KFC SuperCoach AFL: Prices revealed for 2023, Rory Laird most expensive player
Rory Laird has smashed the $700k barrier and he heads a list of high-priced guns for 2023. See the rich list plus prices for this year’s top draft class plus big injury discounts.
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Rory Laird was overlooked by every club in the 2011 draft before slipping to the Crows as a rookie pick.
He has gone on to play over 200 games, win All-Australian selection twice and Adelaide’s best-and-fairest three times. Now he can add another achievement to the list after being crowned the most expensive player in KFC SuperCoach for 2023.
From today SuperCoach Plus subscribers can access the early team picker and start assembling a squad for 2023. Sign up for SuperCoach Plus now to gain access or use your News Corp masthead subscription or subscribe to Code Sports for the introductory offer of just $1 for six months.
Laird has been priced at $703,900, the only player above $700,000 – rare air previously occupied by superstars like Gary Ablett Jr, Patrick Dangerfield and Max Gawn.
Laird’s price tag is reward for not only his incredible output – averaging 127.8 points a game in 2022 – but his remarkable consistency. After missing the first two rounds through injury, Laird scored 114 or more in 18 of his 20 games, and the other scores were 93 and 97. In a hot streak after the Crows’ mid-season bye, the AFL’s leading disposal winner averaged 147 KFC SuperCoach points over seven rounds with a low score of 125.
MORE: SUPERCOACH 2023 POSITIONS REVEALED
Demon Clayton Oliver falls just short of the $700k mark, priced at $699,800 after averaging 127.1 last season, while Lachie Neale will set KFC SuperCoach players back $676,200 – $133,000 more than his 2022 bargain starting price.
The seven most expensive players in 2023, and 16 of the top 20, are midfielders. The exceptions are defenders Jack Sinclair ($626,200), James Sicily ($624,700) and rucks Max Gawn ($622,100) and Jarrod Witts ($605,100).
The ruck line is sure to create debate heading into next season, with Gawn joined at Melbourne by ex-Magpie Brodie Grundy. A KFC SuperCoach gun in his own right, Grundy has been priced at $512,900 and could present significant value – depending on how Simon Goodwin plans to use his superstar duo.
The priciest forward is Brisbane recruit Josh Dunkley ($596,400 MID-FWD), ahead of Stephen Coniglio ($557,700 MID-FWD) and Isaac Heeney ($557,100 FWD).
Prices for other big-name recruits include Izak Rankine ($386,000 FWD), Tim Taranto ($503,100 MID-FWD), Tom Mitchell ($528,600 MIID), Jack Bowes ($277,500 DEF) and Jason Horne-Francis ($348,800 MID-FWD).
Players to receive significant discounts after missing much – or all – of 2022 due to injury include Rory Sloane ($413,800 MID), Elliot Yeo ($337,000 DEF), Nick Coffield ($208,800) and Ben King ($176,300 FWD).
Meanwhile, two players returning to the AFL after self-imposed absences could also be bargain selections. Liam Jones is back at the Bulldogs and will cost $228,100, while new Lion Conor McKenna is just $167,500. Both are listed as defenders in KFC SuperCoach.
The most expensive first-year player is No.1 draft pick Aaron Cadman ($207,300 FWD) while No.2 draft pick Will Ashcroft will be a popular selection as a $202,800 MID. Other top-end draftees include Harry Sheezel ($198,300 FWD), George Wardlaw ($193,800 MID), Elijah Tsatas ($189,300 MID) and Mattaes Phillipou ($166,800 MID-FWD).
Cheapie hunters will note the price of “experienced” rookies Campbell Chesser ($123,900 DEF), Josh Sinn ($123,900 MID-FWD) and Darcy Wilmot ($123,900 DEF), who have all had a year in the AFL system and, in the case of Sinn and Wilmot, some brief exposure at the top level.
Twenty-nine players have been handed the bargain basement $102,400 price tag including exciting Essendon rookie Anthony Munkara.
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Originally published as KFC SuperCoach AFL: Prices revealed for 2023, Rory Laird most expensive player
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