Final say: Round 6 tactics, trades, skippers

Things are grim, friends.

There’s nothing worse than spending an entire weekend watching footy, knowing there are going to be monstrous SuperCoach team scores out there, certain that your team is not going to be one of them.

High ownership guys like Lachie Neale (176), Tim English (139), Tom Stewart (135), Brodie Grundy (128) and Touk Miller (127) all went nuts, and not owning any of them was an absolute killer for my poor, sweet SuperCoach side.

Instead, I was putting up with coach-killing performances from Mason Redman (72), Tom Green (97, suspension) and Jye Menzie (19).

Sign up to SC Playbook in 2023! Gain access to stacks of additional premium articles every week during the season, our major subscriber prize, our Whatsapp community featuring Qnas with our team of contributors, and plenty of other bonus features. SUBSCRIBE HERE!

Embed from Getty Images

It feels at the moment like there’s a hard ceiling on your team if you don’t own English, Clayton Oliver or Jordan Dawson, and if you’ve only got 1 of the above (like me) you’re essentially starting each week 50-100 points behind the pack.

The worst part? At $670k, $698k and $655k respectively, the cash to get up to those guys is reaching prohibitive levels.

Do you dare triple downgrade this week just to be able to do one upgrade next week?

Or do you just resign yourself to building your team for the next two months (at least) without the three best players in the game?

Tricky decisions.

In any other round, my 2,232 would’ve been enough to at least hold ground. In Round 5 2023 it was only enough for 43,000th for the week and a 2,000 spot ranking drop down to 19,000th for the season.

Much to think about!

Embed from Getty Images

The Round 4 Positives

Crows Guns

The only saving grace of not owning Oliver/English is that Dawson entered my side prior to his Thursday night demolition of the Blues. As we discussed on this week’s podcast, his transformation into a top-line midfielder – to the point where he was visibly giving Patrick Cripps a bath – is remarkable.

Rory Laird has two 130+ scores since his Round 1 disaster – he’s back. Are the Crows… good? If they are, it’s going to be on the back of these two guys. It’s a joy to own them. 

Embed from Getty Images

Non-English Ruck Duo

Not having English is a disaster, don’t get me wrong, but it’s nice to see Sean Darcy and Rowan Marshall do their best to approximate him. 

Darcy has a three-round average of 131, while Marshall’s 99 in the last three weeks would’ve been much higher had he not been subbed off at 3QT against the Suns. With Jarrod Witts still under an injury cloud, and Max Gawn’s impending return set to curtail Brodie Grundy once again, the Marshall/Darcy combo is looking promising. English is still a must-have, but if those two can at least tread water with them until after the byes, it might not be a season killer.

Embed from Getty Images

Nick Daicos

Kid is a freak. It really is that simple.

I personally have never seen a second-year player have this sort of impact, both from a real footy and SuperCoach perspective. He appears to be untaggable, and while much is made (online at least) of his supposed aversion to contested ball, if you’re offering me one of the best disposers in the league getting the ball 42 times, I couldn’t care less where those possessions are coming from.

I look forward to seeing the young fella dismantle my Bombers in person on Tuesday at the ‘G.

Embed from Getty Images

The Round 4 Negatives

Rookie Stagnation

Our rooks are hitting the wall. 

Suddenly, Ginbey, McKenna, Wilmot, Cowan, Davey, Chandler, Pedlar, Mackenzie, Baker, Menzie etc. are all reaching the point where their breakevens are approaching their averages.

Ideally, this process would usually occur over a few weeks. Instead, we’ve ended up with all our rooks presenting as trade options as once. Not ideal!

Embed from Getty Images

Tom Green

Sigh. Another week, another difficult decision with a suspended premo. This time it’s the GWS young gun (who’s been reasonably underwhelming to start the season) who leaves owners scratching their heads whether to hold or trade.

For what it’s worth, I’m (tentatively) holding but it may depend how Matty Johnson performs with the Emergency cape on Friday night.

Can we just go one round without a painful suspension!?

Are you about to tie the knot and have concerns about the cost of the wedding, and the honeymoon to follow? Patty and George from Mortgage Choice SCW can get you the best loan rate possible, with no hidden fees, and you’ll have the money within 24 hours. It’s a super easy process, only needing a message and a phone call. Save $129 by mentioning SC Playbook for a FREE CONSULT!

