KFC SuperCoach Plus: The 11 best selections of 2022
Rookies, bargains and mid-season steals. These were the 11 buys you needed to get right in KFC SuperCoach this year. How many did you pick?
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With two rounds left in the KFC SuperCoach season it’s time to look back on the hits and misses
In this case, the hits. We like to stay positive at SuperCoach Plus!
Skill, strategy and a bit of luck all play a role in KFC SuperCoach success, along with a great sense of timing.
Buying Tom Stewart for $607,000 the week before he scored 187 against Fremantle was genius. Bringing him in last week for almost $30,000 less only to see him score 48 points in a full game not so much.
Frm rounds 3-9 Braydon Preuss averaged 110 and rocketed up in value from $204,700 to $457,100. Roughly 15,000 very smart SuperCoaches traded him out at the Giants’ bye before his continued unavailability and low scores when he did play (he hasn’t scored 100 since) put him on the “never again” list for many coaches.
We’ve dug through the numbers to name the 11 best KFC SuperCoach selections of 22.
There were some unlucky omissions, headed by super scorer Rory Laird. He never got cheaper than $628,000 (round 5) but any time would have been a good time to bring in the No.1 averaging player in the game this year.
However, he doesn’t really fit the bargain brief. Here are 11 players who did – and the prime time to have added them to your team. How many did you nail?
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1. Lachie Neale – round 1
No.1 spot on this list was easy. Neale has scored more KFC SuperCoach points than any other player in the first 21 rounds, so it’s bonkers to think he started the year priced at $543,200. That didn’t last long – his value jumped $54k at the first price movements after scoring 198 points against Essendon and he hasn’t looked back, dropping below 100 just twice for the year. Neale is in more teams than any other player and by a big margin. He started the year in 81,000 teams, was in 101,000 by round 3 and that number has steadily climbed to 120,000 now. What a star.
2. Stephen Coniglio – round 1
How Coniglio averaged 60 points a game in five matches in 2021 is one of the great AFL mysteries. The GWS co-captain was an obvious starting pick after averaging over 100 points a game in three previous seasons and he is on track to make it No.4 with an average of 102.1 over the first 21 rounds, ranked sixth among forwards. It wasn’t all smooth sailing, though. After nine rounds his average had dropped to 88.2 and about 24,000 coaches cashed him in for a tidy profit of just under $200,000. But a change of coach worked wonders, with Mark McVeigh injecting him back into the midfield resulting in eight tons from his next 10 games.
3. Will Brodie – round 1
It really was just opportunity that was holding the former Gold Coast Sun back as a KFC SuperCoach scorer. Despite the odd frustrating week with time on ground of 65 per cent or lower, Brodie has proven an absolute bargain for those who started him at $224k as a FWD/MID. Brodie’s round 21 score of 65 was the first time he has posted less than 75 for the season, highlighting his consistency. He has tailed off somewhat since peaking at $573k in round 13, but eight tons in the opening 12 rounds were more than anyone could have hoped for considering his starting price. Brodie was averaging more than 100 to round 21 and it would be fitting if he can keep that average above 100 come the end of the season. Even if it dips into the 90s, he’s done an incredible job as one of the best starting picks of the year.
4. James Sicily – round 1
Any KFC SuperCoach who thought Sicily might be a risky proposition after about a season and a half on the sidelines were proven wrong very quickly. The star Hawk interceptor had jumped from $448k to more than $500k by round 6, only scoring less than 105 twice (98 and 84) prior to his round 14 bye. He peaked at $635k, almost $200k more than his starting price. Sicily doesn’t need big possession numbers to rack up KFC SuperCoach points as what he does is of such high value. Intercept possessions, in particular intercept marks, have long been a goldmine in KFC SuperCoach. Combine that with his season kicking efficiency of 81 per cent and it’s little wonder Sicily has been one of the top defenders this year. So much for not picking players coming off long-term injuries.
5. Nick Daicos/Paddy McCartin/Sam De Koning – round 1
OK, we are cheating a bit here by listing the three top rookies of 2022 as one item on the list. Daicos has been a phenomenon, averaging 93.2 for the season and 112 since round 12, around the time many coaches traded him out (rookies are supposed to tire as the season goes on!). He has made a ridiculous $346k and could start next year priced at over $500k, but he will be a legitimate option especially if he retains DEF/MID status. McCartin and De Koning have been ultra reliable as back-ups all year – McCartin resurrecting his career as an intercept defender to average 70.6 and De Koning shining in a similar role at the Cats to average 67.9. Both had DEF/FWD status, making them an ideal pairing.
