SuperCoach preseason 2018: The Phantom’s verdict on premium midfielders
IT’S still Danger v Dusty at the top but the next generation of SuperCoach stars is starting to take over. The Phantom casts his eye over the top-price options in the midfield.
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IT’S still Danger v Dusty at the top but the next generation of SuperCoach stars is starting to take over. The Phantom casts his eye over the top-price options in the midfield.
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THE PHANTOM: SECRETS BEHIND FIRST TEAM REVEAL
DANGER v DUSTY
Patrick Dangerfield (Geel) $749,800, Dustin Martin (Rich) $656,000
Brownlow medal. Norm Smith medal. Premiership Medal. AFLPA MVP. Coaches’ MVP. And the list goes on. Dustin Martin’s 2017 was nothing short of phenomenal. It will go down as one of the best individual seasons in history.
While Martin averaged a career-best 119 points per game, Patrick Dangerfield was still the king of SuperCoach.
In the home-and-away season, Dangerfield, who played one less game than Martin, scored 239 more points and, even though they were ranked one and two, Dangerfield’s average of 136 exceeded Martin’s by a huge 17 points per game.
It’s a lot to pay but the Geelong star is worth every cent.
Sure, he may fall in price but there is no guarantee. Dangerfield, who started 2017 at $717k, dropped to $560k by round 8 after copping a heavy knock against Hawthorn in round 4, resulting in scores of 90 and 65 in the following three rounds. But it didn’t take long for him to bounce back. By round 17, Dangerfield’s price was back to a staggering $783k. A closer look reveals Dangerfield averaged 150 points from round 9 onwards. If there is no heavy knock in 2018, does it happen? The Phantom doesn’t think so.
And, while the return of Gary Ablett to the Cattery might take a few points off some - most likely at the bottom-end - it’s unlikely to be Dangerfield.
The Phantom’s Verdict: If you can fit both into your side, go for it. But if you’re only going with one, it’s Dangerfield over Dusty for The Phantom, even for an extra $93k. Hawk Tom Mitchell sits in just behind Martin.
#THERETURN
Gary Ablett (Geel) $631,100
The little master is back at Geelong and, after only 34 games in the past three seasons on the Gold Coast, is seemingly back to full fitness and ready to play every game for the Cats. While all of the early signs are good - and he may get close - 22 games for the 33-year-old is unlikely. But, with the Cats only travelling outside of Victoria three times before their round 14 bye, there is every chance Ablett is up with the leaders at the half-way mark.
There is no real need for The Phantom to go on about Ablett’s SuperCoach scoring history.
But I will. Ablett averaged 127 SuperCoach points for six years running between 2008 and 2014. To put it in context, only Patrick Dangerfield (2016, 2017), Nat Fyfe (2015) and Todd Goldstein (2015) have averaged more than 120 points in a season since. Even in the injury interrupted past three years, Ablett has still averaged at least 114 points.
He’s impressed new team-mate Dangerfield, too.
“And there’s Gaz, training in runners, I didn’t see him slip over once and no-one could tackle him. He is just a freak of nature.” Dangerfield said say after a wet Geelong training session when everyone was slipping over.
Tempted yet?
The Phantom’s Verdict: The Phantom definitely is. But it’s a big risk.
Nat Fyfe (Freo) $597,900
Fyfe’s return is of a different sort.
After two years in the wilderness, this could be the year the Docker skipper returns to the top of the SuperCoach tree.
Well, not quite the wilderness but a broken leg ruined his 2016 season and an on-going chest issue restricted him for most of last year.
In the previous two seasons, Fyfe was the second (2015) and fourth-ranked (2014) player in the game in each year respectively, averaging more than 122 in both years.
While his season average in 2017 was only 109, his final two months of the year were reminiscent of the Fyfe of old – form which he carried into a standout international rules series.
The 26-year-old averaged 126 in the final eight games of the year, breaking the 120 barrier in six of them.
The Phantom’s Verdict: At $597k – a price which ranks him as the 15th midfielder in the competition – it’s hard to overlook Fyfe. In fact, it’s almost impossible. But just a little word of warning; every one of the four players mentioned so far share the same round 14 bye.
THE NEXT GENERATION
Patrick Cripps (Carl) $537,300
It’s hardly a secret.
With Brodie Smith set to spend the majority of 2018 on the sideline as he recovers from a knee reconstruction, Cripps is the outright leader as The Phantom’s favourite.
After an interrupted 2017 campaign, the contested-ball beast is ready to explode in 2018 and once again showcase the scoring power he displayed in his third season in the competition in 2016. In that year, with just 36 career games to his name, Cripps averaged 124 points from round 16 onwards with three scores in excess of 137.
