Captaincy Candidates – Round 20

Captaincy Candidates – Round 20

This week really doesn’t need to be overcomplicated. We have some outstanding VC options early in the round, followed by one of the best captain matchups you could possibly ask for on Saturday night.

For me, the plan is pretty simple: VC Max Gawn into C Marcus Bontempelli. It’s hard to argue with that combination.

However, this is also the last round before SuperCoach league finals, so not everyone will want to play it safe. If you’re comfortably inside the eight or protecting a strong overall ranking, there’s probably no reason to get too clever. But if you’re sitting ninth, need a win and percentage, or know your opponent will be following the obvious Gawn-to-Bont path, this might be the week to find a POD VC and throw the Hail Mary.

The good news is we have plenty of alternatives. Dawson, Daicos, Bailey Smith and Luke Jackson all have genuine VC upside, while Sheezel, Wanganeen-Milera, Neale and Ashcroft give us some excellent later captain options. The choices are there; it’s really a matter of deciding how much risk you need to take.

Vice-Captain Rankings

1. Max Gawn – Friday Night vs Geelong – The No.1 ranked player in SuperCoach against the best ruck matchup in football. Marshall scored 169 against Geelong last week, Briggs 148 the week before and Jackson 176 four weeks ago. This matchup has MAXIMUM written all over it.

2. Jordan Dawson – Thursday Night vs Collingwood – Escapes the James Jordon tag and returns home to Adelaide Oval. He should have far more freedom this week and could produce the monster score we’ve been waiting for.

3. Nick Daicos – Thursday Night vs Adelaide – Collingwood desperately need a win, Daicos is chasing a Brownlow and looks ready for another big one. He hasn’t produced a monster for a while, but we know the ceiling is there.

4. Bailey Smith – Friday Night vs Melbourne – With Max Holmes set to miss the remainder of the season, Smith will carry even more responsibility through Geelong’s midfield. Melbourne may try to slow him down, but very few have managed it this season.

5. Luke Jackson – Friday Night vs West Coast – It’s the Western Derby, Fremantle’s home game and the form side of the competition gets its struggling Perth rival. Jackson has enormous upside, although Fremantle have plenty of players capable of sharing the points around.

Captain Rankings

1. Marcus Bontempelli – Saturday Night vs Richmond – Richmond are the easiest midfield matchup in the competition and Bont’s last five against them are 177, 135, 122, 153 and 136. Sometimes SuperCoach really doesn’t need to be complicated.

2. Harry Sheezel – Sunday vs St Kilda – The hottest player in SuperCoach, averaging 147 over his past five. The Saints will surely try to stop him, but plenty have tried lately without much success.

3. Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera – Sunday vs North Melbourne – Escapes Connor Mullin after last week’s hard tag, although Finn O’Sullivan may get the job this time. His role remains ridiculously SuperCoach-friendly and another monster is always possible.

4. Lachie Neale – Sunday vs Port Adelaide – Brisbane are starting to flex their muscles and Port are without Zac Butters for the remainder of the season. Neale remains one of the safest fallback captains in SuperCoach.

5. Will Ashcroft – Sunday vs Port Adelaide – If Neale is the safe Brisbane option, Ashcroft is the ceiling option. If the Lions put Port to the sword, he could be the one who goes enormous.

Thursday Night – Dawson or Daicos?

Round 20 starts with Adelaide hosting Collingwood, and immediately we have two excellent VC options in Jordan Dawson and Nick Daicos.

Dawson had James Jordon following him everywhere last week and never really had the freedom we’re used to seeing. This week should be completely different. He’s back at Adelaide Oval, there isn’t an obvious hard tag waiting for him and Adelaide need to keep winning. I can see him getting back to doing what he likes: finding plenty of the football, winning it at stoppages and putting together one of those big all-round SuperCoach performances.

Then there’s Nick Daicos. Collingwood desperately need the win, Daicos is right in the Brownlow conversation and he’s starting to look like he’s building towards another monster. He’s been scoring well without giving us one of those ridiculous scores for a while, and we know he loves the big occasion.

Both are terrific VC options, particularly if you’re looking for a point of difference. If your league season is on the line and you know your opponent will almost certainly VC Gawn, Dawson or Daicos could be your Hail Mary. If either goes 160, you’re suddenly ahead of the pack before Friday night even arrives.

Friday Night – Max Gawn against Geelong’s Rucks

We have been targeting rucks against Geelong for weeks, and the results have been ridiculous. Rowan Marshall joined the party last week with 169, Kieren Briggs scored 148 the week before, and Luke Jackson smashed out 176 against them only three weeks ago.

Now Geelong get Max Gawn.

The No.1 ranked player in SuperCoach for 2026.

This is one of those matchups where we probably don’t need a spreadsheet. Gawn is capable of scoring 150 against anyone, so putting him against the most generous ruck matchup in the competition is almost unfair. Of course, nothing in SuperCoach is guaranteed, but if you’re looking for the percentage VC play this week, I can’t see how you go past him.

Bailey Smith is the other interesting option in this game. With Max Holmes expected to miss the remainder of the season, Smith will have even more responsibility through Geelong’s midfield. Melbourne may try to send someone with him, but very few teams have successfully stopped him finding the football this season. He’s a genuine POD VC if you need to make up ground, but when he’s playing in the same game as Gawn with this matchup, I don’t think we need to get too clever.


