ANOTHER massive round done and dusted. Unfortunately, there were a number of premiums who didn't get the memo regarding finals and turned in absolute stinkers ensuring there were plenty of upsets throughout leagues.
Some of the hard luck stories I'm hearing filtering through are from teams that have been undefeated during the regular season, only to go out in straight sets. The names copping the most explosive heat include Zach Merrett, Tom Stewart, Callum Mills, Jack Steele, Ben Keays, Connor Rozee and Braydon Preuss… Okay, no one was surprised about Juicy P's poor performance but he is copping it none the less.
Fantasy Pig of the week
Big Max Gawn got the Fantasy Finals memo and stepped right up for his coaches. With just one triple-figure score in his last five games leading into the knockout final round, he absolutely dominated despite his inaccuracy in front of goal with a whopping 31 disposals, 10 marks, three tackles and 27 hitouts for 152. He spent a mammoth 91 per cent of the game on the ground and absolutely destroyed his direct opponents at the Pies.
Honourable mentions
Luke Ryan is only owned by four per cent of Classic coaches, but there would have been plenty of Draft coaches cheering the Docker defender on as he won them the match-up. He had his best score for the year with 151 from 32 possessions and an impressive 15 marks. Clayton Oliver took full advantage of his match-up with the Pies and looked the best he has since returning from injury with 42 touches and eight tackles for 139, while Toby Nankervis and David Swallow popped up from nowhere to score 137 and 131. Of course Rory Laird wasn’t too far behind after kicking two goals in the first five minutes to eventually end up with another big score of 127.
>> Check the latest Fantasy scores LIVE in the AFL Live Official App
TOP ROUND SCORERS
- Max Gawn RUC 152
- Luke Ryan DEF 151
- Clayton Oliver MID 139
- Toby Nankervis RUC 137
- David Swallow DEF/MID 131
- Rory Laird MID 127
- Brad Crouch MID 123
- Trent Cotchin MID 121
- Christian Petracca MID 120
- Jy Simpkin MID 120
Cash cows of the round
The best player with a starting price under $300k will be awarded the Michael Barlow Medal as the best cash cow of the year.
The votes for round:
5 – Elijah Hollands Gold Coast, FWD/MID– 118
We waited all year to see the Suns young gun and we saw why the anticipation was so high in his third game. He absolutely dominated against the Hawks with 23 touches, nine marks and a goal to top the rookie scores.
4 – Nick Daicos Collingwood, DEF/MID - 108
This bloke is a dead-set star. He continues to put a gap in the field on the leaderboard after another dominant performance consisting of 31 disposals, four marks and five tackles.
3 – Brynn Teakle Port Adelaide, FWD/RUC - 86
In his first game back since injury and just the second game of his career, he certainly had a crack. He had 21 hitouts but it was his tackling pressure that was most impressive, recording eight.
2 – Josh Ward Hawthorn, MID - 84
The young Hawk followed up his impressive 107 last week with 20 possessions, three marks and four tackles to ensure he scored well once again.
1 – Marcus Windhager St Kilda, MID/FWD - 78
A solid all-round effort by the Saint to ensure he was amongst the votes. He had 17 touches, three marks and six tackles.
LEADERBOARD: Nick Daicos 56, Nic Martin 40, Tyson Stengle 26, Tristan Xerri 22, Willie Rioli 14, Jason Horne Francis 14.
Rage trades
Zach Merrett ESSENDON, MID
A week is a long time in Fantasy. After last week's heroics which included 38 possessions, six marks, 10 tackles and a goal for a round-high 172, the Bomber ball-magnet broke a six-week run of 118+ scores to put a dagger in the Grand Final aspirations of many coaches with a score of just 55. He was tagged to 18 possessions, one marks and the most disappointing stat is just one tackle. If you are tagged, you can still tackle.
Braydon Preuss, GWS GIANTS RUC.
There is always concern from his coaches as soon as the big fella takes the park, but given he hasn't scored below 85 this season in a completed game, there is no reason he shouldn't have been serviceable against the Bombers. He had a shocking first half, failing to reach 20, before eventually collecting nine touches and recording 23 hitouts for just 60 points. He has to go.
Connor Rozee PORT ADELAIDE, FWD/MID
The Power star was tracking well to record his fifth triple-figure score in a row before an overstretching of his knee saw him return to the game a shadow of himself. The injury occurred in the second quarter and he struggled to have any impact on the game in the second half apart from one impressive hanger and goal conversion. He will be a close watch as to whether he plays next week.
Get expert advice from The Traders throughout the season in the Fantasy Hub. Follow AFL Fantasy on Twitter and 'like' the Facebook page to join in the conversation.
