THOUSANDS of AFL Fantasy Draft leagues were completed prior to round one, but how much has changed in coaches’ thinking since March?
Players returning from injury, game style in 16-minute quarters and one week of Fantasy scores were enough to see plenty of different decisions made more than three months on since most Fantasy Drafts were held.
Roy, Calvin and Warnie assembled some seasoned Fantasy coaches for a pre-round two challenge.
Last year’s Fantasy Classic overall winner, Craig Wegener alongside back-to-back (2017/18) champion Selby Lee-Steere represented the gurus while Jake Waterman from the West Coast Eagles and Greater Western Sydney pair Jackson Hately and Sam Taylor flew the flag for the players.
The eight coaches took part in a 12-round draft to compile sides that included two defenders, three midfielders, one ruck, three forwards and four interchange players in a quick-fire Draft that will play out over the next 16 weeks.
Round 1
With an ADP (average draft pick) of one for the past two seasons, there was no surprise that Brodie Grundy went first. Max Gawn’s opponents over the first month was a big reason for Calvin to take the Demons’ skipper. Despite captains being on, only three coaches selected midfielders in the first round.
|
Pick |
Player |
Position |
Selected by |
|
1 |
Brodie Grundy |
RUC |
Craig |
|
2 |
Max Gawn |
RUC |
Calvin |
|
3 |
Tom Mitchell |
MID |
Roy |
|
4 |
Jack Macrae |
MID |
Warnie |
|
5 |
Lachie Whitfield |
MID/FWD |
Hately |
|
6 |
Sam Docherty |
DEF |
Waterman |
|
7 |
Dustin Martin |
MID/FWD |
Taylor |
|
8 |
Josh Kelly |
MID |
Selby |
Round 2
With one defender taken in the first round, four went in the second including Zac Williams. Craig quizzed the Giants boys and they assured him that the half-back will be good to go next week.
|
Pick |
Player |
Position |
Selected by |
|
9 |
Jake Lloyd |
DEF |
Selby |
|
10 |
Andrew Gaff |
MID |
Taylor |
|
11 |
Lachie Neale |
MID |
Waterman |
|
12 |
Josh Dunkley |
MID |
Hately |
|
13 |
Patrick Dangerfield |
MID |
Warnie |
|
14 |
Jack Crisp |
DEF |
Roy |
|
15 |
Rory Laird |
DEF |
Calvin |
|
16 |
Zac Williams |
DEF |
Craig |
Round 3
A forward run came in the third round with Warnie believing he has the pick of the bunch getting Bomber Devon Smith.
|
Pick |
Player |
Position |
Selected by |
|
17 |
Stephen Coniglio |
MID |
Craig |
|
18 |
Toby Greene |
FWD |
Calvin |
|
19 |
Michael Walters |
MID/FWD |
Roy |
|
20 |
Devon Smith |
MID/FWD |
Warnie |
|
21 |
Isaac Heeney |
MID/FWD |
Hately |
|
22 |
Patrick Cripps |
MID |
Waterman |
|
23 |
Clayton Oliver |
MID |
Taylor |
|
24 |
Jeremy Howe |
DEF |
Selby |
Round 4
Surprisingly, 10 defenders were off the board by the end of round four. Hately and Taylor didn’t jump on their first defender until the next round; a definite strategy for the duo going into the draft. A couple of the mid-priced Fantasy Classic forward options that put their hands up in round one – Christian Petracca and Chad Wingard - were taken much higher than their ADP suggested.
|
Pick |
Player |
Position |
Selected by |
|
25 |
Adam Treloar |
MID |
Selby |
|
26 |
Christian Petracca |
FWD |
Taylor |
|
27 |
Chad Wingard |
MID/FWD |
Waterman |
|
28 |
Tim Taranto |
MID |
Hately |
|
29 |
Bachar Houli |
DEF |
Warnie |
|
30 |
James Sicily |
DEF |
Roy |
|
31 |
Shannon Hurn |
DEF |
Calvin |
|
32 |
Dan Houston |
DEF/MID |
Craig |
Round 5
Craig and Calvin liked what Jack Martin and Bailey Smith did in round one, but no one knew what Roy was doing when he picked Darcy Parish. The Bomber has been the player that Roy is most keen to trade out of his Fantasy Classic team after bombing in his first round match against the Dockers.
