Round 22 Captaincy Candidates – Matchups Matter
Round 21 was a tough one.
Personally, I banked my VC score from my new recruit, Will Ashcroft, and in hindsight I think it was the right call. There was uncertainty everywhere. Bont finished with 61, Bailey Smith 79, Luke Jackson 79 and Grundy only 102 in the early games. Banking Ashcroft’s 121 suddenly looked like a very sensible decision.
Looking back at the weekend, the big scores all had something in common.
Taranto (159), Rankine (158), Newcombe (154), Gawn (148), Hewett (147), Thilthorpe (147) and Gulden (144).
What did they all have in common? They all had favourable matchups… and they all played in winning teams.
It’s just something to think about when selecting your VC and captain each week. Rather than only looking at averages, ask yourself one simple question… Who do I think is going to win this game?
More often than not, the biggest SuperCoach scores come from the team controlling the football.
Vice-Captain Options (Ranked)
1. Harry Sheezel (Thursday vs Bulldogs) – Elite form, averaging 125 for the season. I think North are every chance of causing an upset, making Sheezel my favourite VC play.
2. Isaac Heeney / Errol Gulden (Saturday vs Port Adelaide) – I love both options. Gulden is back to his brilliant best, while Heeney has the higher ceiling. This feels like the type of matchup Heeney loves, where he can drift forward, kick a bag of goals and produce one of those trademark 160+ scores.
3. Max Gawn (Saturday vs Fremantle) – The No.1 averaging player in SuperCoach. A tough matchup, but Gawn is matchup-proof and always capable of a monster score.
4. Will Ashcroft (Friday vs Hawthorn) – Brisbane should respond strongly at home after last week’s loss, and Ashcroft’s recent form has been outstanding.
5. Marcus Bontempelli (Thursday vs North Melbourne) – Burnt us with a 61 last week, but we’ve all seen what his ceiling looks like. Champions usually respond.
Captain Options (Ranked)
1. Nick Daicos (Sunday vs West Coast) – My safest captain of the round. He was tagged to 125 last week, looks fit, and Collingwood desperately need the four points.
2. Bailey Smith (Saturday vs Essendon) – Geelong at GMHBA against Essendon is one of the standout matchups of the round. A huge bounce-back opportunity.
3. Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera (Sunday vs Carlton) – A perfect last-game captain if you’re chasing. Carlton don’t appear to have anyone capable of going with him, giving NAS another huge ceiling.
4. Isaac Rankine (Saturday vs Richmond) – Playing career-best football through the midfield and half-back. Richmond is a matchup to target, and Rankine has been cashing in.
5. Lachie Whitfield (Sunday vs Gold Coast) – One of the safest premiums in SuperCoach. Gold Coast away from home is a matchup I really like.
Bulldogs vs North Melbourne (Thursday Night)
The round kicks off with two obvious premium options – Marcus Bontempelli and Harry Sheezel.
Bont burnt plenty of coaches with a disappointing 61 last week, but let’s not forget it was only a few weeks ago he was pumping out back-to-back 150s. Champions bounce back, and Marvel Stadium has been kind to him over the years.
On the other side is Harry Sheezel. What a season.
He’s now the second-highest averaging player in SuperCoach, sitting on 125 points per game, just one point behind Max Gawn.
If you think the Bulldogs respond, Bont is a fantastic VC. If, like me, you think North are every chance of causing an upset, then Sheezel becomes the better play.
I’m giving Sheezel the nod.
Brisbane vs Hawthorn (Friday Night)
This is one of the hardest games of the round to predict.
Brisbane were badly beaten by Carlton last week, and you’d expect a response back at the Gabba. If that happens, Lachie Neale and Will Ashcroft immediately come into calculations.
Ashcroft has been one of the form players of the competition and just continues to rack them up, while Neale always seems to find another gear at home.
If you think Brisbane bounce back, they’re both excellent VC options.
Melbourne vs Fremantle (Saturday Afternoon)
Another blockbuster.
This game will tell us plenty about Fremantle.
Five of their last seven games have been in Perth, and while they’ve been outstanding, this is a different challenge against Melbourne at the MCG. There only game at the MCG this year was in round 10 against Essendon, lets see how they go on the big stage.
Luke Jackson’s purple patch, however, appears to have cooled. His last five scores read 94, 92, 94, 94 and 77. The shine has gone, and Mason Cox appears to be impacting his scoring more than Sean Darcy ever did.
