WE NEED to be agile … It’s been the message for a long time and it’s certainly come to fruition this week with the fixture change meaning the Eagles and Tigers no longer have the round 13 bye, but will now miss round 14 instead. Obviously, I do sympathise with fellow coaches, I too put a lot of time into my team to ensure I was prepared to tackle the byes and this change leaves me in a bit of a predicament in round 14 as a result.
Fortunately, to help overcome this problem, Fantasy HQ have announced an additional trade prior to round 14. So, after your initial disappointment, possibly anger about the additional trade being too few or too many, take a deep breath and think about the fact you now have seven trades in two weeks. That is massive. Now you may not be able to stick to your original plans but with seven trades, you should be able to salvage something half respectable, or on the flipside, fast track your team towards completion.
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As far as the plan moving forward, you will need to look at your structure and trade players out accordingly to assist you getting at least 18 on the park over the next two weeks. Trade plan: Grab as many as you can who have completed their bye. In an ideal world, that would be two rookie downgrades before removing another rookie for a star like the trade targets mentioned below.
Lastly, enjoy the challenge, everyone is in the same boat.
Ps. If you have never tuned into our live show as the teams drop on a Thursday night, treat yourself, you will never turn back.
Round 13: Dogs, Lions, Blues, Bombers
Round 14: Crows, Saints, Swans, Pies, Dockers, Demons, Tigers, Eagles
TOP FIVE PRICE RISES
- Caleb Poulter (MID/FWD, $452,000) +$57,000
- Trent Bianco (DEF/MID, $51,000) +$51,000
- Darcy Parish (MID, $879,000) +$43,000
- Kyle Langford (FWD/MID, $663,000) +$37,000
- Harry Cunningham (DEF, $552,000) +37,000
TOP FIVE PRICE FALLS
- Andrew McGrath (MID, $607,000) -$57,000
- Brad Sheppard (DEF, $502,000) -$50,000
- Harry McKay (FWD, $465,000) -$50,000
- Christian Salem (DEF, $663,000) -$43,000
- Ed Curnow (MID, $687,000) -$41,000
LOWEST BREAKEVENS
- Ned Reeves (RUC, $245,000) - 21
- Trent Bianco (DEF/FWD, $249,000) - 18
- Joel Amartey (RUC/FWD, $200,000) -8
- Luke Foley (DEF, $178,000) 4
- Luke Edwards (MID, $189,000) 5
HIGHEST BREAKEVENS
- Mitch Duncan (MID, $845,000) 153
- Tim Kelly (MID, $656,000) 148
- Brodie Grundy (RUC, $798,000) 144
- Jared Polec (MID, $602,000) 143
- Christian Salem (DEF, $663,000) 143
Watch the LIVE teams show every Thursday with The Traders. Join Roy, Calvin and Warnie from 6.15pm AEST on Facebook for the live stream as the round 13 teams drop.
BUY
Josh Kelly
GWS GIANTS
MID/FWD, $739,000
It’s time to grab all the ‘must have’ premiums that we have missed and the Giant running machine is at the top of the tree. Since moving back to the midfield he has dominated and his three round average of 112 reflects that. He has a BE of 96 so his price will continue to rise.
Lachie Whitfield
GWS GIANTS
FWD/DEF, $756,000
After having his season debut delayed by injury, the former No.1 pick has hit his straps. In his two games leading up to the bye, Whitfield was back to his marking best, taking season highs of 10 and 11 on his way to scores of 119 and 122.
Aaron Hall
NORTH MELBOURNE
DEF/FWD, $751,000
When you talk about ‘must haves’ the attacking Roo defender needs to be high on the priority list. His form is amazing with an average of 125 in his last five which leaves him with a BE of just 80. This indicates he is still a value pick despite increasing $168K since the start of the year.
Also consider: Shaun Higgins, Dan Houston, Ned Reeves.
HOLD
Scott Pendlebury
COLLINGWOOD
MID/FWD, $586,000
A week after the Pies skipper received forward status he lined up on the half-back line which was a Fantasy Godsend. Playing a much more Fantasy friendly role than he has become accustomed to the last few weeks, Pendles rewarded faithful owners with his first 100 in eight weeks.
Caleb Poulter
COLLINGWOOD
MID, $452,000
When a rookie hits a price tag like the young Pie has, it can be tempting to offload early. Given his average of 93 in his last three games however, it's worth hanging on to him, especially given his BE of just 14. His ability to find space and take marks has been outstanding taking 12 and 10 in rounds 10 and 12.
James Harmes
MELBOURNE
DEF/MID, $578,000
The Dees hard nut has been sensational through the midfield since returning from injury with a low score of 80 in the first month. His role was still there in round 12 but his score didn’t reflect that, scoring a season low 62 while laying just three tackles and giving away three frees.
Also consider: Devon Robertson, Nick Hind, Jack Billings.
SELL
Anthony Scott
WESTERN BULLDOGS
FWD/MID, $304,000
After a nice little cameo to help avoid a donut in the first round of the byes with 47, it's now time to say goodbye to the cash cow after increasing $134K since the start of the season. He has been very reliable, missing just one game for the year and providing a handy emergency.
Chad Warner
SYDNEY
FWD/MID, $447,000
Although he looked like the perfect player to hold through until his bye, it's time to abort and stop the cash bleeding. His score of 37 this week gives him a three game average of 49 which isn’t a good sign given he has a BE of 96 this week. He is projected to drop another $21K in round 13.
Bailey Smith
WESTERN BULLDOGS
MID, $577,000
This is more of a rocket, but it’s totally understandable if frustrated coaches get an itchy trade finger on his bye this week. Despite injuries to Dogs mids, he didn’t get the inside time expected, recording no CBA’s, no marks and just one tackle for a season low 44.
Also consider: Lachie Sholl, Finlay Macrae, Brad Sheppard.
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