Squad Breakdown: Analysing the Round 2 teams

• WEEKLY WRAP: Highs, lows and shocks of Round 1
• DRAFT BREAKDOWN: Assessing the best waiver-wire picks

After months of waiting, we finally arrived at the first round of the NRL season.

It threw up plenty of upsets, lower than anticipated scoring, leading to some disappointing SuperCoach results across the board.

Unlike last year though, the spread of scores from being bad to good wasn’t overly large, so don’t be too concerned.

The fact we didn’t have players pumping out 150+ scores, or even 120+, meant nobody was impacted too significantly. 

In fact, just three players reached three figures!

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The Cooma Stallions got off to a stinker with a measly 815 points, while not ideal, I’m not too concerned at all.

Focusing on the long-term game and paying up a bit extra on the bench tends to equate to a slow start, at least that’s what I’m telling myself to ease the pain.

My major piece of advice this week is for SuperCoaches not to rage trade. We’re just one week in, and there will be scoring anomalies both good and bad.

The only reason I’d rage trade is if a player were to have been given significantly lesser minutes or having played a role different to anticipated, perhaps Ryan Matterson for example?

Be patient, you picked your squad for a reason and should have faith in your selections.

Ideally I’ll try and save a trade this week, then look to use an early trade boost with three trades next week once we’ve had a better look at everyone.

Let’s crack on with the Round 2 SuperCoach squad breakdown, team lists courtesy of ESPN.

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STORM v RABBITOHS

Thursday, 8.05pm, AAMI Park, Melbourne

Storm: 1. Ryan Papenhuyzen 2. Dean Ieremia 3. Reimis Smith 4. Justin Olam 5. Xavier Coates 6. Cameron Munster 7. Jahrome Hughes 8. Jesse Bromwich 9. Harry Grant 10. Nelson Asofa-Solomona 11. Felise Kaufusi 12. Kenneath Bromwich 13. Josh King.

Interchange: 14. Tyran Wishart 15. Alec MacDonald 16. Trent Loiero 17. Tepai Moeroa. 

Reserves: 18. Chris Lewis 19. Nick Meaney 20. Bronson Garlick 21. Jayden Nikorima 22. Jonah Pezet 23. Jack Howarth 24. William Warbrick

Analysis: Bad news for Brandon Smith owners, music to the ears of patient Harry Grant owners.

While there was a decent chance Grant played 80 minutes on return anyway, Smith’s injury should lock in the big game time at very least while he’s out.

Pending further news on Smith’s injury, a trade of him to Grant looks a wise play. In saying that, with Tyran Wishart named on the bench it might not be max time for Grant, but he’s a gun regardless.

Ryan Papenhuyzen allayed any fears of a slow return, and while he’s currently not goal-kicking, he should still score well. Hopefully he wins back the duties soon.

With George Jennings out injured, Dean Ieremia has beaten Nick Meaney out to a wing spot, meaning Papenhuyzen will kick goals, big news for owner!

Xavier Coates managed an underwhelming 45 points with a try, his base of 16 was horrific.

However, that’s what we’ll get with him this season. He needs tries to post decent scores, and I’m backing they’ll come, particularly with Cam Munster and Grant back on deck.

That being said, the fact he ran just nine times was concerning.

Munster owners who took the round 1 hit get their first look at a SuperCoach star owned by just 7% of teams! Exciting times for those owners.

With the injuries to Christian Welch and Brandon Smith, Josh King becomes far more relevant.

Jesse Bromwich returns, but he plays less minutes than Welch anyway.

King’s 64 minutes in round 1 were definitely inflated due to the injuries, but it should lock in decent minutes anyway.

He scored 41 points entirely in base. He looks a genuine cheapie, however just to be safe I’d wait a week if possible.

Jahrome Hughes delivered as a POD at 13% ownership for those who jumped on, knocking out 103 points with 18 points in tacklebusts! It’ll be interesting to see if he can maintain it with Munster and Grant back on deck, based on last year, probably.

