Scotland, Ireland and France were celebrating on Super Saturday – as were Fantasy Rugby managers who prioritised players from the three victorious teams.
Twelve of the Round 5 team of the week finished on the winning side including Duhan van der Merwe, whose superb display against Italy saw him gain 149.6 Fantasy Rugby points – more than anyone else across the weekend.
The 25-year-old crossed for two tries, broke 13 tackles and gained a remarkable 192 metres as Scotland ran out 52-10 winners to set themselves up nicely for the re-arranged clash with France on Friday.
Vote for your Guinness Six Nations Player of Round 5
The opposite flank is also occupied by a Scot in this week’s selection, with Darcy Graham’s try and 13 carries helping him to 87.8 points.
Huw Jones was another to excel in the home backline at BT Murrayfield. The Glasgow Warriors star was making his first start of this year’s Championship and seized his opportunity with both hands, crossing for his second try in as many weeks and surpassing even Van der Merwe for metres gained, making 217 across the 80 minutes.
Joining Jones in midfield is a player he will be doing his best to stop on Friday, Virimi Vakatawa, who helped his side keep the pressure on against Wales and gained 125 metres from his 15 carries.
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Vakatawa’s compatriot Brice Dulin takes the No.15 jersey after his Guinness Six Nations Player of the Match-winning display, which earned him 110.2 points.
In addition to the dramatic last-gasp try which kept his country’s Championship hopes alive, Dulin broke eight tackles and made 154 metres in a standout performance.
The half-back duo remains unchanged from Round 4, with Antoine Dupont and Johnny Sexton again showing their class.
Dupont dotted down amid an action-packed start to the game in Paris and made two stylish offloads, while Sexton kicked 22 points in Ireland’s win over England to move 15 clear at the top of this year’s leading scorers list.
There is a hefty contingent of Men in Green in the pack, with Cian Healy, Tadhg Beirne and Jack Conan all included.
Beirne was responsible for three of his side’s four turnovers to finish with 37.4 points, while Conan scored one try and set up the other to add 51.1 points to the tallies of managers who selected the 28-year-old at No.8.
Conan is joined in the back-row by Charles Ollivon, who began the late French fightback with a 76th-minute try and made a match-high 20 tackles, and Matt Fagerson, Scotland’s leading tackler against Italy.
Also making his presence felt on Super Saturday was Alun Wyn Jones, who crunched into 17 tackles as his side dug in to try and preserve their Grand Slam dreams.
Weekend in numbers: French flair, brilliant Beirne and dazzling Duhan stand out
Dulin’s late intervention denied the 35-year-old a record-equalling fourth individual clean sweep but he may still end up lifting the trophy and his 32.4-point haul was enough to see him into the team of the week.
The Welsh captain’s near-namesake Wyn Jones has been a must-have for Fantasy Rugby managers this year and 27.5 points proved enough to take the prop into his third team of the week in five rounds.
And lining up at hooker is Italy skipper Luca Bigi, who set the tone for the day’s excitement by scoring the first of 20 tries across the three games in his side’s defeat in Edinburgh.
Round 5 Fantasy Rugby team of the week
1 – W. Jones (Wales) – 27.5 pts 2 – L. Bigi (Italy) – 31.7 pts 3 – C. Healy (Ireland) – 25.4 pts 4 – T. Beirne (Ireland) – 37.4 pts 5 – A. Jones (Wales) – 32.4 pts 6 – M. Fagerson (Scotland) – 75.1 pts 7 – C. Ollivon (France) – 64.7 pts 8 – J. Conan (Ireland) – 51.1 pts 9 – A. Dupont (France) – 65.1 pts 10 – J. Sexton (Ireland) – 54.1 pts 11 – D. van der Merwe (Scotland) – 149.6 pts – BEST PLAYER 12 – V. Vakatawa (France) – 59.5 pts 13 – H. Jones (Scotland) – 135.1 pts 14 – D. Graham (Scotland) – 87.8 pts 15 – B. Dulin (France) – 110.2 pts
