SuperCoach Plus: 11 things you need to know for round 19 of the 2023 AFL season

Where does Max Gawn’s monster game rank in KFC SuperCoach history? Plus key stats on James Sicily, Tim English, Zach Merrett and some left-field picks you should consider.

KFC SuperCoach is about getting the little things right.

Or the big things, in the case of Max Gawn’s immense 215-point game last round.

But with trade, cash and options running out, every extra point you can gain from picking the right captain or the right emergency score can add up in head-to-head match-ups and in the chase for rankings glory.

This is where SuperCoach Plus can be a key weapon in your fantasy arsenal.

Features available to SuperCoach Plus subscribers including score and price projections, Break Evens and live trade data. Plus exclusive weekly analysis articles just like this one!

Here are 11 nuggets to lift the lid on the KFC SuperCoach scoring system and help you make the best trade and captaincy calls for round 18.

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1. MASSIVE MAX

Since last year’s trade period coaches at Melbourne and in the fantasy world wondered how the Max Gawn-Brodie Grundy combination would work best. It turns out that might be with Grundy in the VFL and Gawn owning the No.1 ruck role. He produced the best individual performance of the season on Friday night against Brisbane, playing 92 per cent of game time – that figure was close to 100 per cent in the second half – and racking up 29 disposals, 10 clearances, seven tackles, a goal and 17 hitouts to advantage. It was Gawn’s highest-rated performance in his past 74 appearances and he became one of only two players to record 25-plus disposals, 15-plus hitouts to advantage and 10-plus clearances in a game. The other was Max Gawn in 2019.

2. TITANIC TIM

Gawn’s performance overshadowed an enormous game in the ruck from Tim English on Thursday night against the Swans. Attending 101 ruck contests at the SCG, English had 60 hitouts including a career-high 21 to advantage to go with 22 disposals, 10 clearances and seven inside-50s to post 173 KFC SuperCoach points – his 10th score over 130 this season. He has scored 336 more points than the second-ranked ruckman this year, Rowan Marshall, and his average of 127.6 is miles ahead of Jarrod Witts (110.3) and Marshall (107.9) – Gawn’s season average is 101.8. English is now valued at a season-high $671k and he has the $700k mark in his sights with a match-up this week against Essendon back-up ruckman Andrew Phillips – or possibly his back-up Nick Bryan.

Max Gawn played one of his best games against Brisbane. Picture: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images

Tim English has been consistently brilliant. Picture: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images

3. RO NO

The ruck separated KFC SuperCoach teams in round 18, especially when coaches with either (or both!) of the ruckmen above faced off against sides with Rowan Marshall flying the flag. Coming off a season-high 149 points against Gawn and Grundy, Marshall produced his worst score of the year against Gold Coast. His first half was a disaster, scoring just 17 points with one hitout to advantage. By the final siren he had added two more hitouts to advantage to go with 19 disposals. An overall kicking efficiency of 44 per cent – the second-lowest of any Saint – didn’t help his cause, either. Marshall has a chance to redeem himself against North Melbourne and Tristan Xerri in the last game of the round on Sunday.

4. SURPRISE SICILY SHOCKER

Just over 6500 coaches tuned into Hawthorn’s clash against North Melbourne on Sunday in eager anticipation of a huge score from their high-priced recruit James Sicily. But the Hawks captain – and North Melbourne coaching box – were following a very different script. Young Kangaroo Eddie Ford was handed a role on Sicily and kept him to just 10 disposals in the 67 minutes they were matched up. Sicily had to wait until the 25-minute mark of the opening term to get his first disposal, which was a clanger kick. Overall he lost over 12 points from negative acts to finish with just 58 points, his lowest return since round 12, 2020. Sicily has a chance for redemption over the next two weeks with match-ups against Richmond and St Kilda. Sicily’s past three scores against the Tigers are 118, 141 and 128, and he went even bigger against St Kilda in round 11 this year. In that encounter at Marvel Stadium Sicily had 42 disposals, 21 intercept possessions, eight intercept marks and 172 KFC SuperCoach points. Summing up his season, Sicily cost himself a 200-point return by giving away two 50m penalties and was later suspended for a high hit on Anthony Caminiti.

James Sicily took a while to warm up after returning from suspension. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images

5. MERRETT GROUNDED

Zach Merrett’s incredible run came to an end in Geelong on Saturday night, where the Bombers’ finals hopes might have also run aground. After four scores over 130 Merrett could manage just 69 KFC SuperCoach points against the Cats, collecting 18 disposals, well down on his season average of 28.6. Mark O’Conner kept him to just 11 disposals in the 54 minutes they were matched up, while Tom Atkins also spent time on Merrett and kept him to four disposals in 21 minutes. Merrett had no space to work in and took just two marks. He also hit the target just 46 per cent of the time – his fourth-worst return for the year. Interestingly, it was the implied pressure that was his downfall as only 56 per cent of his disposals were under pressure – the fourth-lowest percentage of any Bomber.