Cheapie Alec Macdonald scored 34 points in 55 minutes, I suspect his minutes will have been greatly inflated, so I’ll definitely be having another look at his time this week.

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Rabbitohs: 1. Latrell Mitchell 2. Alex Johnston 3. Jaxson Paulo 4. Campbell Graham 5. Taane Milne 6. Cody Walker 7. Lachlan Ilias 8. Junior Tatola 9. Damien Cook 10. Mark Nicholls 11. Keaon Koloamatangi 12. Jai Arrow 13. Cameron Murray (c). 

Interchange: 14. Jacob Host 15. Siliva Havili 16. Thomas Burgess 17. Michael Chee Kam. 

Reserves: 18. Davvy Moale 19. Josh Mansour 20. Liam Knight 21. Richie Kennar 22. Peter Mamouzelos 23. Isaiah Tass 24. Dean Hawkins

Analysis: Latrell Mitchell returns at just 2% ownership and could prove to be one of the great super PODs for anyone who jumped on, particularly after Teddy’s early flop.

However, with games against the Storm, Roosters and Panthers to come I won’t be going anywhere near the attacking contingent at South Sydney.

The likes of he, Cody Walker and Alex Johnston could be dirt cheap in a month’s time when their draw opens up.

Jai Arrow scored 62 points in an outstanding 72 minutes, with 53 in base, three tacklebusts and an offload, you beauty! He looks a decent buy as a dual FRF-2RF.

Cam Murray played a decent enough 58 minutes following a disrupted pre-season, he was limited in attack, but made 44 tackles.

Another I’ll look to pounce on in a month provided he’s getting 65+ minutes.

Avoid playing Lachlan Ilias in 17s for the next three weeks.

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DRAGONS v PANTHERS

Friday, 6pm, Netstrata Jubilee Stadium, Sydney

Dragons: 1. Tyrell Sloan 2. Cody Ramsey 3. Moses Suli 4. Zac Lomax 5. Mikaele Ravalawa 6. Talatau Amone 7. Ben Hunt 8. Francis Molo 19. Andrew McCullough 10. Blake Lawrie 11. Jack Bird 12. Jaydn Su’A 13. Jack de Belin. 

Interchange: 14. Moses Mbye 15. Josh Kerr 16. Jack Gosiewski 17. George Burgess. 

Reserves: 18. Jackson Ford 20. Tariq Sims 21. Mathew Feagai 22. Daniel Alvaro 23. Poasa Faamausili 24. Tautau Moga 25. Jaiyden Hunt

Analysis: Tyrell Sloan delivered for POD hunters, scoring 78 points with two try-assists. Incredibly he had just seven runs, meaning his base is a huge concern, but it’s also a one game snippet in 2022.

I’ll be watching him very closely again this week, and if he looks the goods against the defending premiers he’ll loom as a buy next week as dual CTW-FLB at an affordable $447k.

Talatau Amone looked okay, but couldn’t trouble the SuperCoach scorers, he’s a sit outside 17s this week if possible.

Unfortunately with injuries to popular cheapies Vailea, Russell and Smith (HIA), we may be forced to play which is less than ideal.

Mikaele Ravalawa top scored in the opening week, but I’m not interested despite recording a very solid 57 point average in 2021.

Jack Bird played the full 80 minutes in the back-row, scoring 69 points with 20 tackles, 12 runs and three tacklebreaks.

Available as dual CTW-2RF he’s a genuine option, however I still prefer Euan Aitken due to the bigger base.

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Panthers: 1. Dylan Edwards 2. Charlie Staines 3. Izack Tago 4. Stephen Crichton 5. Brian To’o 6. Jarome Luai 7. Sean O’Sullivan 8. Spencer Leniu 9. Apisai Koroisau 10. James Fisher-Harris 11. Viliame Kikau 12. Liam Martin 13. Isaah Yeo. 

