What a horrible week for trying to pick a captain it was last week! I’ve included some usual suspects and some left field options for if you are looking for an advantage in a head to head match up this week.
ROUND 20 VICE CAPTAINS
Josh Dunkley
Dunkley was a little underwhelming on the weekend but before that he has been seriously consistent. Dunks has a phenomenal history against Gold Coast and he boasts his second highest career average of 119.2 over 9 games. Over his last 5 games against the Suns he has an average of 142.6 SuperCoach points. Delving back into some previous games for Dunks at People First Stadium he has posted some decent scores of 151 and 133, in both games he had high tackle counts. He will get the VC for me this week.
Tristian Xerri
This guy is putting in some kind of a season! He has the 4th most tackles in the league, 7th for clearances, 2nd for most hit-outs and 10th for contested possessions. With Gawn going down he has to be in All Australian contention. Geelong are the second easiest team to score against for opposition rucks. In recent weeks, English was the 3rd ranked player scoring 139, Cameron was the number 1 ranked player with 131 and Meek was the number 1 ranked player for Hawthorn. He will be my captain this week.
Jordan Ridley
it was a hard decision between my two boys this week but I have Ridley just ahead of Martin. Saints are the 2nd easiest team for opposition defenders to score points against this season. So far this season some notable defenders have scored Ryan 122, Clark 151, Martin 136, Salem 121 and Dale 175 against the Saints. Ridley did’t play them earlier in the season but this could be his game!
ROUND 20 CAPTAINS
Caleb Serong
Has had a little late season SuperCoach scoring slump, Before his massive 140 on the weekend he had only 2 games where he reached 100+ out of the last 7 games. On Sunday he was back to his best with 36 disposals, 15 contested at 78%, 5 tackles and a goal. He takes on the Eagles in the Derby who are the 2nd easiest match up for opposing midfielders. Over the last few weeks Sinclair scored 140 and Rivers 143 SuperCoach points. He seems like a tempting option this week for owners.
Nick Daicos
Out of all the teams in the AFL Richmond is the team that Nick has faced the least. He has only played Richmond twice for scores of 80 and 109. Richmond have been absolutely crushed by injuries this season and as a result are the easiest team for opposition midfielder’s to score against. The Pies have their season on the line and I’d expect a massive game from Nick this week.
Marcus Bontempelli
A few weeks ago I wouldn’t have thought much about this game but Western Bulldogs are coming home with a wet sail. Sydney are actually the toughest for opposition for midfielders to score against but The Bont has a really strong record against them. He has his 3rd best career average against Sydney 116.9 over 13 appearances, including his most recent games scoring 131 and 132 and going back a few year he scored 166 and 158 SuperCoach points. I think it’s unfair to call Sydney vulnerable but they have lost 3 of their last 5, got a few injuries and Dogs now have a few players that need to be clamped like Dale on half back and Treloar having a AA season. Does this allow Bont to run free?
ROUND 20 POD VICE CAPTAIN
Jack Sinclair
I was tossing up between Cripps and Sinclair for this one. I thought Jack deserved his first mention in the article for the season. He doesn’t have an amazing record against Essendon as a matter of fact he has his worst career average against them BUT hear me out… He absolutely loves covering the ground at Marvel this season. Since round 8 his scores at Marvel have been 134, 110, 147, 143, 110 and 140. that’s an average of 130.6 over his last 6 appearances. over the last month midfielders have been able to post some decent numbers including Yeo 139, Bowes 127, Pendles 132 and Langdon 120. I just have a feeling he goes bananas!
CASEY’S CAPTAIN CONFIDENCE RATING:
Vice Captains:
- Tristian Xerri
- Josh Dunkley
- Jordan Ridley
Captains:
- Nick Daicos
- Caleb Serong
- Marcus Bontempelli
