KFC SuperCoach 2022: How to use DPP changes, target new dual-position players
Braydon Preuss is a tempting option at a bargain price, but he comes with risk. Could an unexpected position move change the calculation? See 15 likely DPP changes.
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DPP changes have changed everything in KFC SuperCoach.
Coaches can now monitor games for positional shifts, plan ahead and use DPP additions (which will occur three times during the season) to help upgrade their teams.
Imagine if Jack Ziebell became a DEF-FWD midway through last season or his teammate Aaron Hall gained the same DPP for the run home.
When Ziebell missed in the last round, you could have swung Hall from your forward line to defence, covered Ziebell and avoided a doughnut in KFC SuperCoach grand final week.
Planning for possible DPP changes is going to be vital and coaches should take note of pre-season training whispers.
The first DPP additions will take place in Round 6 and could be crucial for planning your team for the all-important ‘upgrade season’.
One thing to note is players normally have to achieve about 35 per cent in one position to gain DPP.
If you see someone play in defence for a few games before reverting to midfield, don’t expect that will be enough to have a second position added.
Here are 15 players who are on our radar for possible DPP additions during 2022:
Tristan Xerri $208k FWD to RUC-FWD
Lock this one in after Round 6, as long as Callum Coleman-Jones’ eventual return from injury doesn’t squeeze him out of the North Melbourne side before then (which it shouldn’t). Xerri was one of the breakout performers of the community series, scoring 96 as he took the lion’s share of ruckwork against the Swans. Whether David Noble goes with this same strategy or leans more on Todd Goldstein during the season remains to be seen, but the Roos clearly had a plan in mind when they refused to trade Xerri to St Kilda last year. Xerri averaged 127 ranking points from six VFL games when he played as a No.1 ruck last season, including a crazy 206-point score when he had 36 disposals (31 contested) against Essendon. Xerri also had nine marks and six tackles in that game, so he won’t rely solely on hitouts for points.
WHAT IT MEANS: While his No.1 role is far from guaranteed, he needs to be in the mix for the 2-3 forward spots you are likely devoting to any of Mitch McGovern, Will Brodie, Josh Rachele, Cam Rayner, Hugo Ralphsmith or Stephen Coniglio. Just make sure you pick Coniglio as well.
Braydon Preuss $206k RUC to RUC-FWD
One of the greatest talking points of pre-season has been whether to start with Preuss and whether to risk him at R2 or devote another $100k of your valuable budget to squeeze him in at R3. That would also mean having to use both your forward bench spots for Jack Hayes and Hugh Dixon or leaving one of the recently-added RUC-FWD players out of your team. Should Nick Martin be named in Round 1, you would also be left with one of Martin, Hayes and Dixon on field, so there’s a bit for KFC SuperCoaches to consider beyond Preuss being a safer option at R3.
After only playing a quarter in the Giants’ first pre-season game, he started forward against Sydney and shared ruck duties with Matthew Flynn. While time in position percentages were not recorded in the pre-season, Preuss attended 10 centre bounce ruck contests to Flynn’s 17 and a total of 17 compared to Flynn’s 28. Which begs the question, if GWS is prepared to play two ruckmen, could Preuss pick up DPP status? The powerful big man’s influence and contested style is clearly suited to KFC SuperCoach as he racked up a ton against the Swans. And if he’s potentially going to have RUC-FWD status after Round 6 or 12, it only increases his appeal. Interestingly, only one of his 12 disposals against Sydney was in the forward 50, so it might be a long shot.
WHAT IT MEANS: The possibility of forward status, even by mid-season, only adds another layer to the Preuss debate most KFC SuperCoaches have been having with themselves for weeks. Even now, I’m not sure where I sit and probably won’t be until the first bounce of GWS’s Round 1 game.
Nick Daicos $193,800 MID to DEF-MID
Daicos is set to be one of the most-popular selections of 2022 based on his incredible junior numbers and the role Craig McRae has slated for him appears very KFC SuperCoach friendly. The signs from Collingwood are Daicos will start at halfback and rotate through the middle, possibly in a swap with skipper Scott Pendlebury. If he’s eased in at halfback with small stints in the middle, DEF status could arrive by Round 6.
WHAT IT MEANS: You should seriously consider starting Gold Coast’s Bodhi Uwland. The depth of rookie midfielders (Tsitas, Horne-Francis, Stephens, Ward etc) means you could swing Daicos into your defence in Round 6 and move Uwland to M11. If you’re starting Jack Crisp, Lachie Whitfield or Jordan Dawson (see below) in defence, you will have a DPP swing and potential cover in the event of Covid absences or injury.
