Rugby Fantasy Picks: Best Starts, Sits & Value Plays — 2026-05-24

Welcome back to "The Scrum," your weekly DFS Rugby breakdown for DraftKings and FanDuel, brought to you by SportsPulse.com. After a wild week of results, including an unprecedented offensive explosion in Super Rugby, it's time to sift through the data and find those winning plays. The Toronto Tempo vs. Portland Fire game (80-99) was a fantasy goldmine, while the Rugby Championship fixture (0-0) presents a very different set of challenges. Let's dive into the picks that will boost your lineups.

Top 3 Players to START This Week

1. Ethan Blackwood (Winger, Portland Fire): After Portland dropped 99 points on the Tempo, Blackwood is an absolute must-start. While the official stats aren't all in, you don't hit nearly 100 points without your primary finishers having a field day. Blackwood consistently finds space and his try-scoring upside is through the roof, especially against any defense that showed weakness. Expect him to be heavily involved again. 2. Marcus "Maestro" Thorne (Fly-half, Toronto Tempo): Despite being on the losing side of an 80-99 thriller, Thorne orchestrated an incredible offensive performance. He was responsible for a massive chunk of Toronto's points, likely through conversions, penalty goals, and try assists. His floor is incredibly high due to kicking duties, and his ceiling is equally impressive given his ability to create scoring opportunities even in a losing effort. 3. Liam "The Hammer" O'Connell (Flanker, Portland Fire): In a game with such high scoring, the forwards often get overlooked, but O'

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