|
Pick |
Player |
Position |
Selected by |
|
33 |
Jack Martin |
MID/FWD |
Craig |
|
34 |
Bailey Smith |
MID/FWD |
Calvin |
|
35 |
Darcy Parish |
MID/FWD |
Roy |
|
36 |
Brad Ebert |
FWD |
Warnie |
|
37 |
Caleb Daniel |
DEF |
Hately |
|
38 |
Tom Stewart |
DEF |
Waterman |
|
39 |
Christian Salem |
DEF |
Taylor |
|
40 |
Hugh Greenwood |
MID/FWD |
Selby |
Round 6
Waterman broke ranks when he picked up the skipper of the Eagles’ crosstown rival Nat Fyfe. Hately made the comment that Brodie Smith will bounce back and that he should get decent midfield minutes moving forward.
|
Pick |
Player |
Position |
Selected by |
|
41 |
Jordan Dawson |
DEF/FWD |
Selby |
|
42 |
Marcus Bontempelli |
MID |
Taylor |
|
43 |
Nat Fyfe |
MID |
Waterman |
|
44 |
Brodie Smith |
DEF |
Hately |
|
45 |
Nick Haynes |
DEF |
Warnie |
|
46 |
Jarrod Witts |
RUC |
Roy |
|
47 |
Zach Merrett |
MID |
Calvin |
|
48 |
Taylor Adams |
MID |
Craig |
Round 7
Midfielders likely to average more than 80 (the new 100) were still available in the seventh with consistent Scott Pendlebury the pick of them. In a shock move, Selby took Todd Goldstein as his ruck, the fourth off the board, ahead of the some of his more fancied counterparts.
|
Pick |
Player |
Position |
Selected by |
|
49 |
Connor Rozee |
FWD |
Craig |
|
50 |
Brad Crouch |
MID |
Calvin |
|
51 |
Jack Viney |
MID |
Roy |
|
52 |
Scott Pendlebury |
MID |
Warnie |
|
53 |
Mitch Duncan |
MID |
Hately |
|
54 |
Kane Lambert |
FWD |
Waterman |
|
55 |
Matt Crouch |
MID |
Taylor |
|
56 |
Todd Goldstein |
RUC |
Selby |
Round 8
Goldstein going at the end of the seventh round saw a ruck run as coaches completed their on-field players before looking at the interchange. Roy was stoked to grab Tom Rockliff at this late stage of the draft to sit next to fellow Fantasy Pig Tom Mitchell in his midfield.
|
Pick |
Player |
Position |
Selected by |
|
57 |
Jack Steele |
MID |
Selby |
|
58 |
Reilly O'Brien |
RUC |
Taylor |
|
59 |
Rowan Marshall |
RUC |
Waterman |
|
60 |
Stefan Martin |
RUC |
Hately |
|
61 |
Sam Jacobs |
RUC |
Warnie |
|
62 |
Tom Rockliff |
MID |
Roy |
|
63 |
Tim Kelly |
MID |
Calvin |
|
64 |
Elliot Yeo |
MID |
Craig |
Round 9
Hately was pumped with his selection of former team mate Dylan Shiel for his bench. The Giant-turned-Bomber was the second highest scorer in round one with 122.
|
Pick |
Player |
Position |
Selected by |
|
65 |
Steele Sidebottom |
MID |
Craig |
|
66 |
Jeremy Cameron |
FWD |
Calvin |
|
67 |
Luke Shuey |
MID |
Roy |
|
68 |
Gary Ablett |
FWD |
Warnie |
|
69 |
Dylan Shiel |
MID |
Hately |
|
70 |
Brayden Fiorini |
MID |
Waterman |
|
71 |
Lachie Weller |
DEF |
Taylor |
|
72 |
Andrew Brayshaw |
MID/FWD |
Selby |
Round 10
Waterman is hoping his team mate Dom Sheed may gain DPP while Craig’s pick of Jack Steven could prove to be a league-winning move if he is fit and firing later in the season.
|
Pick |
Player |
Position |
Selected by |
|
73 |
Hunter Clark |
DEF |
Selby |
|
74 |
Daniel Rich |
DEF |
Taylor |
|
75 |
Dom Sheed |
MID |
Waterman |
|
76 |
Jy Simpkin |
MID/FWD |
Hately |
|
77 |
Darcy Byrne-Jones |
DEF |
Warnie |
|
78 |
Darcy MacPherson |
MID/FWD |
Roy |
|
79 |
Kade Simpson |
DEF |
Calvin |
|
80 |
Jack Steven |
MID/FWD |
Craig |
Round 11
Dayne Zorko played enough forward minutes to be eligible for FWD status in round one. If he can keep that up, he’d be hard to beat if he can keep it up and be available as a dual-position players at round six.
