FOR THE first time since Brodie Grundy in 2020, a ruck will start the season as the highest priced player in AFL Fantasy Classic.

Grundy posted a career-high average of 122.1 in 2019 and his subsequent starting price for the following year reflected the then-Magpie's output.

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AFL Fantasy Classic is the salary cap game where coaches are given a budget to pick their squad. They are allocated $15,800,000 to select their squad of 30 players. The monetary figure matches the real salary cap that list managers and number crunchers at the 18 clubs must work with.

Western Bulldogs big man Tim English (RUC, $1,071,000) averaged 118.7 from his 23 games last season to top the price table with teammate Marcus Bontempelli (MID, $1056,000) slightly cheaper based on his 2023 return of a 117 average.

In a year where the two big rucks were dominant, Rowan Marshall (RUC, $1,045,000) was next on the list as eight players start the new season priced at over $1 million.

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How it works

Players are priced according to their 2023 output. The highest averaging players from last season will cost the most while players who under-performed or missed games through injury will be much cheaper.

Most players will be priced based on their average score from the previous season. Jack Viney (MID, $903,000) averaged 100 which helps us understand the 'magic number'.

The 'magic number' is the figure a player's average is multiplied by to get their price. For the 2024 season, this number is approximately 9030 as we can backwards engineer from Viney's price divided by his average. The 'magic number' is up on last year's but the rise is in line with the slight salary cap increase.

Players have received a discount on their price if they played fewer than 10 games last season, with a discount of three per cent per game they played under 10. If they missed a whole season, they have received a 30 per cent discount on their price, which is applied to the higher average score of the past two seasons. Players missing two full seasons are discounted by 35 per cent on last available average, three seasons out attracts a 40 per cent discount, and so on.

Essendon's Elijah Tsatas (MID, $476,000) played four games in his debut season. He received an 18 per cent discount on his 64.3 average, pricing him at the equivalent of an average of 52.7.

Discounts will be applied to the highest average of the last two seasons in order to not severely under-price a player. Jarryd Lyons (MID, $752,000) played seven games last season for an average of 50.6 (thanks in part to being a substitute in multiple games). His nine per cent discount is applied to a 91.5 average from 2022.

Top 25 priced players in AFL Fantasy Classic 2024

Top-priced players

A total of 27 players averaged more than 100 points last season with all but six listed as MIDs in Fantasy. Bulk points are scored by those in the engine room, including rucks, and half-backs who like to have the ball in their hands.

Nick Daicos (DEF/MID, $982,000) is the top priced defender after averaging 108.8 in his sophomore season, followed by James Sicily (DEF, $943,000), Jack Sinclair (DEF, $922,000), Luke Ryan (DEF, $897,000) and Nic Newman (DEF, $885,000) who all produced career-high Fantasy returns in 2023.

When positions were announced by Champion Data, the forwards available took a significant hit. Jack Macrae (MID/FWD, $829,000) will set you back the most cash with Dustin Martin (FWD, $812,000) the only other forward who averaged more than 90 last season.

Toby Nankervis (RUC, $923,000) joins English and Marshall as 100-plus averaging rucks.

Midfielders, of course, dominate the top-priced players. Of those with MID-only status, 38 averaged more than 90 in 2023. Included in the top six is former Fantasy defender Jordan Dawson (MID, $1,024,000) plus last year's top forwards Tim Taranto (MID, $1,015,000) and Errol Gulden (MID, $1,015,000).

Value picks

Fantasy coaches like to hunt value. The first place to look are those Fantasy guns who are cheaper due to discounts.

Missing every game last season Braydon Preuss (RUC, $541,000) received a 30 per cent discount on his 2022 average of 85.6. He is priced at the equivalent of someone averaging 59.9.

Zac Williams (DEF, $442,000) will have plenty of interest as he's priced at 49, well below his career high return of 92.7 when he was at the Giants in 2019. It is also more than 20 points under what he's managed in his time at Carlton.

Most value selections in 2024 will come from players who had down seasons due to form, role, substitutions, and injury.

Rory Laird (MID, $986,000) was the top Fantasy player in 2022 and dropped his average by more than 11 points, while Jack Steele (MID, $884,000) and Touk Miller (MID, $868,000) were at the top of the table in 2021 with 120-plus averages, but dropped sub-100 returns last year. Can they bounce back?

Similarly, Sam Walsh (MID, $854,000) will be hoping to put his injury affected season behind him and bridge the 15-point gap on his best year to show he's a value selection.

Digging deeper – and we will be looking at more of these names throughout the pre-season – we see players such as Bailey Smith (MID/FWD, $752,000) and Ollie Wines (MID, $701,000) priced well below their output in the last few seasons.

Now that Max Gawn (RUC, $831,000) and Brodie Grundy (RUC, $677,000) have gone their separate ways, the old 'set-and-forget' combo may return but at a discounted price.

Rookies and basement-priced players

Draftees have been priced according to where they were selected in November's AFL Draft.

No.1 pick Harley Reid (MID/FWD, $300,000) has the full rookie premium added to the basement price of $200,000.

In a change up from previous seasons, the second pick in the draft, Colby McKercher (MID, $297,000), is $3,000 cheaper than the No.1 pick with every subsequent selection another $3,000 cheaper until we get to Carlton's Billy Wilson (DEF/MID, $301,000) who was pick No.34. All draftees from pick 35 and rookie draftees (who have not played at AFL level) are priced at $200,000.

Previously listed players who are yet to debut are also basement priced.