Interchange: 14. Mitch Kenny 15. Scott Sorensen 16. Matthew Eisenhuth 17. Jaeman Salmon. 

Reserves: 18. J’maine Hopgood 19. Chris Smith 20. Robert Jennings 21. Taylan May 22. Lindsay Smith 23. Soni Luke 24. Kurt Falls

Analysis: It didn’t take long for Penrith to remind us why they’re the defending premiers, and seriously SuperCoach relevant once again.

Liam Martin was one of my better picks to start the year, bagging an awe inspiring junk time try to boost his score to 80 points. Oh how I’ve missed those sweet junk time points…

More importantly though, he played the full 80 which is what owners wanted to see. While he doesn’t have the base of the elite back-rowers, he has attacking upside and is cheap at $420k.

Izack Tago was everything we hoped for, scoring the first try of the season to deliver those who played him 71 points.

He had 22 tackles, nine runs and five tackle breaks, lovely!

Stephen Crichton has attracted some early interest this week, and while he looked good, he did average just 49 in a premiership winning side last season.

Further, he had 16 points in goals, a duty he’ll lose to Nathan Cleary in a few weeks.

That being said, he’s a gun talent and is still young, so he may be worth a bit of a flyer.

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Viliame Kikau was excellent in dishing out 87 points, while he’s a solid option, I’m not entirely sold.

He only played 57 minutes, and his score was boosted by a try-assist, linebreak assist and four offload.

However, like Crichton, he’s a gun, so there’s no reason why he can’t maintain attacking stats week in, week out, and his 15 runs was very encouraging.

Not for me, but worth a look and there’s plenty of upside.

Not helped by a very questionable no try decision, Brian To’o somehow failed to cross the line for 48 points.

Another down week and we could get him very cheap, alternatively he could score a hat-trick against the Dragons…

Api Koroisau scored 91 points in 67 minutes to be one of the most traded in players at the time of writing.

I’m not calling trap as such, but I do think there’s better options in the position.

He scored a try, set up another, had a linebreak and line-assist, and had just six runs.

I feel he’ll take a back seat once Cleary returns, we’ve seen it in the past, so I’d prefer Grant and Randall. 

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ROOSTERS v SEA EAGLES

Friday, 8.05pm, SCG, Sydney

Roosters: 1. James Tedesco 2. Daniel Tupou 3. Billy Smith 4. Joseph Manu 5. Paul Momirovski 6. Sam Walker 7. Luke Keary 8. Jared Waerea-Hargreaves 9. Connor Watson 10. Lindsay Collins 11. Angus Crichton 12. Sitili Tupouniua 13. Victor Radley. 

Interchange: 14. Drew Hutchison 15. Fletcher Baker 16. Nat Butcher 17. Siosiua Taukeiaho. 

Reserves: 18. Kevin Naiqama 19. Daniel Suluka-Fifita 20. Lachlan Lam 21. Naufahu Whyte 22. Adam Keighran 23. Renouf Atoni 24. Ben Marschke

Analysis: The Roosters produced one of the more disappointing round 1 performances I’ve seen in a while.

Those who invested heavily in the premiership contenders were burnt by a lacklustre performance.

I’ve already seen talk of people wanting to sell Walker, Keary etc. relax!

It’s one week, I strongly believe it’ll be an anomaly for them this season, despite the fact they have two tough weeks ahead against the Sea Eagles and Rabbitohs.

Trent Robinson will give them a kick up the back side and they’ll come good. Further, as I rave on about constantly, Keary and Walker played their first game in the NRL together, it’ll take a bit of time to really hit the ground running.

Ditto Tupou, Billy Smith (HIA, 54 minutes), Manu, Crichton etc… Points will come.

News of Sam Verrills missing the opening period of the season brought Connor Watson into relevance, he started at hooker playing a very encouraging 65 minutes.

However, with Smith and Radley going down early there’s every chance he played inflated minutes.