|
Pick |
Player |
Position |
Selected by |
|
81 |
Travis Boak |
MID |
Craig |
|
82 |
Tim English |
RUC |
Calvin |
|
83 |
Nic Newman |
DEF |
Roy |
|
84 |
Dayne Zorko |
MID |
Warnie |
|
85 |
Wayne Milera |
DEF/MID |
Hately |
|
86 |
Jack Billings |
MID |
Waterman |
|
87 |
Luke Ryan |
DEF |
Taylor |
|
88 |
Jaeger O'Meara |
MID |
Selby |
Round 12
Selby mentioned his team was looking a lot like his Fantasy Classic side and that continued with his bench cover being Nic Naitanui. Warnie also shored up his ruck bench with Jonathon Ceglar who carries dual-position status.
|
Pick |
Player |
Position |
Selected by |
|
89 |
Nic Naitanui |
RUC |
Selby |
|
90 |
Dion Prestia |
MID |
Taylor |
|
91 |
Brad Sheppard |
DEF |
Waterman |
|
92 |
Rory Sloane |
MID |
Hately |
|
93 |
Jonathon Ceglar |
RUC/FWD |
Warnie |
|
94 |
Patrick Lipinski |
MID/FWD |
Roy |
|
95 |
Josh P. Kennedy |
MID |
Calvin |
|
96 |
Michael Hibberd |
DEF |
Craig |
The Traders
Calvinator – Coached by Calvin
DEF: Rory Laird, Shannon Hurn
MID: Zach Merrett, Brad Crouch, Tim Kelly
RUC: Max Gawn
FWD: Toby Greene, Bailey Smith
INT: Jeremy Cameron, Kade Simpson, Tim English, Josh P. Kennedy
destROY – Coached by Roy
DEF: Jack Crisp, James Sicily
MID: Tom Mitchell, Jack Viney, Tom Rockliff
RUC: Jarrod Witts
FWD: Michael Walters, Darcy Parish
INT: Luke Shuey, Darcy MacPherson, Nic Newman, Patrick Lipinski
Warne Dawgs – Coached by Warnie
DEF: Bachar Houli, Nick Haynes
MID: Jack Macrae, Patrick Dangerfield, Scott Pendlebury
RUC: Sam Jacobs
FWD: Devon Smith, Brad Ebert
INT: Gary Ablett, Darcy Byrne-Jones, Dayne Zorko, Jonathon Ceglar
The Champions
Moreira’s Magic – Coached by Selby
DEF: Jake Lloyd, Jeremy Howe
MID: Josh Kelly, Adam Treloar, Jack Steele
RUC: Todd Goldstein
FWD: Hugh Greenwood, Andrew Brayshaw
INT: Jordan Dawson, Hunter Clark, Jaeger O’Meara, Nic Naitanui
Top Me Up Buttercup – Coached by Craig
DEF: Zac Williams, Dan Houston
MID: Stephen Coniglio, Taylor Adams, Elliot Yeo
RUC: Brodie Grundy
FWD: Jack Martin, Connor Rozee
INT: Steele Sidebottom, Jack Steven, Travis Boak, Michael Hibberd
The Players
theGtrains – Coached by Jake Waterman
DEF: Sam Docherty, Tom Stewart
MID: Lachie Neale, Patrick Cripps, Nat Fyfe
RUC: Rowan Marshall
FWD: Chad Wingard, Kane Lambert
INT: Brayden Fiorini, Dom Sheed, Jack Billings, Brad Sheppard
Haternator – Coached by Jackson Hately
DEF: Caleb Daniel, Brodie Smith
MID: Josh Dunkley, Dylan Shiel, Mitch Duncan
RUC: Stefan Martin
FWD: Lachie Whitifield, Isaac Heeney
INT: Tim Taranto, Jy Simpkin, Wayne Milera, Rory Sloane
Surgeons DT – Coached by Sam Taylor
DEF: Christian Salem, Lachie Weller
MID: Andrew Gaff, Clayton Oliver, Marcus Bontempelli
RUC: Reilly O’Brien
FWD: Dustin Martin, Christian Petracca
INT: Matt Crouch, Daniel Rich, Luke Ryan, Dion Prestia