For Fremantle, Caleb Serong is quietly the only Docker averaging over 100 across his last five games (111). If you think the Dockers continue rolling, he’s probably the safest midfield option.
Max Gawn – what a player. He scored 141 against Fremantle earlier this season in Perth and remains the No.1 averaging player in SuperCoach for a reason.
Personally, I think Melbourne make this a genuine contest, and wouldn’t be surprised that Fremantle take it a bit easy now they have all but locked in the top spot.
That makes Max Gawn a terrific VC option.
Sydney vs Port Adelaide (Saturday Afternoon)
Port’s season is all but over, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see James Jordon spend plenty of time with Jason Horne-Francis.
That opens things up for Sydney. This might be a big statement game from the swans.
Errol Gulden has hit full fitness at exactly the right time, posting scores of 147 and 144 in his last two matches. He looks back to his damaging best and is once again a genuine VC option.
I also really like Isaac Heeney this week. I’ve said all season that Heeney tends to produce his biggest SuperCoach scores against the weaker teams, and right now Port probably fit into that category. He’s capable of drifting forward, kicking three or four goals and turning a 120 into a 160 very quickly. For me, Heeney has the higher ceiling, while Gulden probably offers the slightly safer floor.
Honestly, I love both options this week, which is why I’ve ranked them together. If you own either, I think you’ve got an excellent VC choice.
Brodie Grundy also deserves a mention. On his day he’s capable of matching anyone, but his recent form has been a little inconsistent and Jordon Sweet has quietly become one of the more restrictive ruck matchups in the competition. He’s certainly an option if you’re backing him to bounce back, but he just misses my rankings this week.
Geelong vs Essendon (Saturday Afternoon)
Do I really need to tell you who I’m tipping? Geelong at GMHBA Stadium against Essendon.
Bailey Smith should have a field day.
In fact, most Cats should score well if the game unfolds the way most of us expect.
When i first looked at the matches this week, Baz was the first to jump out. The only issue might be that he takes it easy and might even have a rest late in the game. hopefully not.
Adelaide vs Richmond (Saturday Night)
Another game where the home side should dominate.
The hard part here isn’t deciding whether to VC a Crow… It’s deciding which Crow.
Jordan Dawson has been producing solid scores week after week while leading from the front.
Isaac Rankine, meanwhile, is playing one of the best stretches of football of his career. He’s become Adelaide’s link player, often taking the first mark from kick-ins before driving the ball forward, and the midfield role is giving him enormous scoring potential.
Rankine gets my vote.
If you happen to own Riley Thilthorpe, don’t be afraid to throw a VC on him either. Richmond have struggled to contain key forwards all season. Thilthorpe owners beat me in a number of match-ups last week which i’m not happy about and could do the same to me this week.
GWS vs Gold Coast (Sunday)
Sunday usually provides the safer captain options, and Lachie Whitfield is right at the top of that list.
He looked to be moving at about 70% last week and still managed 139.
With Finn Callaghan injured, Lachie Ash has spent more time through the midfield, allowing Whitfield to return to doing what he does best across half-back. Add in a goal last week and he looked right back to his damaging best.
Gold Coast away from home are a different proposition.
Their finals hopes are gone, and I can see GWS controlling this game. There arn’t any Sun’s players i can recomend as a captain option, even though Rowell seems to be in decent form.
West Coast vs Collingwood (Sunday)
Nick Daicos is my standout captain this week.
He was tagged by Mullin last round and still managed 125, and if anything, that score probably undersold how influential he was.
He’s moving beautifully, looks fully fit and Collingwood desperately need the win.
West Coast don’t have a tagger capable of going with him, they might try, but I’d expect another huge performance.
One player worth a quick mention is Darcy Cameron. We know West Coast have been one of the better ruck matchups for SuperCoach this season, and Cameron comes into this game in excellent form. I won’t quite recommend him as a VC or captain this week given the quality of the other options available, but if you own him, this is certainly one of his better opportunities to post a big score.
If you’re looking for a safe captain to finish the weekend, Nick Daicos is hard to go past.
St Kilda vs Carlton (Sunday Night)
The final game gives us one last captain option.
Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera was on world-record pace last week before the Saints completely fell away in the last quarter against Sydney.
I’m not convinced Carlton have anyone capable of running with him for four quarters.
If the Saints can stay competitive, NAS shapes as another excellent last-game captain option.
thanks fellas