SuperCoach Draft gives you a new and unique way to play Australia’s biggest fantasy sports game
SUPERCOACH Draft is another great way to enjoy SuperCoach with your mates. Here’s a breakdown on exactly what Draft is and how to play it. SIGN UP NOW!
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WHILE you may be familiar with the regular version of SuperCoach, there is another version you may have heard of but aren’t really sure about.
It’s called SuperCoach Draft and it’s another great way to enjoy SuperCoach with your mates. Here is a breakdown on exactly what Draft is and how to play it.
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WHAT IS DRAFT?
When we think draft we think of the NAB AFL Draft that occurs each year in November — and that is exactly the concept of this game. Just think of what would happen if all players in the AFL were thrown into a hat and each club picked them one at a time.
That is what SuperCoach Draft is. You and your mates get one pick after another and if you pick Patrick Dangerfield, then no one else in your league can have him in their side.
All players end up with unique teams, which makes this version of the game lots of fun and a bit different to SuperCoach Classic.
HOW DO I GET INVOLVED?
Simply register for SuperCoach Draft by clicking on the “Draft” button at the top of your screen after you have logged into your SuperCoach classic team.
The first thing you will notice is that there is no team to pick, but it will immediately ask you to join a league.
You can either create one for you and your mates or join a public league.
Once you have registered, you need to set a draft time which is when you get together online and pick your players. Just before your draft starts the SuperCoach site will open up a draft room where you will log in and when it is your turn, you can pick the player you want.
But if you or one of your mates doesn’t log in or can’t make the designated time, that’s OK, the system will do the drafting for them, so not being able to draft is no excuse for missing out on playing SuperCoach draft.
HOW MANY PLAYERS DO I SELECT?
This is the great part, it is entirely up to the league commissioner. There are eight different configurations of players you can select. You can also designate how many teams there are in the league.
Once you multiply the number of teams by the number of players you select, this tells you how deep you need to go into the player pool. What this will mean is you are considering players you would never normally look at for your classic side.
With the maximum number of teams of 18 and maximum player configurations 22, you can actually have a league that selects 396 unique players.
But don’t worry, if you don’t want to pick so many players you can go the smaller options where you have just a few players on each line.
WHO DO I PICK? AND WHEN SHOULD I PICK THEM?
This is where the draft strategy comes into it. When do you start picking rucks or when do you fill out your forwards and defenders? This will all depend on your draft position.
If you have one of the first three picks you are likely to be picking Tom Mitchell, Patrick Dangerfield or Dustin Martin. After that, we normally see the other top midfielders go off the board in a steady procession.
Don’t be frightened by some of the names you are faced with, you may find yourself picking guys you wouldn’t ever consider for the classic game, but this is draft and a player like Ryan Bastinac or Billy Hartung might just find their way into your side in the last few rounds.
The rucks are an interesting prospect.
Max Gawn, Paddy Ryder and Stef Martin will be among the first ones picked and sometimes this can be in the first round, however, rucks are more likely to be picked in the first two or three rounds but if you miss one of the top six there is usually a long wait before some of the other rucks like Zac Smith or Ben McEvoy will be taken.
While midfielders go off the board early, the top two or three forwards and defenders are also popular. So if you really want Rory Laird, Michael Hibberd or Jake Lloyd in your defence or Isaac Heeney, Lance Franklin or Sam Menegola up forward, don’t wait too long as they will likely be gone by the end of the third round.
The best defenders and forwards are usually those that will have a role through the midfield as well as down back or up forward, so guys like Devon Smith will come into contention.
Some coaches take all midfielders early then fill out the other positions, while others take the opposite view. It really depends on where you think the points will be.
But when you get to filling out your last on-field position or your bench and emergency spots, you should be looking at the players you think have some upside and could really fire and lift themselves to a good scoring level.
This could be someone like Allen Christensen or Jaeger O’Meara who are returning from injury and have slipped down the rankings and may be off the radar of your opponents.
IN-SEASON PLAY
Once the draft is finished and you are underway, the fun doesn’t end. Just like happens in the AFL during trade week you can trade players with your opponents, but here you can do it right through the season.
This is where the tactics and fun starts.
Not only can you trade with your mates for players you can also pick up those players who weren’t selected in the draft from the waiver wire.
Just like SuperCoach Classic you play your mates head-to-head throughout the year, then line up for a finals series.
Having unique teams means that each and every game has some meaning for you. You will also be interested in the scoring of some players you wouldn’t normally watch!
So there you have it, that is SuperCoach draft in a nutshell.
There is no better way to learn about how to play it than to just jump in and give it a try.
Hope to see you in the draft room soon!
FOLLOW PAUL DUNN ON TWITTER: @pkd73
Originally published as SuperCoach Draft gives you a new and unique way to play Australia’s biggest fantasy sports game
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