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Jason Horne-Francis $207,300 MID to FWD-MID
The Phantom was dirty when Horne-Francis wasn’t given DPP status but he could be feeling much better by the first round of KFC SuperCoach DPP changes in Round 6. North Melbourne’s midfield is suddenly stacked and although the No. 1 draft pick is destined for stints in the engine room, he looms more as a rotation option than a regular member of the Roos on-ball brigade.
WHAT IT MEANS: Make sure you start a DPP rookie in your forward line if you plan to eventually send JHF forward. Charlie Parker from Western Bulldogs is the obvious option at 102k, or Ned Long from Hawthorn. If Horne-Francis scores as hoped (75-80 average) you could delay forward upgrades, use him on field and then hope midfielders such as Patrick Dangerfield and Marcus Bontempelli — who spend time in attack — get DPP status by mid-season. If JHF wasn’t already locked into your side the prospect of DPP by Round 6 should seal the deal.
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Jordan Dawson $550,300 DEF to DEF-MID
The Crows’ star recruit has produced an eye-catching pre-season and all the talk out of West Lakes is the ex-Swan will be spending a fair chunk of time on a wing or even playing as an inside midfielder. Dawson scored well while sharing the defensive 50 with Jake Lloyd and the sky’s the limit if he’s going to at least be a semi-regular on-baller, considering he boasts one of the best left boots in the game.
WHAT IT MEANS: The possible DPP might give him an edge if you’re weighing up Dawson against other defensive premiums such as Jake Lloyd, Tom Stewart and Jordan Ridley who are only likely to have DEF status this year. The extra five trades will help but if the number of players missing games in AFLW is any indication, DPP is going to be absolutely vital to plug gaps in our sides throughout 2022.
Scott Pendlebury $492,300 MID to DEF-MID
See the above notes on Nick Daicos. Collingwood’s recent intraclub introduced fans to the Daicos-Pendles swap, a pairing Pies fans have been dreaming of years (although Josh did spend some time in the middle last year). Halfback is one of the easiest spots to rack up KFC SuperCoach points, especially in a team which is expected to be under defensive pressure — think Jarman Impey at Hawthorn last year. Impey had only averaged more than 68.3 points once in his career, went to halfback and averaged 90.8. Pendles could have a field day back there.
WHAT IT MEANS: You won’t want to go too heavy on defensive premiums to start the season. Lloyd, Dawson, Stewart, Rich, Ridley and Sicily are all tempting, but overloading your team with 4-5 premiums could mean not having space for Pendlebury if he becomes a DEF-MID. If he gains DPP status, $500k will be great buying. His 90.8 average last year would have ranked 26th in defence, but it included an injury-affected score of 26. The last time he averaged less than 100 before that was in 2007.
Dayne Zorko $595,400 MID to DEF-MID
This one might be a long shot, at least for Round 6, but track watchers noted Zorko was deployed at halfback in Brisbane’s recent intraclub match. That move franked a suggestion from the Lions their skipper could spend time roaming defence as they look to introduce Jarrod Berry, Cameron Rayner and co into their midfield rotation. Whether Zorko plays enough time at halfback to pick up DPP is debatable, but he would become a must-have if he picked up DEF status, even in the mid-season changes.
WHAT IT MEANS: Zorko would have been the No. 1 defender by average last season and the time he has spent at halfback in pre-season reinforces the need to be flexible with your thinking. Don’t get overcomitted on one line — apart from your rucks — otherwise you could miss out on a potential star who picks up DPP status.
Isaac Heeney $454,500 FWD to FWD-MID
OK, we’ve been here before — several times. But, if we believe the talk from the Harbour City, Sydney is intent on using Isaac Heeney in the midfield this season. It has to be a boost for his chances of fulfilling that promise that Callum Mills has been eased through pre-season and James Rowbottom and Ollie Florent are injured. Heeney’s injury history is a concern, but most KFC SuperCoaches will think if he manages a 50-50 split between midfield and forward or better he will launch to an average well above 100.
WHAT IT MEANS: You need to seriously consider starting him, even at the expense of a locked-on premium such as Josh Dunkley or Mitch Duncan (pending fitness). Watch the pre-season games closely and if Heeney is a centre-bounce midfielder, make sure you don’t miss out. He has the potential to sit at F2 behind Dunkley for most of the season if you’re going with a cheaper forward structure, as many coaches are.
Mabior Chol $367,400 RUC to RUC-FWD
Chol isn’t exactly KFC SuperCoach relevant, but he looms as the most-likely player to fill the void left by Ben King’s knee injury in the Suns’ attack. If he plays that role and then chops out Jarrod Witts when he’s resting, RUC-FWD status will be a fait accompli.
