SuperCoach end of year awards: Season 2022

Well, well, well… Good afternoon, everybody!!

Welcome to the annual SuperCoach end of year Awards for season 2022!

Thank you all for gathering here today. Without further ado, let’s take a look back on the year that was and hand out some very deserving awards.

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Player of the Year

Rory Laird – This speaks for itself to be honest… Laird genuinely just threw out one of the best SuperCoach season of all time and yet I still feel like he’s unappreciated. He not only went on an unbelievable 10 game stretch of not dropping below 110, but he went on an unheard of seven game run where he didn’t drop below 125 – including four games in a row where he scored 154, 140, 144, and 145.

The best part of his season was the durability that he brought to his game this season, not missing a single match after he returned from injury in Round 3 and eventually ending the season with an average of 128.

It was something no-one expected; in fact, despite coming out and going 93, 143, 120, 123, 116, 123, and 142, he was still only owned by just 1.5% as of Round 9.

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Rookie of the Year

Nominees

Nic Martin – Started the year like a house on fire with one of the all-time great debuts! 27 touches, 10 marks, 5 goals, and most importantly 114 SuperCoach points to kick-start our seasons was a beautiful sight. The beauty of it was that not everyone had him, and certainly not everyone had the guts to start him on-field considering in just two months he went from SSP, to the VFL, to the AFL in one of the best rises to stardom I’ve ever witnessed.

His ownership doubled in Round 4, and after that he went on a ridiculous run where he scored 84, 76, 95, 106, and 88… Going onto finish the season with an average of 79. Kudos to you!

Nick Daicos – I actually don’t think we’ve ever witnessed a greater rookie season than that of Nick Daicos’. For him to not make the All-Australian team is a joke, but I’m here to chat SuperCoach, not the corruption of the AFL. Now honestly, Daicos probably wouldn’t even be on this list if it wasn’t for the second half of his season. After a 69, 65, and a 59 in Rounds 9, 10, and 11, many coaches were eagerly anticipating his bye round so they could flick him off without hesitation. However, he scored 113 and 112 in the week’s leading up to his bye, leaving may owners with an extremely tough decision to make. Keep the faith and take the risk? Play it safe and get to a premo?

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I personally decided to hold him, but for the 36.6% who traded him out in-between Round 1 and his bye, I feel incredibly sorry for you. The first-year player came out post-bye and smashed the Giants for a 93, followed by a demolition of the Suns with a hugeee 143, continuing with a 99 against the Roos, and to cap it off, he then went to Adelaide Oval and had FORTY touches and THREE goals! 40 and 3! It’s ridiculous. Actually, the contest is over, give that man the $10,000!

Winner

Nick Daicos

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Mid-pricer of the Year

Nominees

Stephen Coniglio – Started the year off at the alarmingly low price of $261.3k, subsequently resulting in the second highest ownership percentage in the comp: 75.3. He came out guns blazing, with a three-round average of 109, but dropped off in Round 4 with just a 64 against the Dockers. However, he bounced back with a bang, scoring 96, 91, and 108; however, with serious doubts regarding his role, and a change to the forward line looking imminent, he scored a 70 v Geelong and a 37 v Carlton, causing 14.3% owners to jump ship.

Again, much like the Daicos incident, this was a fatal mistake; and, unfortunately for me, I made the mistake this time.

From that point in, Cogs was injected back into the midfield at the hands of his new coach and only dropped under 100 three times for the rest of the season. He put up scores of 140 and 176, and even had a five-game stretch where he averaged 123.

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Will Brodie – When Will Brodie made the move over to the Dockers, we all knew the potential he had from his previous years at the Suns where he couldn’t quite crack the side, but still absolutely dominated in the magoos. So, when we heard that there was a chance, he could be playing league footy with a guaranteed midfield role, we jumped at the prospect without hesitation.

He duly delivered and has to be one of the best underdog stories of the year for the element of consistency that he brought to our teams.

A crazy run of form from Round 8 to Round 15 where he scored 115, 121, 144, 105, 125, 82, and 129 even earnt him a mention on the SC Bandit’s captain’s article!

Winner

Stephen Coniglio – for the pure fact that he completely turned his season around when many (myself and Niko) were convinced that he was a terrible pick. Luckily for me, I brought him back in, but I can’t say the same for Niko 🙁

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Yo-yo of the Year

Luke Ryan – No nominations required for this award. Luke Ryan takes the cake by a country mile. Congrats?? I guess?? Just for those who aren’t aware of my personal vendetta against Mr. Ryan, I started the year with him and only enjoyed the fruits of two tons, alongside a measly average of just 86 before I flicked him in Round 10 after a disappointing 65 against the Suns.

Oh, how wrong I was…

In the 13 games following that grave mistake, Ryan scored above 100 on eight occasions, including a six-game stretch to round out the year where he scored 128, 128, 110, 146, 65, and 100…

I don’t care how good he is next season, he’s right up the top of my never ever ever ever again list.

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Surprise of the Year

Harry Himmelberg – Again, no nominations are required for this award. If you told me at the start of the year that Harry Himmelberg would average 90.6 across the season, I would have laughed. If you told me in Round 9 that from Round 10 onwards, he would average 110, I would have called the police without a second thought.

