We’re at the stage where bye-planning is a pre-requisite for your upgrade targets. With lots of different value options both readily available and on the horizon, I’d encourage everyone to let the byes and your structure to influence your selections. Apologies in advance for a shorter write-up this week, I’m still recovering from not owning the great Tristan Xerri.
Defenders
Jack Sinclair (STK, $529.3k, (-$62.9k), 111.6 AVG, 106 BE) not too long ago many were opting to pay 600k+ for this man, and heading into a very favourable fixture run (Eagles, GC, Dees), Sincs has to be high on the radar for non-owners. Firstly I’ll mention that I haven’t watched much of the Saints this season, but I did notice how the Sainters practically funnel nearly all of their transitional play through Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera, and in the first quarter before NWM copped a knock and then some subsequent attention, Sinclair looked to be on for a poor score, which only got elevated into that 120+ range due to a timely goal + some friendly scaling. Even saying that, Sinclair at this price can’t be ignored. By no means is he a must-have, and I wouldn’t mind anyone opting to fade Sinclair for NWM.
Jordan Clark (FRE, $519.9k, (-$43.8k), 105.6 AVG, 103 BE) besides the last two weeks, Clarky has largely been a consistent scorer in-which owners knew exactly what was coming their way. For that very reason I traded him in a fortnight ago and have instead been left with a roller coaster experience. The kick-ins have largely been Luke Ryan’s, but a lot of transitional link up play is where Clark gets involved. The 24 year old has shown to be durable, has a relatively friendly bye (if your team isn’t flooded with Freo and STK players) and at a great price point for those that want a relatively safe pick (which is hard to type after the last two weeks). I will say, out of all three defenders I’ll be covering this week I do have Clark last in terms of “priority”, but there definitely is some merit to this selection.
Max Holmes (GEE, $498.7k, (-$35.2k), 104.4 AVG, 67 BE) unlike Jordan Clark, this pick has thus far been much more of a roller coaster for owners, and Holmes has largely been the first player tagged, but the remaining fixtures are largely why I traded Holmes into my own side last week. 7/14 of the remaining games will be played at GMHBA, and with the likes of Essendon x2, Tigers x2, Roos, Eagles, Gold Coast, Brisbane all still on the horizon, Holmes is a very strong selection this week before he shoots past the 500k mark. The last bye is also a bonus for those not stocked up with Brizzy players, and the role and manner in which the Cats play through both Smith and Holmes will allow for more spike scores, and hopefully a higher floor with the aforementioned fixture run incoming. I will also mention the biggest issue with the Holmes pick, which could also be a factor this week via a Bergman tag. Is Bailey Smith in good enough form to command the attention himself? I’ll also quickly touch on Bailey Dale, I was hot on him in PS and even considered him early in the season, but with a bye in two weeks, I would try to wait to pounce post-bye if possible. James Sicily who I mentioned last week had a strong outing and would be my preferred choice in that price range.
Backing it up…
Lachie Ash, 571k, 140 BE
Matt Roberts, 490k, 135 BE
Midfielders
Tom Green (GWS, $544.3k, (-$29.9k), 109 AVG, 96 BE) largely under the radar it feels like, and if I was shopping for a mid this week, I’d have Tom Green as my #1 target. Not quite a tag threat like a lot of the other number one mids. Scoring wise, the floor has been solid this season, and 4/8 of Green’s games have resulted in a score 115+. The immediate fixture (Freo, Carlton, Richmond, Port, Lions, GC), the price, along with having the last bye make this as good a time as any to jump on.
Josh Dunkley (BRL, $539k, (-$63.3k), 114.2 AVG, 71 BE) back to back strong scores from Dunks, the price is very friendly still and much like Tom Green & the Giants, the Lions have the last bye as well. There’s not much to add to the Dunkley pick, I don’t have him in the top 8 come seasons end, but I’ll be shocked if he wasn’t sniffing around that mark and didn’t make for a strong M7-M8. The Lions go into a clash against the Dees this week, and with both Oliver (the most expensive tagger in history) most likely going straight to Neale, I’d be expecting a strong score from both Hugh and Josh this week. The immediate red flag is this being the first time since round 1 where the former Bulldog went 120+, which bleads into my biggest gripe, too many mouths to feed in the Brizzy team. If I was personally to pounce on a Lion, it would be Hugh McCluggage who I fully believe will be the number one SC mid for the Lions come seasons end and is the definition of a strong POD.
Limbo land…
Nick Daicos, 605k, 193 BE
Zak Butters, 692k, 183 BE
Marcus Bontempelli, 678k, 159 BE
George Hewett, 604k, 154 BE
Andy Brayshaw, 659k, 149 BE
Matt Rowell, 476k, 149 BE
Jai Newcombe, 544k, 142 BE
Rucks
Rowan Marshall (STK, $501.7k, (-$101.8k), 94 AVG, 82 BE) another that we’ve discussed too many times in recent weeks, but with TDK potentially out this week, RoMo does make for an easy downgrade. Ideally you’d cough up the big dollars for Gawn or Xerri, but the practicality of that for a lot of SC’ers isn’t realistic. The immediate fixture this week is great against Matt Flynn, but the next two weeks against the Suns and Dees before the bye aren’t much to get excited about and I wouldn’t be surprised if RoMo sub-tonned in both games As a long term play and to cover a donut while banking some cash, the RoMo selection definitely remains viable. I’ll also mention I had pencilled in discussing Toby Nankervis this week, and then he went and scored 84 points against Matt Flynn, nuff said.
Timberrr…
Lloyd Meek, 546k, 207 BE
Tom De Koning, 558k, 146 BE
Toby Nankervis, 503k, 141 BE
Forwards
Nic Martin (ESS, $516.9k, (-$49.1k), 100.3 AVG, 63 BE) Bombers fans would know better than me, but it seems the last few weeks Martin has found himself largely playing off HB which saw him a very popular selection in 2024. Going purely off heat maps, it appears in round 5 the swap was made, and since Nic has averaged 109.8 points, with two ceiling scores of 145, however also coming with a stinker 53 points against the Pies on Anzac Day. For those in need of a forward and want to spice up their team with a relatively strong POD, there’s a lot to like with the Nic Martin selection.
Forward thinking…
Luke Jackson, $546k, 148 BE
RIP LUKE RYAN