Available as dual 2RF-HOK he’s definitely an option with plenty of upside, especially making 46 tackles.

I do still want to see his regular minutes in this stacked team though before jumping on, because if he’s sub 60 I don’t think he’s worth it.

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Sea Eagles: 1. Tom Trbojevic 2. Jason Saab 3. Brad Parker 4. Morgan Harper 5. Reuben Garrick 6. Kieran Foran 7. Daly Cherry-Evans 8. Toafofoa Sipley 9. Lachlan Croker 10. Martin Taupau 11. Haumole Olakau’atu 12. Ethan Bullemor 13. Jake Trbojevic. 

Interchange: 14. Dylan Walker 15. Karl Lawton 16. Sean Keppie 17. Taniela Paseka. 

Reserves: 18. Morgan Boyle 19. Andrew Davey 20. Tolutau Koula 21. Jorge Taufua 22. Alec Tuitavake 23. Christian Tuipulotu 24. James Roumanos

Analysis: The big watch heading into round 1, could Tommy Turbo do it again?

The answer was no, and while he had his knockers, he was simply shut out by a far more dominant opposition scoring just 62 points.

Yep, 62 points in a dominated side against the reigning premiers, that’s how good Tommy is.

Highly relieving for non-owners, he should plummet in cash enormously if the Roosters can contain him somewhat.

While it’s a small sample size, my fear is that if we see fewer blow out score lines this season leading to far reduced SuperCoach scores, nearly every attacker will be significantly overpriced this season, namely Tommy Turbo.

Therefore owning too many of them early could obliterate your cap.

Anyway, it’s a hunch, let’s see how round 2 plays out before doing anything drastic.

Ethan Bullemor scored a try to deliver owners 62 points in an 80 minute performance.

While it looks great on the surface, that score will drop out of his rolling average after one week, and he only had eight runs (Manly getting belted didn’t help).

Owners can sit pretty for a while, but I wouldn’t be rushing to buy as minutes will be hard to come by when Josh Schuster returns and he moves to the bench.

Further, Karl Lawton went down with a HIA very early which may have inflated his minutes.

Lawton did come on initially for Lachy Croker, so perhaps he was going the distance anyway? Hard to know.

Let’s hope we add Reuben Garrick to the list of bottomed out players in a month.

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TITANS v WARRIORS

Saturday, 3pm, Cbus Super Stadium , Gold Coast

Titans: 1. Jayden Campbell 2. Phillip Sami 3. Brian Kelly 4. Patrick Herbert 5. Greg Marzhew 6. Alexander Brimson 7. Toby Sexton 8. Moeaki Fotuaika 9. Erin Clark 10. Isaac Liu 11. David Fifita 12. Beau Fermor 13. Tino Fa’asuamaleaui. 

Interchange: 14. Will Smith 15. Sam Lisone 16. Jaimin Jolliffe 17. Kevin Proctor. 

Reserves: 18. Jarrod Wallace 19. Tanah Boyd 20. Herman Ese’ese 21. Esan Marsters 22. Sam McIntyre 23. Paul Turner 24. Sosefo Fifita

Analysis: While he didn’t set the world alight, David Fifita played the entire 80 which was encouraging for those who forked out for him.

He looked pretty solid for an underwhelming 60 points, making just four tacklebreaks in the game.

It’s only round 1 and the blowout will do him the world of good, sit tight.

Beau Fermor went the full 80 much to the delight of owners, however he scored just 36 points.

As expected, I think he’s a little reliant on attacking stats to score well that he had plenty of last season.

Nonetheless, playing maximum time was pleasing to see.

Erin Clark scored 60 points, but it included a try and linebreak in just 57 minutes, so I’m calling trap even at $300k.

Tino Fa’asuamaleaui played 64 minutes and got through a big chunk of work. Available as dual FRF-2RF he remains relevant at $493k and will be one to monitor.

