Teams 2019 Rate My Team (RMT) pre-JLT edition

[jmadrox]

Below is my first pass. Really aiming for a core group to stick with and a heap of guys to generate some cash.

I thought J. O'm will be in for a good year with the pig gone. Was really tossing up between Steele and Treloar.

I like my Fwds to be DPP, to help with flexibility.

I'm not great at this, would love to give the vets in my work comp a good run

 

[bol316]

1st go.....obviously no idea with rooks.....let me know what you lot thinkView attachment 610542View attachment 610543

Ok first DEF: Personally I like the 4-6 choices better as value. I am starting Blakely, Hurn and Witherden. Maybe take a couple of them as your 2 premiums to start. Your choices will be on your team eventually

MID: As much as i like Fyfe, he just had a knee cleanup surgery and kinda want to see how the Dockers midfield shakes out with Neale gone. I would maybe wait on him. The other picks arent what i picked but i cant knock them at all. Guys like Martin and Oliver barely missed out for me

RUCK: Heres where i differ from many. So many believe in "set it and forget it" rucks. I don't buy that. Gawn will be fine and you will end up with him, so i would go cheaper then Kreuzer myself. Definitely not a bad pick and i don't mind your Grundy pick much because he will be your captain.

FWD: I like these quite a bit. I feel Smith is full price, but i might be wrong so i wouldn't knock it. Higgins is an interesting guess, but im not sure i would make that guess myself. Maybe if you use my DEF and/or Kreuzer advice you could use the savings on Heeney instead or a third DEF premium instead of Higgins?

 

[samFFC]

Decided to change things up a bit and took out Preuss for Clarke. Doing that and dropping Hannebery let me re-insert Danger at forward. This puts me up against the wall on salary though and will force me to go all 170s. Of course, if i don't find enough worthwhile 170s, this will have to change. Liking how it looks though

Defence: No Laird/Lloyd/Whitfield is gutsy but I can understand if you really believe in those three.
Mids: stacked with good value mids, probably similar to how mine will start, depending on rookies. Hunter is a nice POD.
Ruc: English is more an R2 in my opinion. Will need to wait for pre-season to see if Clarke will be a good pick. And if he is not that will force a reshuffle given his price.
Fwds: not convinced on Heeney but have said that to many people and it might just be me.

1st go.....obviously no idea with rooks.....let me know what you lot think

Def: looks good. Williams at D3 may be an issue depending on rookie depth there
Mid: Fyfe/Oliver/Martin all nice picks.
Ruc: nice
Fwd: Higgo second year blues? But looks decent.

Rev 2 (I will probably stop counting now).

Lloyd, Witherden, B Smith, Z Williams, S Collins, Rookie - Rookie, Rookie

Macrae, Cripps, Kelly, Martin, Miles, Liberatore, Rookie, Rookie - Rookie, Rookie

Grundy, Martin - Rookie, Rookie

D Smith, Danger, Dunkley, Setterfield, Cavarra, Rookie - Rookie, Rookie

Def: like the backline, probably similar to how mine will shape up.
Mid: Macrae means batting four deep which could be an issue. Miles is an interesting one.
Ruc: nice
Fwd: nice.

Not a big fan of starting this early but i thought id give it my January crack.

Not many on Laird. He will still be a top 2 defender. The man doesn't give a f**k about kick outs! They run him through the mid rotations and he just finds the pill. Him and Smithers are the kind of guys who count their stats.

As for smithers can drop Ryan which allows me to go Naismith up to English. Just feel Ryan has the potential to go 90+

Steele had a monster season and a wrote a little piece about him in the 2019 planing thread. Ranked 10th mid in the last five games. Can see him pushing 105+.

Devon and Danger are the only two standout top 6 forwads on offer. Devon avg 114 in his last HALF on the season and 115 in his last 5. Those are premo mid numbers!

R2 will be the biggest difference this season. I dont see any value in going Martin/Goldy when they are ageing. If english or naismith can get with 15 points of them i see that as a win.

Def: nice. Agreed on Ryan he could be a good one to have.
Mid: Steele is a nice pick. Rookie depth will potentially be an issue will have to see. (Also are they really the proposed averages of those guys? If so I think I won't bother with Fantasy Coach - no way that Cripps/Jelly/Mrouch/Zerrett all score under 105, madness).
Ruc: Naismith is a nice thought, cheap post-injury. Will need to see pre-season. But agreed R2 will be an interesting spot.
Fwd: looks good.