Sideways Trading

Sideways trading premos is my Achilles heel. It’s like the last slice left in a pizza box – I know I shouldn’t eat it, I know it’ll make me feel sick, but my god does it always look appealing. 

Last week I finally pulled the plug on Jordan Ridley after a mediocre start to the season, skimping out on Tom Stewart/James Sicily and instead taking his Dons backline brother Mason Redman. 

If anyone was wondering why Ridley outscored Redman on Saturday afternoon you can thank me!

When will I learn?

Embed from Getty Images

Trades

Cam Mackenzie -> Matthew Johnson

Jye Menzie -> Matty Roberts

Oskar Baker -> Stephen Coniglio

What can I say – it’s panic stations over at Explosive Duryea. 

Will Day and Tom Green languishing on the pine with the dreaded stop sign next to their names means I’m fielding the likes of Darcy Wilmot / Mackenzie / Menzie / Luke Pedlar pre-trades. That simply can’t happen.

Unfortunately we’re not working with a heap of cash at the moment ($21k pre-trades). That necessitates a double downgrade and Mackenzie and Menzie make the most sense given their 14 and 19 respectively on the weekend thoroughly stymies their cash gen.

I don’t feel great about either Roberts or Johnson. Their job security is negligible (4 sub vests between them so far this year) and they’re trying to crack established midfields. That being said, they both showed glimpses of competence on the weekend. Is +$150k from both of them a reasonable expectation from here? No. Can they get to +$250k combined? I think they can, and that’s enough given the circumstances.

Embed from Getty Images

It’s been a bizarre year for Cogs so far, so much so that Jack Ziebell is well and truly in the frame as a slightly cheaper alternative. Two factors have swung the pendulum in Cogs’ favour:

1. Green out = bulk mid minutes
2. Hall in = less cheap touches for JZ

That’s about all it comes down to *shrug emoji*.

Cash is at a premium and with a breakeven of 108, this may be as cheap as I see Cogs all season.

Embed from Getty Images

Eddie’s Captains

Put the VC on Bont tonight against the Dockers and lock away the key. Freo don’t have any run-with mids and gave up three tons to the Suns’ three main midfielders last week (Anderson, Rowell, Miller).

Tim English is of course an option up against Sean Darcy. It really doesn’t seem to matter who the blonde superstar goes up against at the moment, he’s torching everybody. A low score of 134 so far this year says it all. Does it mean anything that he only had 86 against the Dockers last time they played? I don’t think so – this new-and-improved English is good enough to take anyone to the cleaners.

Lachie Neale was back to his piggish best in a demolition of North in Mt Barker, and could have easily had a truly enormous score had he decided to kick a little more. He has a great record against the Giants, with a 164 the second-last time they faced off. Cogs also worth a look here – the Lions are his third-highest averaging opponent (103.4)and he has a high score of 158 against them.

The two Crows boys demand mentions in here. Dawson comes off back-to-back 150+ scores, while Rory Laird had 178 against the Hawks back in 2021. There is some word that Conor Nash could go to Dawson (as he did Josh Kelly last week), which is a slight concern, but frankly Dawson seems to be operating at the sort of level where it might not matter.

Last – but definitely not least – Touk Miller comes up against the Kangaroos, who he seems to have a habit of destroying. He has a high score of 167 against them and an average of 134 in his last three against one of the more hapless midfields in the AFL.

Embed from Getty Images

Vice Captains

1. Tim English
2. Lachie Neale
3. Marcus Bontempelli

Captains

1. Touk Miller
2. Jordan Dawson
3. Rory Laird

We’ve linked up with Betr for the 2023 footy season! Each week of the AFL season we’ll be delivering our SC Playbook unique market, with the integration of AFL Fantasy (not to be confused with AFL Supercoach, slightly different point system). This week, we’re hoping to go back-to-back with an Anzac Day special at $7.10! FOLLOW HERE

Betr Play of the Week

Ginnivan 2+ Goals, Parish 110+ AFL Fantasy Points, either team win by less than 14 @$7.10