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Warriors: 1. Reece Walsh 2. Adam Pompey 3. Jesse Arthars 4. Rocco Berry 5. Marcelo Montoya 6. Chanel Harris-Tavita 7. Ash Taylor 8. Addin Fonua-Blake (c) 9. Wayde Egan 10. Matt Lodge 11. Euan Aitken 12. Eliesa Katoa 13. Josh Curran. 

Interchange: 14. Jazz Tevaga 15. Bunty Afoa 16. Aaron Pene 17. Bayley Sironen. 

Reserves: 18. Kodi Nikorima, 20. Ben Murdoch-Masila 21. Jack Murchie, 22. Pride Petterson-Robati 23 Taniela Otukolo 24 Junior Ratuva 25 Edward Kosi

Analysis: It yet another blow to our CTW cheapie stocks, Viliame Vailea will miss up to a month with injury.

He played through the game with an issue, providing an explanation for his score of just 16 points. I’ll be holding.

Josh Curran delivered on his SuperCoach hype with 81 points including a nice try-assist.

He played 65 minutes which is okay, but any less would be a concern.

Addin Fonua-Blake got through an extremely encouraging 62 minutes for 51 points which would have pleased owners, hopefully the game time is maintained with Matt Lodge returning.

He ran just 11 times and only had the one offload, so hopefully there’s an increase on this following the opening round blow out.

Completing a successful afternoon for the highly sought after back-row trio, Euan Aitken and Eliesa Katoa impressed with 58 and 76 points respectively.

Aitken played 80, while Katoa played 73 minutes.

Both are tempting, Aitken got through plenty of work, while Katoa at just $354k made a case to suggest he can return to his form of 2020.

I think I’ll wait a week and watch, but an early move could pay off.

SJ delivered a solid 66 points, and then got hurt, honestly, what a blow to both NRL fans and SuperCoachers. He’s set to miss up to a month.

If owners somehow managed to dodge too many other injuries you can try and hold, but I suspect with all the CTW damage it may force the trade.

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SHARKS v EELS

Saturday, 5.30pm, Pointsbet Stadium, Sydney

Sharks: 1. William Kennedy 2. Sione Katoa 3. Jesse Ramien 4. Ronaldo Mulitalo 5. Matt Ikuvalu 6. Matt Moylan 7. Nicho Hynes 8. Toby Rudolf 9. Blayke Brailey 10. Braden Hamlin-Uele 11. Briton Nikora 12. Teig Wilton 13. Dale Finucane. 

Interchange: 14. Aiden Tolman 15. Siosifa Talakai 16. Royce Hunt 17. Andrew Fifita. 

Reserves: 18. Luke Metcalf 19. Cameron McInnes 20. Connor Tracey 21. Jenson Taumoepeau 22. Lachlan Miller 23. Jayden Berrell 24. Franklin Pele

Analysis: Nicho Hynes got off to a decent start to the season with 72 points against the Raiders.

I thought the side looked clunky in attack as suspected with a new-look spine, however there were enough promising signs there to suggest he can maintain decent scoring.

Briton Nikora managed just 36 points despite playing 80 minutes, confirming for the time being suspicions that he’s too reliant on attacking stats to be relevant.

However, it’s early days and owners need not panic just yet, give him another chance.

Andrew Fifita played 25 minutes for 26 points with two offloads, probably not quite as many as we were after, but enough to suggest there could be some cash made if he can up it a touch.

I certainly wouldn’t rush to buy, Max and Josh King look better prospects at this stage.

Cam McIness has been named on the extended bench.

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Eels: 1. Clinton Gutherson 2. Waqa Blake 3. Viliami Penisini 4. Tom Opacic 5. Bailey Simonsson 6. Dylan Brown 7. Mitchell Moses 8. Reagan Campbell-Gillard 9. Reed Mahoney 10. Junior Paulo 11. Shaun Lane 12. Isaiah Papali’i 13. Oregon Kaufusi. 

