The Next Step: Is there an even bigger spike to come for Giant Tim Taranto?

With SuperCoach Team Picker coming soon, The Phantom’s Next Step series looks at some of the young stars of the AFL: Is there a bigger spike coming for third-year Giant Tim Taranto in 2019?

• Mid move a Yeo blow for SuperCoach
• Dangerfield SuperCoach dual-position bombshell
• The Phantom’s SuperCoach cash cows of the draft
• The Next Step: Jade Gresham

In the lead-up to the launch of the SuperCoach Team Picker, The Phantom looks at a number of young stars ready to take the next step in 2019.

The Next Step: Tim Taranto

After adding 23 points to his SuperCoach average in 2018, there were no second-year blues for Giant Tim Taranto.

The 20-year-old pushed into the midfield, after spending majority of his debut season at half-forward, and averaged 21 disposals per match - six more than he did in 2017.

Taranto laid 140 tackles - the 9th-most in the competition - and took 14 contested marks, ranking the 186cm midfielder sixth at the Giants

While the right-footer only contributed six goals off his own boot, he tallied the fifth-most goal assists at the club.

Some would argue 2018 was his breakout season. But is an even bigger spike is yet to come?

As a junior in the TAC Cup, Taranto ranked elite for ground-ball gets and took more contested marks than any other midfielder.

In 10 games in his draft year of 2015, Taranto averaged 27 disposals, 12 contested possessions, seven marks, five clearances, six tackles and eight score involvements per game.

He also booted 14 goals and averaged a league-high 148 SuperCoach points.

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Tim Taranto in action against Port Adelaide in 2018.

As his history shows, Taranto is an all-round statistical beast in the making.

Of all players to average 21 disposals or more in 2018, only Taranto, Elliot Yeo and Luke Parker also tallied at least six tackles per game, 14 contested marks and 14 goal assists.

Now that’s decent company.

Yeo (25 disposals per game) and Parker (23) won more of the footy and contributed more on the scoreboard, booting 14 and 25 goals respectively.

The premiership-winning Eagle averaged 108 SuperCoach points in 2018, while Parker, who has twice averaged more than 108, finished with a season average of 103.

And with the departure of Dylan Shiel, Taranto should get the chance to match the numbers of these two stars of the game, in his third year in the competition.

In 2017, four of the five times he recorded 24 disposals or more, one of Josh Kelly, Stephen Coniglio and Jacob Hopper were missing from the Giants’ engine room.

Can he make the spot his own?

If the can, that bigger spike will come.

Tim Taranto

2019 position: Midfield

Estimated price: $490,000

The Phantom’s predicted 2019 average: 104

2017

Disposals (ave): 15

SuperCoach (ave): 66

Tackles (ave): 4

2018

Disposals: 21

SuperCoach: 89

Tackles (ave): 6