: Fitness permitting, Harry Thacker.
FRG: Did you use any specific websites or resources to help your team planning?
KV: I used local papers to get more information about player injury but the site itself has all the stats you need. Being a general rugby geek helps obviously in terms of who is playing well and who is likely to be getting a run of games.
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