Interchange: 14. Makahesi Makatoa 15. Bryce Cartwright 16. Ray Stone 17. Nathan Brown. 

Reserves: 18. Jakob Arthur 19. Mitch Rein 20. Ky Rodwell 21. Hayze Perham 22. Wiremu Greig 23. Solomone Naiduki 24. Samuel Loizou

Analysis: Poor old Sean Russell starred with a first half hat-trick before being injured before halftime.

With an 87 in his rolling average I’ll do my best to hold, but let’s wait on the extent of the injury to determine what to do with him. If he’s five or six weeks plus I think we’ll be forced to reluctantly sell.

Will Penisini scored 47 with 33 in base which is excellent output, he looks a fairly safe play in 17s with numbers like that and attacking upside in a good team.

Mitch Moses was excellent with 89 points, with a soft draw over the next month he looks a decent buy, I just wish he was dual HFB-5/8 to make things a little easier.

Dylan Brown looked good early and was on track to score well, before his move to centre following Russell’s injury killed his output to finish with 40, so don’t be too deterred by that.

King Gutho failed to capitalise on the attacking action for just 40 points also.

Ryan Matterson provided my biggest headache of the weekend, playing just 54 minutes for 42 points. Now injured for two to three weeks, he’ll have to go.

Reed Mahoney struggled with just 37 points, but of delight to owners would be that he played the full 80.

Give him another week, and if he struggles he can be moved onto Grant/Randall.

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COWBOYS v RAIDERS

Saturday, 7.35pm, QCB Stadium, Townsville

Cowboys: 1. Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow 2. Kyle Feldt 3. Valentine Holmes 4. Peta Hiku 5. Murray Taulagi 6. Tom Dearden 7. Chad Townsend 8. Jordan McLean 9. Reece Robson 10. Coen Hess 11. Tom Gilbert 12. Jeremiah Nanai 13. Jason Taumalolo. 

Interchange: 14. Jake Granville 15. Heilum Luki 16. Mitchell Dunn 17. Griffin Neame. 

Reserves: 18. Reuben Cotter 19. Scott Drinkwater 20. Connelly Lemuelu 21. Brendan Elliot 22. Ben Condon 23. Emry Pere 24. Daejarn Asi

Analysis: People were very quick to hammer Jason Taumalolo for his 53 points in 51 minutes, but the reality is that it was his first blow out of the season following a hamstring niggle in hot conditions.

Half the field went down with cramp at one stage or another. Hopefully Dean Young’s words ring true and that 65+ minutes of game time eventuate, but I wasn’t shocked to see him eased back.

He still went at over 1 point per minute almost entirely in base, I’ll take it.

Jeremiah Nanai looked dangerous, playing the full 80 for 56 points, made up of 24 tackles, four tacklebreaks, 13 runs and a linebreak, good going that.

I’m tempted to go Matterson down to him to free up money, but may hold off until next week.

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Raiders: 1. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad 2. Nick Cotric 3. Matthew Timoko 4. Semi Valemei 5. James Schiller 6. Jack Wighton 7. Matt Frawley 8. Josh Papali’i 9. Tom Starling 10. Joseph Tapine 11. Hudson Young 12. Corey Harawira-Naera 13. Elliott Whitehead. 

Interchange: 14. Adrian Trevilyan 15. Emre Guler 16. Adam Elliott 17. Corey Horsburgh. 

Reserves: 18. Xavier Savage 19. Sebastian Kris 20. Sam Williams 21. Ryan Sutton 22. Peter Hola 23. Trey Mooney 24. Harry Rushton

Analysis: Tom Starling will raise interest as a starter, but with Josh Hodgson receiving good news on his knee he’s only expected to miss a few weeks.

This means Starling likely returns to a 55-60 minute role which isn’t enough, the hope would be that he kills it and holds an 80 minute spot with Hodgo spending more time at lock, but unlikely.