6. Darcy Cameron – round 7
Collingwood’s back-up ruckman became a legimiate KFC SuperCoach option the moment Brodie Grundy went down with a long-term injury in round 6. Cameron had four scores in five of 50 or under that point of the season and his price had dipped from $420k to $347k. He would drop further again despite a ton in his first outing as the No.1 ruck, bottoming out at $321k. Cameron picked up valuable RUC-FWD status in round 12 and since taking on that mantle has recorded seven tons and four scores in the 90s. He peaked at $540k and coaches who have held on this long could be rewarded in the last two rounds after Grundy was ruled out for the season. Cameron has been so good, it sparked talk about Grundy being traded. If that happens, we might be talking about him as a genuine KFC SuperCoach option to start with next year.
7. Zach Merrett – round 13
Renowned as a fast finisher in recent seasons, the Bombers ball magnet was $520,700 coming off Essendon’s round 12 bye. He started slowly for those who jumped on immediately with a pair of 90s before going on an incredible run where he went 111, 140, 147, 136, 133 and 140, getting as high as $655k. Merrett has been one of the best midfielders in KFC SuperCoach since his bye and those type of premium numbers for just above $500k are an absolute bargain. He crashed back to earth when tagged against GWS in round 21 but that six-week run of five 133-plus scores made the prolific Bomber one of the best fallen premium mid-year buys of 2022.
8. Harry Himmelberg – round 12
If key forward is a KFC SuperCoach graveyard then switching roles to become an intercept defender couldn’t be more perfect. Himmelberg had only one score above 80 to round 10 and had plumeted to $318k when the Giants first used him in defence against the Brisbane Lions. He had 21 disposals that day and those KFC SuperCoaches who took on a chance on him were rewarded handsomely when he monstered North Melbourne with 37 disposals and 16 marks coming off the bye. Himmelberg scored 187 that day, the start of a golden run which caused his price to rise as high as $568k and featured six tons and eight scores of 95 or better since round 13. Whether his new role continues under the Giants’ 2023 coach will be a big pre-season watch.
9. Jack Sinclair – round 1
Most top-end coaches now own Sinclair – he’s the fourth-most popular defender, behind James Sicily, Nick Daicos and Jayden Short – so it’s easy to forget how much of a POD he was at the start of the year. In round 1 he was in a paltry 1300 teams (that figure is now over 69,000) and just over 2000 had him in their squad after the first price change at round 3. The signs were already there with three tons in the first three rounds after a strong finish to 2021 when Sinclair averaged 99.3 of the last month of the season. He has gone to another level on 2022, becoming the Saints’ best playmaker and winning his own ball from intercepts (as well as taking several behind kick-ins every week) to put him well in the All-Australian mix. His KFC SuperCoach average has jumped by over 27 points per game from last year to 113.7, making him the No.1 scoring defender of the season. Not bad for a guy who started at $469,700. Those 1300 true believers, take a bow.
10. Jarrod Witts – round 1
A ruckman who had never averaged 100 before, coming off an ACL injury, becomes the No.1 big man of 2022. Sometimes KFC SuperCoach just doesn’t make all that much sense. The plan for most coaches who started Witts at $380k was to use him as a stepping stone to one of ‘set and forget’ pair Brodie Grundy or Max Gawn at some point. Instead, he has averaged 110 (more than 10 points above his previous best) and had 155 points more than second-ranked ruck Max Gawn after round 21. His scoring has dropped off since reaching $617k at the Suns’ round 13 bye, but don’t underestimate how important Witts staying fit has been for his owners. This is only the fourth time in his career he has reached 20 games in a season, while almost every other premium big man has missed multiple weeks. If you started with Witts, you have saved a trade (or many) while other coaches have had to flip their ruckmen several times due to injury. That’s huge.
11. Touk Miller – round 13
Miller took KFC SuperCoach by storm last year, boosting his average from 105 to over 124. The question was, could he back it up? His first half of the season was a little inconsistent (he had scores of 160 and 140 but also dropped a 76 and a 59) and by the time the Suns’ bye arrived in round 13 his price had fallen over $100,000 to $575,700. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to know he was a smart buy – in round 12 he pumped out a season-high 167 points against the Kangaroos. He didn’t go under 100 for the next seven rounds – with three of those scores over 150 – until Finn Maginness put the clamps on last weekend (and even then a 98 under a heavy tag is far from a disaster). Miller is the third-highest scorer this season for total points and No.4 by averages, making him a great starting pick and an even better mid-season bargain. And based on his current price ($675,700) he’s going to be another very tough call next pre-season.
Originally published as KFC SuperCoach Plus: The 11 best selections of 2022
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