Below is my first pass. Really aiming for a core group to stick with and a heap of guys to generate some cash.

I thought J. O'm will be in for a good year with the pig gone. Was really tossing up between Steele and Treloar.

I like my Fwds to be DPP, to help with flexibility.

I'm not great at this, would love to give the vets in my work comp a good run

Def: Not sure on Logan will need to see pre-season. Same as Garthwaite. (Or are they just place holders for now, if so apologies). Otherwise looks good.
Mid: Why Tom Phillips over other Coll mids? Brayshaw second year blues. Too light.
Ruc: depends if you think Gawn can challenge Grundy - if so looks good.
Fwd: too midpricer. Though DPP plan is good.

Clearly a Freo fan haha!
Overall, if your plan is core group of set and forget and guys to generate cash, then you should throw out most players in the ~400-600k bracket that don't have a history of high scoring (i.e. Brayshaw, Cerra, Lobb, English). Those players are ones that you want to outscore their expected average but will upgrade on the cheap.
Cash generation comes from the rookies/Setterfield types.

 

[bol316]

Below is my first pass. Really aiming for a core group to stick with and a heap of guys to generate some cash.

I thought J. O'm will be in for a good year with the pig gone. Was really tossing up between Steele and Treloar.

I like my Fwds to be DPP, to help with flexibility.

I'm not great at this, would love to give the vets in my work comp a good run

View attachment 610558

My 2 biggest cringes here are Brayshaw and def Phillips. Phillips and McLean are both kinda in the same boat, as far as "which half of the year was the real Phillips/McLean?" Maybe wait and see on Phillips/Brayshaw. I forgot to add Cerra to that list also. Fremantle might struggle to start off i think, so you have time to wait and see on him. Maybe as a simple idea, dump Brayshaw and use the savings to upgrade Phillips and Cerra? If that's not enough cap, maybe turn Laird into Hurn or Witherden

 

[4tune8]

Ok first DEF: Personally I like the 4-6 choices better as value. I am starting Blakely, Hurn and Witherden. Maybe take a couple of them as your 2 premiums to start. Your choices will be on your team eventually

MID: As much as i like Fyfe, he just had a knee cleanup surgery and kinda want to see how the Dockers midfield shakes out with Neale gone. I would maybe wait on him. The other picks arent what i picked but i cant knock them at all. Guys like Martin and Oliver barely missed out for me

RUCK: Heres where i differ from many. So many believe in "set it and forget it" rucks. I don't buy that. Gawn will be fine and you will end up with him, so i would go cheaper then Kreuzer myself. Definitely not a bad pick and i don't mind your Grundy pick much because he will be your captain.

FWD: I like these quite a bit. I feel Smith is full price, but i might be wrong so i wouldn't knock it. Higgins is an interesting guess, but im not sure i would make that guess myself. Maybe if you use my DEF and/or Kreuzer advice you could use the savings on Heeney instead or a third DEF premium instead of Higgins?

Cheers for that,
I'll be watching all of those Def you mentioned, they have been in and out.
Seriously thing Fyfe>Steele for the value.
Higgins is my punt for a breakout, 2nd year, training well and earmarked for more Mid minutes, scored ok towards the end of the year but might be more SC relevant, I could and probably will be wrong but it doesn't take much to downgrade/upgrade him

 

[bol316]

Cheers for that,
I'll be watching all of those Def you mentioned, they have been in and out.
Seriously thing Fyfe>Steele for the value.
Higgins is my punt for a breakout, 2nd year, training well and earmarked for more Mid minutes, scored ok towards the end of the year but might be more SC relevant, I could and probably will be wrong but it doesn't take much to downgrade/upgrade him

Higgins looked like the same guy all year to me. I just prefer to have players who show at least some signs of scoring "life". Dont see it there.

Steele is definitely going to be a POD pick for you. Dont mind him as sort of a top 8 "guess". Its as good a guess as any. If Fyfe hadn't had surgery and Neale was there, Fyfe would most likely be in my side. I get the Higgins "guess". After all, if nothing else, its fun to guess and see if you are right

 

[Shadow89]

Yeah i'm going to have to say the complete opposite of this advice...