Friday Night – The Western Derby

At the same time, we have another very tempting matchup in Perth with Fremantle hosting West Coast in the Western Derby.

This isn’t just the form side of the competition playing one of the weaker teams. It’s Fremantle’s home Derby and a chance for the Dockers to make a statement to their cross-town rivals about exactly who the best team in Western Australia is right now. I don’t expect much mercy.

There are several Dockers who could cash in. Caleb Serong could rack up possessions all night, while Fremantle’s midfield has enough quality to make life very uncomfortable for West Coast.

Luke Jackson is still the player I’d look at from a captaincy perspective because he can score in so many different ways, ruck contests, clearances, around the ground and forward.

The only reason Jackson sits at No.5 in my VC rankings is that Fremantle have so many players capable of getting involved, whereas Gawn’s matchup feels much more direct. Jackson still has a huge ceiling, though, and if you’re chasing a POD or think Fremantle are about to hand West Coast an old-fashioned Derby hiding, he’s a perfectly reasonable alternative.

Friday night gives us two outstanding options. For me, Gawn is the percentage play and Jackson is the more adventurous one.

Saturday – Not Much We Need to Chase

Hawthorn play Essendon and there are certainly some SuperCoach-relevant players involved, but I don’t see any reason to force a captaincy selection from this game when we have so many better options elsewhere.

Will Day continues to build nicely and, as a Hawthorn supporter, I’m loving what I’m seeing. But from a VC or captaincy perspective, we can probably keep moving.

Saturday Night – Don’t Overthink the Bont

Western Bulldogs versus Richmond.

Marcus Bontempelli against the easiest midfield matchup in SuperCoach.

His last five against Richmond are 177, 135, 122, 153 and 136.

That’s about as convincing a captaincy history as you’re going to find.

Bont hasn’t looked completely himself at different stages this season and we’ve wondered whether he’s been carrying a niggle, but this is exactly the matchup we’ve been waiting for. The Bulldogs need to win, they’re at Marvel Stadium and Richmond continue to allow opposition midfielders to score heavily.

If Gawn gives me a huge VC score on Friday, I’ll happily bank it. If he doesn’t, I’m putting the C straight onto Bont and moving on with my weekend.


Battle of the Bridge – Plenty of Names, Not Enough Trust

GWS and Sydney also meet on Saturday night in the Battle of the Bridge, and normally we’d have several players firmly in the captaincy conversation. The problem is recent form.

Brodie Grundy remains the third-highest averaging player in SuperCoach this season, but his recent scoring has fallen away badly, with a five-round average of only 99.8.

GWS are a good matchup for opposition rucks, so I wouldn’t be shocked if we suddenly saw classic Grundy again, but with Gawn getting Geelong and Bont getting Richmond, I don’t see any reason to take the risk.

Isaac Heeney is in a similar position. His last five scores of 87, 80, 108, 125 and 104 are well below what he was producing earlier in the season. We know the ceiling is there, but right now the form isn’t.

GWS have plenty of capable scorers in Callaghan, Oliver and Ash, but they’ve shared the points around all season and it’s difficult to predict which one will go big. One of them may well produce 140-plus, but this week we don’t need to guess.

Sunday – If You Still Need a Captain

If you’ve somehow reached Sunday without a captain locked away, there are still some excellent fallback options.

Brisbane host Port Adelaide, who will be without Zac Butters for the remainder of the season, and the reigning premiers are starting to flex their muscles at exactly the right time of year. This has the potential to become a comfortable Brisbane win, which puts Lachie Neale and Will Ashcroft firmly into the conversation.

Neale is the safer choice. He keeps turning up, winning plenty of contested football and giving owners reliable scores. Ashcroft is the higher-ceiling option and probably the better play if you’re chasing rank or need something different in a league matchup. If Brisbane dominate, he’s capable of turning a good afternoon into a monster SuperCoach score.


The Last Chance – Sheezel or Nas?

The final game of the round gives us North Melbourne against St Kilda and two of the hottest SuperCoach players in the competition.

Harry Sheezel is in ridiculous form, averaging 147 over his past five games. The Saints will surely try to put some work into him, but stopping Sheezel is easier said than done because North can move him around. He can score through the midfield, find the ball around stoppages and impact the game wherever he’s used.

Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera is the other outstanding option. He had the full Connor Mullin experience last week and this week may get some attention from Finn O’Sullivan, but his role is so SuperCoach-friendly that he’s almost impossible to completely shut down. He can accumulate through the midfield, across half-back, from kick-ins and through uncontested marks.

If you’re still searching for a captain in the final game, either is a terrific option. Sheezel gets the slight nod from me purely because his current form is impossible to ignore, but Nas isn’t far behind.

Final Thoughts

This is the last round before SuperCoach league finals, so your captaincy strategy should reflect your situation.

If you’re safely inside the eight or protecting a strong overall ranking, I don’t think we need to make this difficult. VC Max Gawn against Geelong, and if he doesn’t give us a score worth banking, C Marcus Bontempelli against Richmond. That’s my plan, and it’s hard to argue with the matchups.

If your season is on the line, though, there are genuine alternatives. Dawson or Daicos on Thursday could give you an early advantage, Bailey Smith offers something different on Friday, while Luke Jackson in a Western Derby that Fremantle will be desperate to dominate has genuine monster-score potential. Later in the round, Sheezel, Nas, Neale and Ashcroft are all capable of winning you a league matchup.

thanks fellas