Fantasy footballer: The analytical Wallaby who became an expert in a rival code

Is there a connection between the Raiders’ left edge defence and the Wallabies ending their 39-year Eden Park hoodoo? What about the Rabbitohs’ halves and lineout strategies needed to win back the Bledisloe Cup?

Nick Frost has put plenty of thought into all of the above, albeit not at the same time. But if the analytical mind of the Wallabies lock is as successful in unlocking the strengths and weaknesses of the All Blacks as he was breaking down NRL teams this year, promising things could unfold.

Confused yet?

Australian sports fans will know Frost as the athletic second-rower who has played 33 Tests for the Wallabies; a 206cm giant who has become Australia’s premier lineout forward, and with the odd runaway try thrown in as a reminder of his days as a schoolboy athlete.

Frost’s set-piece dominance was instrumental in the Wallabies pushing the British and Irish Lions to the wire, and on a history-making tour of South Africa last month, too. Returning from a back niggle that kept him out of the last Test against Argentina, the 25-year-old will be one of the most important men for the Wallabies in their attempt to beat the All Blacks at Eden Park on Saturday, and keep alive the chance of winning back the Bledisloe Cup for the first time since 2002.

But this year Frost has also developed a profile in some corners of the rugby league world as well – specifically, in the highly competitive sub-culture of NRL fantasy football.

One of Frost’s hobbies away from his day job is playing NRL Supercoach, and in the regular season just finished, the Wallaby reached as high as fifth before “Skinnys Superstars” finished in eighth place, from a field of over 150,000 entrants.

“It started at school with a bunch of mates, 10-ish years ago, and it kind of just grew over the years,” Frost explains.

“We’re still in the same league and we’re still the same group chat. A lot of those boys I haven’t seen since school. A few of them are in London, a few of them in New York, we message most days.

“I watch most of the [NRL] games, but purely from a fantasy footy point of view, to be honest.

“It’s a hobby. I don’t play golf or anything, so it’s something to do away from the game [rugby]. There’s a bit of study and different things you have a look at. It’s gotten a bit more serious over the past few years. It’s good fun.”

With a towering build perfect for union, there’s no danger of the Brumbies star defecting to the Raiders any time soon. But Frost has developed an expert eye in the 13-man game as well, as required for the helter-skelter weekly business of deciding which NRL players will earn him maximum points.

“You watch a lot of players. You know what players are good in it,” Frost said. “Defensive issues, attacking edges. Which teams go down which edge. Who to run at, what they do. All that goes into it. Especially if you’re deciding who to play or not. If they’re running at a half that isn’t great defensively.

“You kind of take risks. I know a whole lot of that. And there’s injuries too, which is a massive one. Late injuries. Prices on people and making trades at the right time.

“Trying to find the players is half the thing. If you go with the same players everyone’s going to get, you’re not going to be different to anyone. It’s mostly stats-based. So I guess that’s a bit of analytical side of things.”

Managing Skinnys Superstars consumes “a fair bit” of his downtime, Frost admits. And particularly recently, when it became apparent he had a chance of winning.

The doubly remarkable part was all that was unfolding when the Wallabies star was already in the middle of a massive Lions series in July, and then in a different timezone in South Africa in August.

“By the end of it, when I was up near the top 10, I was like, jeez, you’re definitely thinking about it a bit more time. You’re more stressed about decisions you make,” Frost said.

Indeed, it’s fair to assume that the 25-year-old, a digital polymath who is also into coding, gaming and DJing, wears out his laptops at an extraordinary rate.

In his day job, Frost spends hours studying the strengths and weaknesses of opposing lineouts, trying to figure out ways to not only win all the Wallabies’ throws, but pick off rivals’ throws as well.

It’s not quite the same as spotting an NRL team with a defensive flaw, but it’s not a million miles away either.

“I like to try and watch the game normally if I’m watching a Super Rugby game or a Test match,” Frost says. “You just try and watch it as a fan. But then you come in on Monday or Tuesday and do a bit more of the study.”

Frost calls the lineouts for the Brumbies and the Wallabies, meaning on-field decisions are mostly his. Extensive analysis with his coaches and fellow lineout forwards is bread-and-butter during the week.

“You roughly know players and trends, but it’s always evolving for every team. It’s a bit of a cat-and-mouse game. There’s moves you do, and then you’ve got a team who’ll catch up and learn the moves you do. And it’s the same for us,” Frost said.

“It’s always evolving and trying to find the next thing. You look at other teams and there are moves they’re doing. You’re like, hmm, I’ll steal that. That’s going to work against a certain team.”