Yeah I'm gonna have to agree with your disagreement, haha.

The forwards I like, though wondering if Smith is just paying full price

Personally, i am punting on Rucks early. They are both full price, at best. Just add them later. I think this "set them and forget them" ideas about rucks are ridiculous. Never pay full price unless you intend them to be your captain

Mid i like except Gaff. Hes another full pricer IMO. Tons of value at mid. Also would pass on Walsh and Stocker. I know how hyped up they are, but they are still rookies. Go for 170s. More to gain

Def i like except Laird. He feels a bit full price too. Too many good players on sale

If i thought i would have to replace a lot of these players eventually, your reply would make absolute sense. I just don't agree that i will likely have to though. I think i will only need to add 3 D, 1-3 Mids (Redden and MAYBE Adams, though i feel they showed all the signs), obviously 2 rucks (I am just trying to pick a couple who will have job security and gain some value so the eventual Grundy-Gawn upgrades arent too painful) and 4 fwds. So that's 10-12 spots. I suppose its a matter of personal taste on players. I feel you don't care for my mids, which is cool. If i am right about my mids though, and they become rolling premiums like i think they can, i wont really need to generate a TON of cap. I am just trying to get as many spots filled with Rollers as i think i can, right now, and hoping i am right. I also am not a big fan of too many rookies in my starting lineup, esp at mid. Fwd and D i don't mind so much.

Thanks for your reply though, rooted in great logic

Gotta agree with FlowersByIrene, this is not the advice I'd be giving out to prospective/new players or intermediate one's. I understand the need for cash gen and saving where you can, but the problem is, is you then end up with speculative picks and players who play a handful of games, and then get dropped. Also, it's important to note that new players have no data concerning their injury history/they're not locked into a position. This means that their place isn't guaranteed and you can waste a trade and the loss of cash gen by picking a 'Relton Roberts.'

In regards to your team, it's not that horrible but there are a fair few issues that can be sighted. Namely, your mids in Beams, Hunter and Neale for a start. Hunter will probably lose his mid spot due to his ability to play half forward, and also, his scoring is sporadic at best anyway. With Bailey Smith and Rhylee West arriving and Libba returning, I can't see how he holds on to that spot when he can play elsewhere.

Beams is much the same issue. Collingwood's midfield is stacked as it is, and there is talk that Beams will play half-forward, a lot. Yes he'll have his stints through the middle, but with Sier coming on, Phillips going to a new level, Thomas getting more mid time, De Goey, Sidey and Pendles playing through there, it's tough to see him getting more than 60% mid time at best. He does rack up +6's around the ground though, so this would probably be the least speculative of the 3.

Neale started last season at around 700K and he just would not score over a hundred. He had a few games where he was back to 'old Lachie', but his 'handball happy' game severely limited his ability to score big. I should know, I had him all season, except for the last few rounds. Hence his price only going up by 20K for the whole season. He's solid score-wise, but you're not gonna get much more out of him and he won't be a top 8 mid, which is what you want in most of your starter premo mids.

Tim English is a good choice, but only at R2 IMO. Showed real ability but not enough to justify that position.

Zac Clarke is more speculative, due to his place behind Bellchambers as No. 1 ruck. Would be a great downgrade option later on in the season if Belly goes down, but he's not guaranteed games at all at this point.

The ruck issue could also end up severely hampering your season from the get go. If English or Clarke go down/don't play, then you have no spare cash to get a more consistent ruck. This means that while your opponent is scoring 120's from Grundy, you're down a player and off to a really bad start. I've seen it happen, it's not pretty.

Lastly, the issue that I just see no leeway on - the rooks. Rooks are speculative at best most of the season, so when you know a player is going to play, you pay up. Walsh is one of those players. Likened to Selwood and an absolute ball-winning machine (29.2 disposal av. at TAC Cup level), Walsh is also a number 1 draft pick and representative of where the club is heading in the future. They'll debut him and they'll play him every chance they get. He should easily score 60 or more each game, given his maturity and his locked in mid time. That's not something you want to pass up (see those who skipped Tim Kelly last year for an example of FOMO). Sam Collins is another that you don't want to pass up on either. Averaged 111 in his last 8 or so matches (or thereabouts) and racked up intercept marks like a kid in a candy store. He's another lock IMO, given the departures of KK and May.

