Ahead of Round 8 we also have some tough SuperCoach choices, like do the mid-pricers of Setterfield have to go? Or can we hold on? What are some of the potential POD selections you might want to keep an eye out for and finally what rookies are worth jumping on.
Setterstay or Settergo
There’s a lot of debate as to whether to trade popular mid-price selection Will Setterfield this week after he’s had mediocre scoring for the past 5 games. With a SuperCoach score of 51 on the weekend it really begs the question: should you be swinging him to a premium now? Or is there room to hold onto him?
Just analysing his role he’s had a very consistent role across the majority of his games with the 2 exceptions being his game in Round 2 and Round 6. In Round 2 he was the number one inside midfielder whilst in Round 6 he was sent down back as cover for an injured Jayden Laverde which took down his centre bounce numbers. However Setterfield is more known for getting his disposals around the ground rather than the in-and-under work, so his having 68% CBA attendance on the weekend didn’t necessarily mean much for his scoring. Just having a look at his heat maps we can see that he isn’t necessarily reliant on center bounce work.
Setterfield’s Heatmap Round 7 (Source DFS)
Setterfield’s Heatmap Round 6 (Source DFS)
Setterfield’s Heatmap Round 2 (Source DFS)
If you compare his stat line across the year he’s pretty much averaging 20+ disposals a few marks and in most cases 5+ tackles which generally accumulates to a 90+ score if he uses the ball well. In the last few weeks, he has been down on his efficiency going at 68% and 52% which would negate his scoring a lot. He also only had one tackle for the whole match which attributed to his low score. The good news is that he won’t be playing against the Pies and Geelong each week which brings very intense pressure, but he still has two tricky matchups in the next two weeks in the Power and Lions (ranked eighth and sixth easiest to score against in 2023 respectively) which won’t be simple. However leading into the bye he has a fantastic run of games to follow with the Tigers, Eagles and North (all in the top four easiest teams to score against in 2023) before the bye making him a potential stepping stone once.
So what should you do with him? Well, I will always support getting other rookies off the field first because with rookie roulette you never know what they’ll score on a week-to-week basis or whether they even hold their spot in the team (unless they’re one of the big names), and with our rookie pool so thin it’s important to upgrade your team as fast as possible.
However, trading Setterfield allows you to jump and get one of the undervalued premiums that are currently available like Oliver, Steele and Cripps. Then it might be worth the cut as you’ll have that potential 30-40 point gain per week than if you were to trade a rookie to a fallen premium.
POD Bargain Buys
Def: Will Powell (SC $483k Def)
Designated kick-in taker is generally a nice role to have for any fantasy defender and that’s the role that Will Powell has taken up in the last two weeks after sharing this role with Lachie Weller. It was only in 2021 that Powell was primed to take the next step in his development after averaging a measly 82 with some impressive games along the halfback flank. Unfortunately, some serious injuries have delayed this development. But he’s returned scoring 3 tons in 5 games. While I don’t feel he’s continued his 3-round average of 111.7, he’s definitely got the potential to average a 95+ especially if he’s continuing the current role of being the +1 in defence.
Midfield: Travis Boak (SC $462k Mid)
While everyone jumps on the Steele’s and Cripps’s of the world, I want to float in a suggestion that has flown under everyone’s radar as he’s lost his DPP status and missed the first few games of the season due to injury. Since he’s returned he’s played mostly out on a wing to slowly build up his minutes. However with the game on the line and Rozee being defensively tagged by Seb Ross, they needed an injection of experience to start winning the ball at the coal face and that’s exactly what he provided with a vintage performance of 30 disposals, 6 tackles and a goal.
The question on everyone’s lips is does he continue this inside-outside midfield time or was this more of a game-awareness scenario where something needed to change? The other notable change to the midfield mix this year is Wines and Drew have been pushed out to make room for their youthful mix of Rozee, JHF and Butters. Does this make Boak a good option though? At $462k there are probably not many better options now but you’d be hoping he’d get a DPP of some sort or a role change into that permanent midfield spot given that Wines seems to be off the pace and Drew is the extra midfielder they usually use for defensive attention. The good news is, is that he’s still trusted by Ken Hinkley to go in the midfield to get the job done.
