KFC SuperCoach AFL: Dunny’s bold predictions for 2021

Lachie Neale’s challenger. The popular midfield bust. A forward line flop. Here are eight bold KFC SuperCoach predictions which could shape your Round 1 team.

With all the pre-season games done, the focus now turns to fine tuning our KFC SuperCoach teams.

We are always trying to predict what is going to happen so we can get an advantage over everyone else in the competition - and I’m here to help.

Here are my bold predictions for 2021.

How many games will Steele Sidebottom play in 2021? Picture: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images

Steele Sidebottom will not be in the top-five scoring forwards

He may have a great average - 109 in 2020 - but the fact that he’s had a calf injury in the pre-season, and is over the magical 30 mark, means it could be an issue again this year. After being ruled out for Round 1, I expect Sidebottom to miss more than four games throughout the season, leaving a huge a hole in your KFC SuperCoach forward line.

Caleb Daniel will be a top-three defender

Daniel is the go-to kick-in guy for the Bulldogs and, with the new rule meaning he doesn’t have to kick it over the big guys, he can spear his passes around the man on the mark and hit his targets with ease. Daniel uses the footy well and the Bulldogs love having it in his hands. He was the seventh-ranked KFC SuperCoach defender last year but I’m tipping he will burst into the top three in 2021, making him a must-have at some point.

This is the year for Callum Mills

This is the year we see Mills move into the midfield, like he was supposed to years ago. And it should result in the 23-year-old outscoring fellow young star Isaac Heeney. With Lance Franklin still looking questionable, we may see Heeney spend even more time forward, which means the midfield is all Mills’. Jump onboard, you won’t regret it.

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Zach Merrett could challenge Lachie Neale as the top-scoring midfielder in 2021. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Daniel Pockett

Zach Merrett will challenge Lachie Neale

With this being a contract year, Merrett is out to impress, and with his standout performance in the AAMI series game, it looks like the sky is the limit in 2021. With a KFC SuperCoach friendly game, look for him to run riot through the Bombers midfield and challenge Neale as the top-scoring midfielder.

Def/Mids will be more valuable than Fwd/Mids

We have always looked at the dual-position forward-midfielders, like Patrick Dangerfield and Dustin Martin, as the key selections. However, with the new rules around the man on the mark, along with the kick-in changes where players will be required to stand 10 metres further back, we may see a lot more easy points for defenders this year. The back-six may share the ball around more across half-back and switch the ball more frequently as a result of the game opening up.

Tim English will be a poor selection

Stefan Martin wasn’t recruited to just be a backup for English. And the former Lion’s arrival isn’t good for any KFC SuperCoaches looking for some premium value away from the big three rucks. When the Bulldogs come up against one of the stronger ruckmen, like Max Gawn or Brodie Grundy, Martin is likely to take the lead role as he did in the AAMI Series, with English spending time forward. We all expected him to rise again this season but English’s average will drop.

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There’s value in Stephen Coniglio’s $528k price tag. Picture: Ryan Pierse/Getty Images

Stephen Coniglio will bounce back and could be the value pick of the season

After what most considered a poor year from the Giants skipper, I’m expecting Coniglio will come out bigger and better this season and push his average back over 105. He wouldn’t have been happy with last year and the 27-year-old he will do everything he can to redeem himself, making the $528k price tag a very appealing one.

Matt Rowell will be a bust

We are all hoping we see the pre-shoulder injury Matt Rowell of early last year. Everyone is expecting him to just pick up where he left off - 126-point average in his first four games. But I’m predicting he will still struggle with that shoulder this season and will not produce that type of scoring. I would go as far to say that his partner in crime, Noah Anderson will be far more consistent.

I have had about a 50/50 strike rate over the last few years but I’m confident this year. Hopefully I can get more right than wrong this and give you the edge in 2021.

But I do have one last prediction and that is that the boys from the Phantom’s Lair will outscore the boys from the KFC Supercoach HQ Podcast.

Good luck!