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Performance of the Year

Callum Mills v Hawthorn (Round 6) – This one is extra special for me because a). It was against my Hawks, and b). I brought in Mills literally for this game. A 214 in any game is incredible and borderline unheard of, but a 214 on debut is just out of this world.

He terrorised the Hawks with no regard for human life, amassing 37 touches, 11 marks, 5 tackles, 6 free kicks, and a goal.

If he can stay fit during the offseason and pre-season, he looks like a clear and obvious pick next year.

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Fan Vote Defender of the Year

Nominees

Jack Sinclair – Had an outstanding breakout year this season, only dropping below 100 three times, while also scoring over 110 on 15 occasions.

James Sicily – After taking the year off with an ACL injury last season, Sic Dawg came in heavily under-priced and certainly delivered for all the coaches who took a punt on him. Finished the season with an average of 114, including seven 120+ scores sprinkled throughout.

Sam Docherty – It was the feel-good story of the year, returning from testicular cancer and going on to have a dominant year. He had already had an insane season, but in the last three rounds he made the move into the midfield and scored 124, 121, and 138 which is definitely something to look out for next year.

Jordan Dawson – The new Crow came into the year with a ton of hype, but uncertainty surrounding his role turned coaches off at the start of the season. Finally, in Round 8, heh made his move to half-back/wing and went on an eight-game stretch of not dropping below 100, including five 130+ scores.

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Winner

James Sicily (61.5%)

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Fan Vote Midfielder of the Year

Nominees

Rory Laird – Speaks for itself really… He’s already taken out the Player of the Season. Enough said.

Clayton Oliver – Oliver had another year to remember, but he’ll most be remembered for his seven-game run where he scored 178, 113, 134, 141, 140, 176, and 124. A broken hand in Round 17 would have definitely frustrated his owners, even more so when he returned with a 94 and 85, but he finished the year with a 152, 126, and 118 to redeem himself.

Lachie Neale – Lachie finished the year scoring the highest amount of total points in the comp, and that’s largely due to his consistency. He only dropped under 100 three times but managed to score above 160 on three occasions to make up for it. His 198 against the Bombers in Round 2 was his highest score of the year, followed by a 187 against the Swans just five weeks later.

Touk Miller – Touk came out swinging in Round 1 with a 137 followed by a 140, but just a 76, 105, 107, and 99 following that certainly made owners start to sweat. However, he managed to turn his season around and now is the front-runner for the 2022 Brownlow! From Round 16 to Round 20, Touk had an unbelievable run of scoring, with a 153, 135, 110, 157, and 153 to his name.

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Winner

Rory Laird (78.1%)

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Fan Vote Ruckman of the Year

Nominees

Max Gawn – It was a very topsy-turvy kind of year for Big Max (and rucks in general). He dropped under 100 a shocking nine times but made up for it with his incredibly high ceiling at times. His syndesmosis injury in Round 13 caused his ownership to drop from 55% to 18.6%.

Jarrod Witts – Wittsy had a sensation season, almost multiplying his ownership by five from the start of the year to the end of the year! He came out like a man possessed, but of course as soon as I brought him in, he failed to score above 90 on six occasions.

Tim English – I literally could not stop raving about starting the year with Timmy English, as he came and pumped out a 123, 99, 152, 96, and 138 in the first five weeks. Although, I got what I deserved, and Timmy pulled his hammy and was ruled out for the next six weeks. He played three games, and then again was forced out due to delayed concussion, and never really found his feet again. It was a frustrating year for Timmy owners.

Sean Darcy – He is purely just a placeholder on this list. Such a frustrating player to own lol.

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Winner

Jarrod Witts (57.1%)

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Fav Vote Forward of the Year

Nominees

Marcus Bontempelli – What a beast! The Bont had another outstanding year (robbed of All Australian?!), only dropped below 90 ONCE! If I had a Most Consistent award, he would win it by a country mile. His 181 followed by a 161 in Rounds 18 and 19 were a thing of beauty

Josh Dunkley – Dunks had an incredible first three quarters of the year, but from Round 16 to Round 18, he had a three-round average of just 70… This rightfully caused a lot of doubt in his abilities as a SuperCoach player, but he came out and silenced the doubters with an insane four-game run to finish the year, scoring 130, 155, 90, and 127.

Tom Liberatore – From Round 8 onwards, Libba became a regular guest on POD Hunter articles and rightfully so, because from that point on, he went on to average 108!

Luke Parker – Parker began the year with a huge 167 but dropped off the face of the earth in his next three games, with a three-round average of just 63. He made up for it with his next three games, scoring 123, 100, and 150, causing his ownership to triple! It was a pleasure to own him for the rest of the season, as he slowly turned into one of the most consistent players in the comp.

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Winner

Marcus Bontempelli (55.6%)

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Final Say

Well, everybody, that just about concludes the annual SC Playbook AFL Awards night! Thank you very much for tuning in and thank you even more for sticking around this whole season and supporting the website.

Congratulations to all of our winners, and to all of you whether you won your head-to-head leagues or simply just improved your rank from last year!

Here’s to a bigger and better Season 2023, cheers.