Job security and role security is probably the most important thing when it comes to fantasy, not value or cash gen. You can have all the value in the world, but if the role isn't there or the spot isn't there, then you're not gonna make anymore cash for upgrades later on in the piece.

Feel free to disagree and not take the advice, but a fair few people on this site have done pretty well over the years (many have finished top 100 multiple times), so there are definitely things that are non-negotiables when it comes to doing well.

Your backline and your forward line are solid enough, it's just the midfield and rucks that need a bit of work.

 

[burge13]

DEF: Laird, Mills, Williams, Wigg, McReadie, Burgess (No idea for bench)
MID: Kelly, Fyfe, Merrett, Adams, B Crouch, Miles, Walsh, Valente (Jones, Constable)
RUCK: Grundy, Jacobs (Cameron, Xerri)
FWD: Devon, Danger, Wingard, Worpel, Setterfield, Rozee (No Idea)

Looking at it I'm way too light in DEF but (from memory) defenders seem to have the cash cows more than forwards.
Jacobs I don't like but I'd lose a Setterfield or Crouch going to Goldy or Witts
Might be spending too much $ up FWD?

 

[bol316]

Yeah I'm gonna have to agree with your disagreement, haha.







Gotta agree with FlowersByIrene, this is not the advice I'd be giving out to prospective/new players or intermediate one's. I understand the need for cash gen and saving where you can, but the problem is, is you then end up with speculative picks and players who play a handful of games, and then get dropped. Also, it's important to note that new players have no data concerning their injury history/they're not locked into a position. This means that their place isn't guaranteed and you can waste a trade and the loss of cash gen by picking a 'Relton Roberts.'

In regards to your team, it's not that horrible but there are a fair few issues that can be sighted. Namely, your mids in Beams, Hunter and Neale for a start. Hunter will probably lose his mid spot due to his ability to play half forward, and also, his scoring is sporadic at best anyway. With Bailey Smith and Rhylee West arriving and Libba returning, I can't see how he holds on to that spot when he can play elsewhere.

Beams is much the same issue. Collingwood's midfield is stacked as it is, and there is talk that Beams will play half-forward, a lot. Yes he'll have his stints through the middle, but with Sier coming on, Phillips going to a new level, Thomas getting more mid time, De Goey, Sidey and Pendles playing through there, it's tough to see him getting more than 60% mid time at best. He does rack up +6's around the ground though, so this would probably be the least speculative of the 3.

Neale started last season at around 700K and he just would not score over a hundred. He had a few games where he was back to 'old Lachie', but his 'handball happy' game severely limited his ability to score big. I should know, I had him all season, except for the last few rounds. Hence his price only going up by 20K for the whole season. He's solid score-wise, but you're not gonna get much more out of him and he won't be a top 8 mid, which is what you want in most of your starter premo mids.

Tim English is a good choice, but only at R2 IMO. Showed real ability but not enough to justify that position.

Zac Clarke is more speculative, due to his place behind Bellchambers as No. 1 ruck. Would be a great downgrade option later on in the season if Belly goes down, but he's not guaranteed games at all at this point.

The ruck issue could also end up severely hampering your season from the get go. If English or Clarke go down/don't play, then you have no spare cash to get a more consiste

nt ruck. This means that while your opponent is scoring 120's from Grundy, you're down a player and off to a really bad start. I've seen it happen, it's not pretty.

Lastly, the issue that I just see no leeway on - the rooks. Rooks are speculative at best most of the season, so when you know a player is going to play, you pay up. Walsh is one of those players. Likened to Selwood and an absolute ball-winning machine (29.2 disposal av. at TAC Cup level), Walsh is also a number 1 draft pick and representative of where the club is heading in the future. They'll debut him and they'll play him every chance they get. He should easily score 60 or more each game, given his maturity and his locked in mid time. That's not something you want to pass up (see those who skipped Tim Kelly last year for an example of FOMO). Sam Collins is another that you don't want to pass up on either. Averaged 111 in his last 8 or so matches (or thereabouts) and racked up intercept marks like a kid in a candy store. He's another lock IMO, given the departures of KK and May.

Job security and role security is probably the most important thing when it comes to fantasy, not value or cash gen. You can have all the value in the world, but if the role isn't there or the spot isn't there, then you're not gonna make anymore cash for upgrades later on in the piece.