Fwd: Ivan Soldo (SC $298k Ruc/Fwd)
Yes, you might be thinking, are you crazy but hear me out. Toby Nankervis is still 4-6 weeks away and Richmond has rushed to bring back Soldo in ASAP. So even though he scored a solid 85 points, he did it under managed minutes. He took up the majority of the ruck contests against the Suns last week with 43% in comparison to Ryan and Miller who took the other 20%. In his next 4 games, he plays 2 of the teams that conceded huge points to ruckman in the Eagles and Power, so at a price point of $297k right now he could be a great stepping stone to a premium forward or ruck of your choice once Nankervis is back.
Rookie Report
Once again we need to review the best rookies to bring in, there are a few obvious ones that you should bring in but in the same boat, there are a few traps who are as likely to miss the next game.
Brynn Teakle (SC $199k Def)
Not the number one rookie to bring in, but given that Scott Lycett copped a corkie on the weekend in the SANFL and Charlie Dixon is still getting over a knee injury. The ruckload will have to be shared between him and Finlayson. So far his scoring has been respectable with an 85 against the Eagles and a 60 up against Marshall. But why don’t I believe he is a must-trade, well he’s a ruck only and given the few games he played last year it has made his starting price jump to 199k, which makes it a very costly buy-in. While it does look like he will keep his spot over Lycett in the short term, there’s no reason to suggest that a swap won’t be on the cards once he has a bad game and he’s got to play against the Dees in 3 weeks time which won’t be nice. If you’ve got spare trades and spare cash and have no problems sure, feel free to jump on a potential cash gen but there are probably other better options elsewhere
Alex Cincotta (SC $103k Def/Mid)
The only box he needs to tick this week is to be named in the starting 22. Carlton decided to rush back all their star halfback flankers with Saad and Docherty making their way back into the team. The only worry for Cincotta would be does Cowan return from being managed or does Cincotta get the first crack at the running half-back role. Interestingly enough Docherty was actually pushed down forward more this week to make room for all the defenders they brought in. At $102k, having the lowest BE if he’s got a green dot next to him when the teams are announced it’s a no-brainer to pick him. But with everyone now fit, there is a worry that there is a lot of competition for his role.
Sam Simpson (SC $167k Mid/Fwd)
Simpson has had a wretched run with injuries in his AFL career which has limited him to 17 games, but he can be an important cog for the Geelong team playing as the high half-forward role linking midfield to attack. So far he’s making the most of it averaging 12 disposals and 2 goals a game playing in an in-form Geelong forward line. Geelong should regain Tuohy and Guthrie this week but lose Bowes, so Simpsons role should be safe in the short term you’d think – which has opened up with Tyson Stengle’s injury – but Geelong’s depth is crazy good and they could be tempted to even throw in first-round pick Jhye Clark who’s playing into form in the VFL soon.
Ryan Angwin (SC $124k Mid/Fwd)
I was actually impressed by his first game last week as he managed to rack up 20 disposals in a precise and composed manner along the win. Unfortunately this week he was much quieter only getting the 10 disposals on the outside in a close affair against the Swans. What does this mean? Well, I’d say he’d be lucky to hold his spot given that Josh Fahey keeps tearing it up in the VFL. Coach Adam Kingsley did mention that Fahey was stuck behind the likes of Ash and Whitfield so it would be up to the coaching staff to see if they’ll shuffle the magnets around to fit him in. This probably doesn’t bode too well for Angwin who’s playing on one of the wings with the other wing taken up by Callaghan. I’d be tempted to pass on this one
The rest
Mitchell Knevitt (SC $141k Mid) played his 2nd game this year after being the sub in Round 1, not sure if he holds his spot given the ins that Geelong should have as mentioned above. Ollie Lord (SC $124k Fwd) is an interesting one as he’s playing as a third tall forward in the Port forward line but with Marshall being fit and ready to go it seems that the obvious choice would be to move him out. His scoring hasn’t been tremendous even though he did look lively in his debut against the Eagles (it is the Eagles remember). Aaron Francis (SC $190k Def) was shifted down back after playing up forward last week, again was nothing to get excited about and with Robbie Fox ready this week it is likely a straight swap there. Will Kelly (SC $124k Def) played as the sub for the last 2 games so his BE is still looking high for a player of his price, pass on him as he’ll probably get chucked into the 2’s so he gets a run at it.