Unfortunately, mainly due to a 12-week layoff over preseason with a back issue, Cripps failed to carry that form into the 2017.
But, although he was slow out of the blocks, Cripps was starting to hit his straps in the second-half of last year before a broken leg ended his season in round 16.
If you ignore the injury affected 25 from that game, Cripps averaged 110 SuperCoach points from round five onwards.
And don’t get me started on his price. There are 32 players more expensive than the 22-year-old.
There are definitely not 32 players who are better SuperCoach scorers. When he’s at his best, there might not even be five.
The Phantom’s Verdict: Do I even need to tell you?
Josh Kelly (GWS) $628,600
Not far behind Cripps on The Phantom’s favourite list is the 2017 breakout star from the Giants.
Kelly, as The Phantom predicted, quickly went past his Giant team-mates to sit as the side’s classiest and most-damaging midfielder last season. In just his fourth year in the competition, Kelly added an enormous 27 points to his average and finished as the eight-ranked SuperCoach player in the game. The 22-year-old is not only consistent but, with five scores in excess of 130, including a season-high 176, has a high ceiling.
“But a tag will come, Phantom.” I hear you say.
Yes, it will and it already has. But, so far, Kelly’s running power and ability to win the ball on the inside and the outside has seen him deal with the extra attention.
Add to this a soft opening seven rounds for the Giants, where they face only one finalist from last year, and you’ve got yourself a great starting selection.
His starting price is almost $200k higher than last year’s but he’s in the elite bracket now. And, as an elite player, he should be. Don’t let it scare you off.
The Phantom’s Verdict: A SuperCoach powerhouse for years to come. A Brownlow might not be too far away either.
Clayton Oliver (Melb) $612,800
Oliver’s record after 35 career games is unmatched in the SuperCoach world. The 20-year-old has posted 17 SuperCoach tons, 11 scores between 80-100 and only failed to reach the 80-point barrier seven times. They are remarkable numbers.
With lightning-fast hands and an ability to win the footy before most others can get near it – two traits suited to SuperCoach – Oliver’s influence is hard to quell.
And his developing tank will only help him win more of the footy.
The Phantom’s Verdict: The next generation - which also includes Crow ball magnet Matt Crouch - is well-and-truly taking over. Like Kelly, Oliver may start the season as a slight point-of-difference given his rapid price rise.
THE FORGOTTEN MAN
TAYLOR ADAMS (Coll) $591,100
In the SuperCoach community, why do we always forget about popular players who lose their dual-position status, even if they are great scorers? It happens every year. In recent time, it’s happened with Dustin Martin, Dayne Zorko and Zach Merrett.
And in 2018, it’s happening with Adams.
Sure the Collingwood midfielder, who will spend time across half-back in 2018, needs tidy up a few areas of his game – errors by foot, in particular – he does everything else and in large volume.
As a SuperCoach defender in 2017, Adams scored 2365 points – a number that would’ve ranked him as the ninth-best midfielder in the competition. So why this year, when the 24-year-old is only available in the midfield bracket, are we not talking about him more? It’s a good question. One I’ve asked myself numerous times this pre-season already. Especially given the ball magnet averaged 120 over the final seven rounds of last year.
The Phantom’s Verdict: Adams is looming as a great midfield point-of-difference for the brave SuperCoaches out there. He should benefit – along with Adam Treloar – from a re-structure of the Magpie forward line.
LONG-TIME FAVOURITE
Scott Pendlebury (Coll) $586,500
The Collingwood skipper hasn’t started the season with a price tag of less than $600k – let alone $586k – since 2011.
And before last season, Pendlebury had not averaged less than 110 since 2010.
So, after an injury affected year, when the usually-consistent Pendlebury posted seven scores of less than 95, we are in unfamiliar territory with the 252-game star.
But, let’s face it, he’s still Collingwood’s best midfielder.
Even though a potential role behind the ball has been mentioned, for the Magpies to improve, Pendlebury still needs to be having an impact through the middle.
Have you ever picked up something from the supermarket at a reduced priced, merely because the packaging was ripped or slightly damaged? And, even though it may appear problematic, there is really nothing wrong with it?
That’s sort of like Scott Pendlebury in 2018.
Many will skim over last year’s scores and keep walking, just like some do in the supermarket aisle. Astute bargain hunters – and, in this instance, SuperCoaches - won’t.
The Phantom’s Verdict: The Phantom loves a bargain and will think long and hard about this one.
Originally published as SuperCoach preseason 2018: The Phantom’s verdict on premium midfielders
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