Feel free to disagree and not take the advice, but a fair few people on this site have done pretty well over the years (many have finished top 100 multiple times), so there are definitely things that are non-negotiables when it comes to doing well.

Your backline and your forward line are solid enough, it's just the midfield and rucks that need a bit of work.

Hunter is spotty? https://www.footywire.com/afl/footy/pg-western-bulldogs--lachlan-hunter. Doesnt look awfully spotty to me. Hes only getting better. I will be watching (like all my players) to see how he is used pre-season.

As far as Beams goes, i'm not awfully worried about De Goey, Sidebottom or Phillips really. But again, i will be doing due diligence

Neale I just have to disagree on. He was playing in Fremantle, who scored terribly, and was still consistent. I see him only getting better naturally, rising numbers in Brisbane, plus i think the Lions as a whole will be stepping it up a bit.

I get the ruck thing. This is basically an idea for now until i see how Clarke will shake out. If I am not satisfied, i will re-shuffle a bit. Im not worried about the whole 120s from Grundy idea, especially if my 2 rucks can combine for 100-120 for less then the cost of Grundy. Bang for buck. I will have better players elsewhere then others do. I just hate paying full price

I totally agree about rookie job security. Thats my biggest hangup with this idea and probably the reason I would need to, potentially, re-shuffle it


Thanks for your analysis. You definitely have a mind for this game. i dig that.

 

[browncow]

First attempt at a team.

DEF- Laird, Lloyd, Witherden, Collins, Quaynor, Wigg (Goddard,Hore)
MID - Macrae, M.Crouch, Martin, Adams, Libba, Walsh, Valente, Constable (Bewley, Hind)
RUCK - Grundy, Gawn (Cameron, Draper)
FWD - Dangerfield, Smith, Dunkley, Setterfield, Cavarra, Parker (Corbett, Burgess)

Rookies are obviously going to change once the pre season games get going.
Tempted to go total guns and rookies if enough good mid rookies pop up and downgrade Libba to rookie and use that cash elsewhere.

Thoughts?

 

[Shadow89]

First attempt at a team.

DEF- Laird, Lloyd, Witherden, Collins, Quaynor, Wigg (Goddard,Hore)
MID - Macrae, M.Crouch, Martin, Adams, Libba, Walsh, Valente, Constable (Bewley, Hind)
RUCK - Grundy, Gawn (Cameron, Draper)
FWD - Dangerfield, Smith, Dunkley, Setterfield, Cavarra, Parker (Corbett, Burgess)

Rookies are obviously going to change once the pre season games get going.
Tempted to go total guns and rookies if enough good mid rookies pop up and downgrade Libba to rookie and use that cash elsewhere.

Thoughts?

Backline is a little thin and Wigg probably won't get a game, but overall, not a bad first crack. Have to wait and see what effect Preuss has on Gawn and whether Dunkley's role stays the same, but your structure is good and leaves you a good template to work off

 

[atlas1]

Today's version.

 

[SELFCONFESDAFLNERD]

Today's version.
View attachment 610642

Very impressive. What i would say is that you may need to have a downgrade in mind just in case there arent enough 170k rookies but thats a very minor criticism. As a mostly GnR team i think you've nailed all of the premiums. The only pick i dont really like is Sicily due to suspension risk but i guess if he ends up benefitting from the new kick in rule he could be good.

 

[Shadow89]

Today's version.
View attachment 610642

Why is your Hugh Goddard in Carlton colours and mine is still in Saint's colours? Haha, that's so weird! Even after logging back in and out and deleting him/putting him back on the field, colours have not changed.

 

[atlas1]

Very impressive. What i would say is that you may need to have a downgrade in mind just in case there arent enough 170k rookies but thats a very minor criticism. As a mostly GnR team i think you've nailed all of the premiums. The only pick i dont really like is Sicily due to suspension risk but i guess if he ends up benefitting from the new kick in rule he could be good.

