The Phantom’s Trade Talk: Tom Liberatore is averaging 105 points per game and his scoring is following a similar path to his career-best year of 2014

More than 3100 SuperCoaches have traded Tom Liberatore. But he’s averaging 105 and his scoring is following a similar path to his career-best yearr of 2014. This is your warning.

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More than 3100 SuperCoaches have traded Tom Liberatore. But he’s averaging 105 and his scoring is following a — strangely — similar path to his career-best year of 2014. This is your warning.

At lunchtime on Wednesday, 3168 SuperCoaches have already traded out Tom Liberatore ahead of Round 7.

And there’s plenty more planning to do the same before Friday’s first lockout.

If you are one of those coaches, keep reading.

After adding more than $190k to his price tag in the opening five rounds, Liberatore’s price took a hit for the first time after a 71-point performance against the Dockers.

But with an average 105 — despite the low score in Round 6 — and proven scoring-power, the 26-year-old is a chance to become a season-long keeper.

A starting price of $300k doesn’t mean you have to worry about a price fall.

So, don’t.

Liberatore ranks fourth in the competition for clearances and sixth for contested possessions and groundball gets.

And he has more SuperCoach points than popular selections Tom Rockliff, Stephen Coniglio and Clayton Oliver.

The clearance machine ranks equal-17th for tackles — a stat he led the competition for in 2014 — after recording just one against the Dockers in Round 6.

A young Tom Liberatore in 2014.

Speaking of 2014, his scoring is following a — strangely — similar path to his career-best year this season.

In that year, Liberatore opening his account with 79 points.

In 2019, he finished with 75 points in Round 1.

Following a 154-point performance against the Tigers in Round 3, Liberatore’s average was 115 after three weeks in 2014.

This season, Liberatore’s score of 150 points in the third week saw his average sit at 118 at the conclusion of Round 3.

Through rounds four to six in 2014, Liberatore posted scores of 82, 76 and 96 to record an average of 100 after six rounds.

In Round 5 against the Blues, Liberatore tallied 18 disposals — the first time he had failed to win at least 20 for the year — and 76 points.

Sound familiar?

In Round 5 this year, with Carlton, again, the opponent, Liberatore had just 19 disposals after averaging 28 across the first month.

While it resulted in 96 points, he scored in the 70s a week later against the Dockers.

In 2014, it was the reverse, with Liberatore following-up his 76-point performance with 96 against the Crows in Round 6.

He then went bang.

Liberatore, the Bulldog’s best-and-fairest in 2014, posted scores of 139, 171, 137, 125, 112 and 142 in his next six games, to boast a 119-point average after 14 rounds.

While there were two scores of 84 or less, amongst six SuperCoach tons, in the run home, he finished the year as the 7th-ranked scorer in the competition.

Of course, it’s a very different Bulldogs side and a very different competition but it’s just a warning for those writing him off already.

There are differences, sure, but it also does resemble the story of Giant Stephen Coniglio last year. While he wasn’t as cheap, Coniglio started the season at the bargain price of $452k, after missing most of 2017 through injury.

The midfielder star got off to a flyer, posting SuperCoach tons in the opening five weeks, but started to lose money in Round 6 and by Round 9, his average was 106 and his price tag back to $477k.

Stephen Coniglio at Giants training last week.

Coniglio recorded five scores of 89 or less but also four scores of more than 138 for the remainder of the year.

He finished 2018 as the 14th-ranked SuperCoach scorer in the game.

Like Liberatore, his big scores outweighed the disappointing ones.

At the very least, upgrade a number of your rookies elsewhere and reassess the form of Liberatore at the Bulldogs’ Round 12 bye.

If he means missing out on Nat Fyfe this week, then so be it.