James Schiller managed just 26 points for cheapie hunters, but with Seb Kris back in the fold and Jordan Rapana returning next week I think he’s a trap.

Matt Timoko caught the eye with 64 points, including seven tacklebreaks, two offloads and 15 runs.

He’s a beast and is worth another look at $378k, but I wouldn’t be jumping on just yet. 

Further, the Raiders face the Sea Eagles and Storm after this clash which is brutal, but he has serious SuperCoach potential.

Brad Schneider tested positive to COVID and will miss the clash in another blow to our weakening SuperCoach bench stocks this round.

He kicked four goals to tick his score to 45, I’m concerned Rapana takes the kicking next week, but he did hit them nicely against the Sharks.

While I know there’s few great 5/8 options, I don’t see why Jack Wighton is one of the most traded in this week. He looked outstanding in actual NRL, but has never really been SC relevant.

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KNIGHTS v TIGERS

Sunday, 4.05pm, McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle

Knights: 1. Kalyn Ponga (c) 2. Dominic Young 3. Dane Gagai 4. Bradman Best 5. Enari Tuala 6. Jake Clifford 7. Adam Clune 8. David Klemmer 9. Chris Randall 10. Jacob Saifiti 11. Tyson Frizell 12. Lachlan Fitzgibbon 13. Kurt Mann. 

Interchange: 14. Phoenix Crossland 15. Mitchell Barnett 16. Leo Thompson 17. Jirah Momoisea. 

Reserves: 18. Mathew Croker 19. Pasami Saulo 20. Tex Hoy 21. Simi Sasagi 22. Brayden Musgrove 23. Dylan Lucas 24. Daniel Saifiti

Analysis: The Knights shut down any pre-season sceptics with a round 1 boilover victory against the Roosters.

It forced SuperCoaches to take them a little more seriously heading forward.

They face the Tigers this week, before taking on the Panthers, Sharks and Sea Eagles. The fairly tough draw is enough to keep me away for at least a week or two.

Dane Gagai was brilliant with a tonne, indicating he can take his strong output from Redfern up to the Hunter.

Dom Young scored well with 81 points, at a very awkward $339k though I’m not interested.

He averaged just 43 points in six 80 minute games last season.

Daniel Saifiti has been named on the extended bench.

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However, if he delivers again this week and boasts a negative breakeven he’ll be hard to ignore as a cash grab.

Kurt Mann played 62 minutes which is a borderline pass, but owners would have wanted a few more.

He looks to be in the Connor Watson role of last year, which may not quite be enough to up his SuperCoach output to an amount worth investing in.

In a passing role, he scored just 40 points with just five runs! Once again, don’t panic (I sound like a broken record), just cool the jets and give him another week because the minutes weren’t too bad.

Surprisingly owned by 24% of teams, Jirah Momoisea played just five minutes for 5 points.

If he does similar this week he’ll likely lose money down the track at just $205k. Give him a week and trade if his role doesn’t change.

Chris Randall played an encouraging 63 minutes for 43 points which came entirely in base with 45 tackles.

Hopefully he builds into an 80 minute role, jags the odd attacking stat, and makes us some nice money.

Based on the lower score lines from round 1, he’s a fairly sturdy play in 17s at this stage. 

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Wests Tigers: 1. Daine Laurie 2. David Nofoaluma 3. James Roberts 4. Oliver Gildart 5. Ken Maumalo 6. Jackson Hastings 7. Luke Brooks 8. James Tamou 9. Jake Simpkin 10. Stefano Utoikamanu 11. Kelma Tuilagi 12. Luciano Leilua 13. Joe Ofahengaue. 

Interchange: 14. Tyrone Peachey 15. Alex Twal 16. Zane Musgrove 17. Alex Seyfarth. 

Reserves: 18. Thomas Mikaele 19. Luke Garner 20. Starford To’a 21. Tuki Simpkins 22. Jock Madden 23. Austin Dias 24. Rua Ngatikaura

Analysis: Kelma Tuilagi was strong with 46 points in 71 minutes. That’s reasonable for any cheapie priced at $254k, but against the Storm it’s even more appealing.