Cheers, yeah the rooks are all speculative at this stage but I've stuck with the mature agers. In terms of downgrades I like Dusty and Sloane as potentially cheap mids

 

[SELFCONFESDAFLNERD]

DEF: Laird, Mills, Williams, Wigg, McReadie, Burgess (No idea for bench)
MID: Kelly, Fyfe, Merrett, Adams, B Crouch, Miles, Walsh, Valente (Jones, Constable)
RUCK: Grundy, Jacobs (Cameron, Xerri)
FWD: Devon, Danger, Wingard, Worpel, Setterfield, Rozee (No Idea)

Looking at it I'm way too light in DEF but (from memory) defenders seem to have the cash cows more than forwards.
Jacobs I don't like but I'd lose a Setterfield or Crouch going to Goldy or Witts
Might be spending too much $ up FWD?

Risky backline but could pay off if enough rookies present themselves. Mills is an interesting pick, no doubt if he gets a role as a midfielder he will be very fantasy relevant. I know Sydney landed Thurlow, if he's in their best team maybe he releases Mills? I don't know enough about Sydney's set up but Mills will definitely be one to watch in the JLT. I saw on here that in a practice match he played substantial minutes in the midfield. I feel like he could go from being unique to very popular quick smart depending on what position he plays. No doubt he's a genuine gun, its just a matter of working out if his role is conducive to scoring fantasy points.

Moving on, I like your midfield a lot. No criticism from me, good balance of guns/mp's and rooks. As for rucks I'm not a fan of Jacobs at all but if you love the rest of your team maybe he's someone you just put up with? He shouldn't go backwards in scoring i just don't see much upside so at his price you don't want someone that just stagnates. No idea what the solution to get that extra money to upgrade him is, which is really a compliment about the rest of your team. I like the Worpel pick too. That said, I think he may be the one player in your team that you could maybe downgrade in order to upgrade Jacobs? Even then i don't know if that improves your side. I suppose the other potential solution is to cull a higher priced rookie like Rozee or Walsh and see if you then have enough cash to upgrade Jacobs.

As for your question about spending too much up forward, i dont think you have at all. However, if you are iffy about any of your forwards the solution may be to downgrade them and upgrade your backline. So yeah, overall there is a lot to like about your team. I like the somewhat unique picks in Mills, Worpel and Adams. I like the fact you have Brouch at M5 even though he is obviously an injury risk. I like your forwardline a lot as a whole too so i guess my only criticism is about Jacobs. Little to fault really.

 

[SELFCONFESDAFLNERD]

First attempt at a team.

DEF- Laird, Lloyd, Witherden, Collins, Quaynor, Wigg (Goddard,Hore)
MID - Macrae, M.Crouch, Martin, Adams, Libba, Walsh, Valente, Constable (Bewley, Hind)
RUCK - Grundy, Gawn (Cameron, Draper)
FWD - Dangerfield, Smith, Dunkley, Setterfield, Cavarra, Parker (Corbett, Burgess)

Rookies are obviously going to change once the pre season games get going.
Tempted to go total guns and rookies if enough good mid rookies pop up and downgrade Libba to rookie and use that cash elsewhere.

Thoughts?

Backs = near perfect
Mids = near perfect
Rucks = perfect
Forwards = near perfect
Whole team = near perfect


Searching for a criticism here is pretty hard BUT you may have passed up some value picks by - with the exception of Libba - going full guns n rookies. That said, i think you've pretty much nailed a GnR team and i particularly like that you've picked some low end premiums that should improve. I'm referring to Witherden, Dusty, Adams and even M.Crouch here. Another observation is that you don't have any real POD picks...but that in itself can ironically enough make your team quite unique.

So yeah, very little - if anything - i can fault about it. It is a lot different to my team but that is in no way a criticism, in fact its probably a compliment

 

[4tune8]

First attempt at a team.

DEF- Laird, Lloyd, Witherden, Collins, Quaynor, Wigg (Goddard,Hore)
MID - Macrae, M.Crouch, Martin, Adams, Libba, Walsh, Valente, Constable (Bewley, Hind)
RUCK - Grundy, Gawn (Cameron, Draper)
FWD - Dangerfield, Smith, Dunkley, Setterfield, Cavarra, Parker (Corbett, Burgess)

Rookies are obviously going to change once the pre season games get going.
Tempted to go total guns and rookies if enough good mid rookies pop up and downgrade Libba to rookie and use that cash elsewhere.

Thoughts?

Don't know how you did it, but to have 2-3 of last years best premos on each line is a great effort

 

[Dan12]

Lachie Neale....