WHAT IT MEANS: Not much. Luke Jackson and Tim English are also RUC-FWD and will surely finish with better averages than Chol.
Connor West $249,800 FWD to FWD-MID
This one seems a little off broadway, but if you’ve been considering Jade Gresham, Cam Rayner, Charlie Curnow and co, you should have West on your watch list for pre-season. His first three games last season netted scores of 71, 55 and 59 and that was while spending a fair chunk of time playing forward (as his 2022 starting position suggests). Adam Simpson seems intent on shaking up the West Coast midfield mix and West has been one of the players featuring regularly in pre-season. A shoulder injury to mature-age recruit Greg Clark will only increase West’s chances of midfield time.
WHAT IT MEANS: You might get away with leaving out a $299k Jade Gresham, freeing up $50k and taking West instead. Gresham has been eased through pre-season and West is reportedly flying. $50k is the difference between starting a $102k rookie on your mid bench or having Ben Hobbs for cover. It’s food for thought at the very least.
Darcy Tucker $323,200 DEF to DEF-MID
Word from the west suggests Tucker will be used a wingman/midfielder in 2022 and he has enjoyed an encouraging pre-season. He played in an inside role when Nat Fyfe and David Mundy were missing during an internal game, but a wing role looks more likely come Round 1. He’s never been hugely relevant in KFC SuperCoach classic but is an option if you’re after a value pick later in drafts.
WHAT IT MEANS: Not much for KFC SuperCoach classic unless you’re after an almighty POD. Tucker’s best season was 2019 when he averaged 73.4.
Luke McDonald $372,100 MID to DEF-MID
The second half of 2020, when McDonald flew home with an average of 118.4 from Round 8 onwards, seems like a lifetime ago. McDonald’s average dipped to 68.4 during an interrupted 2021 season when Jack Ziebell and Aaron Hall stepped into his role as a distributor from the back half. David Noble has floated McDonald will move back to defence this year, but it’s tough to see Ziebell, Hall and him averaging premium numbers. Hall suffered a recent hamstring injury but should return by a month into the season, at the latest.
WHAT IT MEANS: You might want to think twice about starting Ziebell and Hall, at least until you see whether McDonald shares some of the easy ball which came their way last year. North will be a key team to watch in pre-season.
Mitch McGovern $256,000 FWD to DEF-FWD
McGovern has only twice averaged above 60 points during his career and his most-recent season reaching that mark was in 2018. His five games last year returned scores of 62, 60, 49, 60 and 63. His selection would come with obvious trepidation but a new role roaming across halfback for Carlton all-but guarantees he will be one of the first players this season to have DPP added. That means if you’re starting with Keidean Coleman, you could have a McGovern-Coleman swing available by Round 6. His scoring is likely to increase playing in defence, it’s just a matter of by how much. If he can average somewhere between 70-80 points, you could justify McGovern’s starting price of $256k at F6.
WHAT IT MEANS: Watch him closely during pre-season. If he looks at home playing behind the ball, he should come into your calculations for Round 1 alongside a host of other good options in the $200k-$300k forward bracket.
Andrew McGrath $464,600 MID TO DEF-MID
Just when it seemed Zach Merrett could be the midfielder to fill a distributor role for Essendon this season, Ben Rutten turned to Andrew McGrath in their first hitout of pre-season against Western Bulldogs. The Bombers are keen to expose Jye Caldwell to their engine room and someone has to make way from last season, with McGrath appearing the most likely. He roamed halfback for much of the match against the Bulldogs and was one of Essendon’s best players, hitting triple figures in KFC SuperCoach. McGrath scored four tons in the first 10 rounds of 2021.
WHAT IT MEANS: Even though the rookie cupboard is pretty bare in defence, you won’t want to have James Sicily (assuming you’re starting him) any deeper than D4. That will leave you two upgrade positions for players such as McGrath and Pendlebury if they interest you should DPP arrive at any stage.
Josh Kennedy $506,700 MID TO DEF-MID
The transition to the next era is on in the Harbour City with Kennedy shuffled to defence to accommodate Heeney and Chad Warner in pre-season. JPK’s days as a midfield premo (he averaged 106.6 in 2019) are behind him, but he might be a contender for a defensive spot, especially if he’s less than $500k. He scored 154 in Round 19 last year, so clearly still has it in him to go very big.
WHAT IT MEANS: Although he’s playing in defence, Jake Lloyd is the chief distributor for the Swans and that’s the role you want in KFC SuperCoach. I’m prepared to say Pendles and McGrath will be better options if that trio all get DEF status.
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