He looks one of the safer plays in 17s going forward. 

Stefano Utoikamanu underwhelmed with just 44 points, more concerning was the 50 minutes he played.

Neither are bad by any means, particularly at $457k, but owners would have like to have seen a little more.

While I don’t own, I’m happy to put it down to a round 1 blow out against SuperCoach killers Melbourne, so don’t be too disheartened.

Jackson Hastings owners will want to see him return some faith after dishing out just 35 points, while Luke Brooks took the goal-kicking duties.

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BULLDOGS v BRONCOS

Sunday, 6.15pm, Accor Stadium, Sydney

Bulldogs: 1. Matt Dufty 2. Jayden Okunbor 3. Braidon Burns 4. Brent Naden 5. Josh Addo-Carr 6. Matt Burton 7. Jake Averillo 8. Luke Thompson 9. Jeremy Marshall-King 10. Paul Vaughan 11. Jack Hetherington 12. Tevita Pangai Junior 13. Josh Jackson. (c) 

Interchange: 14. Bailey Biondi-Odo 15. Corey Waddell 16. Max King 17. Ava Seumanufagai. 

Reserves: 19. Chris Patolo 20. Brandon Wakeham 21. Joe Stimson 22. Kyle Flanagan 23. Reece Hoffman 24. Joshua Cook 25. Aaron Schoupp

Analysis: The Bulldogs were extremely gutsy having loss numerous players to HIAs throughout the game.

There’s not a load of SuperCoach relevance just yet, however Max King delivered at $188k with 55 points in just 38 minutes.

Incredibly it was pretty well all in base with 34 tackles and 11 runs, that’s immense!

Minutes may well have been inflated due to the HIA carnage, and TPJ not around, but even so you can see him making some decent coin at the price.

I’d be hesitant to play him in 17s until we get a clearer idea of game time, but we may not have much of an option at this stage.

Luke Thompson impressed with 64 points in 63 minutes, with plenty of that time likely inflated, excellent nonetheless.

TPJ returns for the Dogs, exciting, but let’s get a few looks before considering as a buy.

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Broncos: 1. Tesi Niu 2. Corey Oates 3. Kotoni Staggs 4. Herbie Farnworth 5. Selwyn Cobbo 6. Albert Kelly 7. Adam Reynolds 8. Keenan Palasia 9. Jake Turpin 10. Payne Haas 11. Kurt Capewell 12. Jordan Riki 13. Patrick Carrigan. 

Interchange: 4. Ryan James 15. Kobe Hetherington 16. TC Robati 17. Billy Walters. 

Reserves: 18. Brenko Lee 19. Rhys Kennedy 20. Corey Jensen 21. Jordan Pereira 22. Cory Paix 23. Jamayne Isaako 24. Tyson Gamble

Analysis: Brisbane produced another stunning round 1 upset over the Rabbitohs, and with a soft draw coming up against the Bulldogs, Cowboys and Warriors they’ll warrant some extra attention.

Adam Reynolds coming back into the fold can only help things one would imagine.

Payne Haas was outstanding knocking out 91 points in 71 minutes, making my decision to anti-POD him a tough one at this stage.

While the signs are great, it is misleading to a degree, with Kevin Walter saying he played inflated minutes and will normally play around 60-65 minutes.

Even so, when you’re knocking out 38 tackles, 24 runs and three offloads he’s hard to ignore.

Kotoni Staggs was given very little clean ball on a tough night for scoring, hopefully Adam Reynolds fixes this which I’m anticipating. The soft draw should present him with plenty of opportunity. 

Selwyn Cobbo could be a star, but will he get the SuperCoach scoring opportunities on the wing at the Broncos?

Possibly, but at an awkward $320k I don’t think it’s a gamble I’m willing to take at this stage.