Neale is as durable as anyone. He is the only midfield only player to average 100+ and play 20+ games in each of the last 4 years. Hardly ever goes below 90 but also doesn't have a great ceiling. Such a safe pick.

The off season before last, Brisbane strongly targeted Charlie Cameron, then before getting injured he was absolutely fantastic this year and increased his average. Last off season that target was Lachie Neale. I think there's going to be similarly good output from him, he'll have a great role and an increase in scoring.

Brisbane also seem to never have issues with gun midfielders scoring. S. Martin, Zorko, Beams, Hanley and Rockliff have chalked up great averages and many huge scores at the Gabba.

The downside is that he might meander around a 100 average and not have much upside. I think the change in environment will help him.

I think this is going to be another Dangerfield, Treloar or Titch situation where they arrive at a new club and dominate. What do you guys think? Seems to be divided opinion on him.

 

[SELFCONFESDAFLNERD]

Lachie Neale....

Neale is as durable as anyone. He is the only midfield only player to average 100+ and play 20+ games in each of the last 4 years. Hardly ever goes below 90 but also doesn't have a great ceiling. Such a safe pick.

The off season before last, Brisbane strongly targeted Charlie Cameron, then before getting injured he was absolutely fantastic this year and increased his average. Last off season that target was Lachie Neale. I think there's going to be similarly good output from him, he'll have a great role and an increase in scoring.

Brisbane also seem to never have issues with gun midfielders scoring. S. Martin, Zorko, Beams, Hanley and Rockliff have chalked up great averages and many huge scores at the Gabba.

The downside is that he might meander around a 100 average and not have much upside. I think the change in environment will help him.

I think this is going to be another Dangerfield, Treloar or Titch situation where they arrive at a new club and dominate. What do you guys think? Seems to be divided opinion on him.

I think he is a terrific option, just like how i think Matty Crouch is a terrific option, the similarity being that they have averages over 100 but seem to have a fair bit of room to improve as well. Neale is a beast but the only issue i have is whether he will be tagged. Now im sure Zorko will start the season copping the tag but i wouldn't be too surprised to see it move to Neale sometime during the season. If he escapes the tag or if he gets tagged but handles it well, he will probably be an awesome pick. I see durability and upside but i guess there is a little uncertainty given he is going to a new club and particularly Brisbane who seem to have a group of young midfielders coming through. How they share the load will be interesting but if he scores as well as, or better than, the midfielder he is replacing (Beams) he will be a good pick.

 

[Sonny Hayes]

So this is Draft 2 and pretty different to how i have been thinking most of the off season so far. I like the value down back in Witherden and Williams, plus the rookies are often reliable down back so i don't mind going weaker down back.

Stacked the midfield and i like the look of the team a lot more, i have gone for the typical ball magnets, not looking for too many break outs and avoiding the players that rely on particular roles etc. Added in McCluggage as my one real POD and hoping this can be his big break out year.
Only real issue i have is i had to drop Macrae who i have been sold on starting needed that extra money so i could bat deeper in the midfield.

 

[PAFC27]

Would you guys consider MacRae, Coniglio, Cripps and Crouch top 8 mids?

Who are your top 8?

 

[Cotchy9]

Would you guys consider MacRae, Coniglio, Cripps and Crouch top 8 mids?
Who are your top 8?

Macrae 120-125
Cripps 115-120
Kelly 114-117
Crouch 113-115
Zerrett 112-115
Coniglio 112
Ross 110-112
Treloar 108-110

 

[bol316]

Would you guys consider MacRae, Coniglio, Cripps and Crouch top 8 mids?

Who are your top 8?

I think its really hard to say exactly. There are just so many possibilities. Macrae and Cripps i would say for sure. Coniglio and Crouch are just as good a guess as anybody up there though

 

[bol316]

Took a different perspective here, crunched numbers a little and came up with this. I went back to my original plan to load premium defenders before they get pricier. Its going to require some watching, but I think it might be my best yet. Think I can find enough playing 170s to stick in my open spots? I have 853 left for 5 spots, so its 170 each. Of course its light at ruck, but not terribly so. I cant imagine Preuss isn't playing. Whatever i can gain out of Kreuzer and Preuss salary wise is just a bonus toward Grundy and Gawn. My other groups look pretty solid to me. Thoughts on my newest creation?