Of the many factors contributing to the Wallabies’ successes in 2025, the security offered by rock-solid set pieces is arguably the most important. Under Mike Cron’s tutelage, the Wallaby scrum has a 100 per cent success rate, and the lineout, led by Frost and Jeremy Williams, has rarely been bested.

“It’s always evolving for every team. It’s a bit of a cat-and-mouse game.”

Nick Frost on lineout strategy

The pair, along with recently departed forwards coach Geoff Parling, are often seen at halftime or during lightning breaks poring over laptops.

“There’s always a plan pre-game but you’ve got to be able to adapt,” Frost said. “That’s where the biggest growth has potentially been with us over the past year – attacking defensively. Being able to adapt mid-game, to figure out what’s working and what’s not.”

Frost’s form this year, too, has been career-best. After debuting in 2022, the Sydneysider quickly became a regular starter for Dave Rennie and Eddie Jones, but it is under Joe Schmidt that Frost has grown into a world-class lock.

Unsuprisingly, he is the Wallabies’ most prolific lineout forward, with 36 takes this year and nine steals; both team-highs. Despite missing a Test, he is also top three in lineout stats across the Rugby Championship.

But the big improvements have come in Frost’s physicality and industry. Having been told by Schmidt and Laurie Fisher last year he needed to work on his tight game, Frost has conspicuously muscled up this year.

He sits third behind Fraser McReight and Harry Wilson for most tackles, and third for most attacking rucks hit, too.

“As you get older, you get slightly a little bit heavier, a little bit stronger, and just being able to understand how to use your body probably better,” Frost said.

“You just get a bit smarter.”

Why year in ‘pressure cooker’ has Wallabies ready for Eden Park mission

By Iain Payten

The scale of James Slipper’s incredible longevity means he is now a touch embarrassed by an influx of milestone games.

The veteran prop last year broke George Gregan’s record for most Wallabies caps (139), having earlier in the year broken the record for most Super Rugby games by an Australian (178). This year Slipper moved into second on the all-time Super list, and at 195 games, only needs eight more next year to take that record, too.

On Saturday night when he runs out against the All Blacks at Eden Park, Slipper will become the first Wallaby – and just the third man ever – to play 150 Tests.

It is a remarkable achievement that deserves praise, but apart from some messages from the other two “150ers”, Sam Whitelock (153) and Alun Wyn-Jones (170), and the Wallabies wearing commemorative T-shirts at their captain’s run on Friday, the celebrations have been muted. Just as Slipper likes it.

“There’s so many motivators for us this week,” Wallabies captain Harry Wilson said.

“You’ve got a person like James Slipper playing his 150th game, someone who means so much to every single person in our squad and our staff. Playing in such a big milestone game, it definitely adds a little bit more motivation.”

But if milestones don’t do it for you, James, can we interest you in a relevant trans-Tasman omen or two?

In Slipper’s 100th Test in 2020, the Wallabies downed the All Blacks at Suncorp Stadium. It remains the last Australian win over New Zealand.

And perhaps most interestingly, in the Super Rugby milestone match in March when Slipper moved into second for games played, the Brumbies ended a 13-year hoodoo at Eden Park with a one-point win over the Blues.

Defying the weight of history at Eden Park – and a hoodoo for the Wallabies that is three times as long as the Brumbies – is no easy task, however. No Australian side has beaten New Zealand in Auckland since 1986.

The Wallabies have been inundated with questions this week about whether this is the year it can finally be broken, as they are every visit. But this year, at least, the local media have conceded it is more of a chance than most, based on the Wallabies’ form against the Lions and the recent win at Ellis Park for the first time 62 years.

The public, however, are a different story.

“There’s been plenty of hype over here and just walking around the streets, everyone’s letting us know the results, which is something you enjoy when you’re playing in enemy territory. We’ve taken it in our stride this week,” Wilson said.

Having lost the power of Rob Valetini and the experience of Andrew Kellaway, the Wallabies are big outsiders to win, rated $6.50 chances by bookies. It’s more complimentary than the odds seen in recent years, but still reflective of the size of the mountain the Wallabies have to climb.

The Wallabies have faced a few similar sized mountains already this year, however. They were even bigger longshots to win at Ellis Park, and the Lions were also strong favourites throughout the July series.

“We’ve played a lot of big matches this year, which is something which gives the group a lot of confidence because you’ve got the British-Irish Lions in a three-game series and obviously over South Africa there,” Wilson said.

“So we’ve been under the pressure cooker quite a lot this year, and it is definitely something we’ll lean on this weekend, knowing that we’ve been here before and we’ve found ways out of it, too.

“It’s another heck of a challenge. When you’re versing a team like New Zealand – we haven’t won over here in quite a long time – history’s all against us, but that’s something which really excites this group.”

Watch all the action from the 2025 Rugby Championship on Stan Sport.