6. TAGGER TIME?

The spectre of the tagger is enough to send a shudder down the spines of fantasy players. But Chris Scott has used O’Connor selectively, with his 54 minutes on Merrett his longest match-up of the year. Finn Maginness did a number on Josh Kelly in round 17 and held him to just one disposal from 54 minutes, while also keeping Zach Merrett to five disposals from 50 minutes in the season opener. But those two matches remain his only two midfield negating roles. Ken Hinkley tried deploying Lachie Jones in a negating role the last time Port Adelaide and Collingwood met in round 2 but it’s fair to say it didn’t work all that well. Daicos had 32 disposals, two goals and 149 KFC SuperCoach points while Jones had five disposals and 17 points. In fairness Jones’ form has been a lot better of late, with a three-round average of 87.7.

The Cats did their homework on Zach Merrett. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images

7. FLANDERS ON FIRE

The pre-season hype is real. Unfortunately, it took until late in the season for Sam Flanders to show that coaches who liked him in the pre-season were onto something. Since round 15 he leads the Suns for KFC SuperCoach points, averaging 110, and ranks No.1 among mid-forwards in the AFL for disposals, contested possessions and inside-50s, and is No.1 in all positions for groundball gets. The return of Touk Miller hasn’t hurt his role in the team with Flanders spending 55 per cent of game time in the midfield and 43 per cent forward over those rounds. He won at least 13 contested possessions in every game and had a career-high 33 disposals last round against the Saints. Flanders has gained almost $200,000 in value and will keep going up – his Break Even is 23 this week against GWS. At $427,300 and with dual-position status, he needs to be considered as a Tom Green replacement.

8. GOING SOLDO

Looking for a left-field recruit? Continuing the ruck theme of the week you could roll the dice on unlikely Richmond bubble boy Ivan Soldo. Soldo played one game the first 17 rounds – scoring 85 against the Suns in round 7 – then returned last weekend to cover for suspended co-captain Toby Nankervis. Soldo was the second-best scorer in the Tigers’ win against West Coast, scoring 126 KFC SuperCoach points from 11 disposals, one goal and 12 hitouts to advantage. Priced at just $297,300 and listed as a RUC-FWD, he goes into his third game of the year – a favourable ruck match-up against Hawthorn – with a BE of -41. The only concern is what will the Tigers do with the rucks when Nankervis is back from suspension in round 21.

Could you find a spot for Ivan Soldo in your forward line? Picture: Daniel Carson/AFL Photos via Getty Images

9. TAYLOR MADE

Soldo is a massive POD but does feature in 1433 teams. If you really want to be different, Giants defender Sam Taylor is in just 513 squads but has the sixth-best three-round average in defence, just ahead of Jordan Dawson. While many coaches turned to Harry Himmelberg as a premium defender, he has been outshone by Taylor – who has a three-round average of 121.7 compared to Himmelberg’s 84.7. Taylor’s intercept play has been well-documented and he is averaging a career-high 10.6 intercepts this year, the most recorded by any player since the measure was introduced. He has won 12, 13, and 16 intercepts in his past three games – scoring over 110 in each game including 130 against the Crows last weekend. Taylor is priced at a very affordable $482,800 (BE 28) but he would be a risk – in the week before his hot run started he scored 43 points against Fremantle.

10. CAPTAINS CORNER

The 1 per cent of coaches who put the C or VC on Max Gawn gained a huge advantage last round, although coaches who entrusted Tim English with the armband would have been very happy as well. The Bulldogs’ Friday night match-up against Essendon makes English an obvious VC pick again this week, while non-English owners could hope for a bounce-back game from Zach Merrett or another big Marcus Bontempelli performance (he averages 114 in his past three against Essendon and has a five-round average of 132). Gawn faces Adelaide and Reilly O’Brien on Sunday; he averages 110 in his past three against the Crows but in current form anything is possible. Christian Petracca has an incredible record against Adelaide, averaging 143 in his past three against the Crows including 189 at Adelaide Oval last year. Other options this weekend include Nick Daicos against the Power, Errol Gulden (average 132 in his pat three v Fremantle) and Rory Laird (av 119 in past three v Melbourne). If you are one of the 12,000 coaches with Charlie Curnow, he could dine out again against the Eagles, a team he has scored 186 and 142 against in his past two encounters.

11. LIONS SHARE

The 74,000 coaches who have held Will Ashcroft since round 1 had another win with a 102-point game against Melbourne. Ashcroft surged through the $500k barrier and has a BE of 37 as the Lions return to the Gabba this week. And he’s not the only Lions rookie who is surging late in the season. Darcy Wilmot was in 95,000 teams in round 3 and that number has dropped to just under 38,000, but those stalwarts have enjoyed a great run since a season-low 29 points against the Crows in round 11. In his past six games Wilmot has averaged 86.3, and that has jumped to 98.7 in his past three. Wilmot has enjoyed 15 consecutive price rises and is now worth $427,100 – a huge profit of $303,200 from his starting price.

Originally published as SuperCoach Plus: 11 things you need to know for round 19 of the 2023 AFL season