NRL SuperCoach bye planner 2025: James Tedesco leads top purchases for Origin period

Serious NRL SuperCoaches know the bye/Origin rounds are big moving weeks. MAX BRYDEN reveals the players to target and tactics to employ.

Serious SuperCoaches know the bye rounds are big moving weeks.

Despite it being simpler to field a side with the ‘best 13’ rule in place for the big byes in rounds 12, 15 and 18, having quality and not just a high quantity of players during these rounds can lead to big jumps in the rankings.

And that is what we’re here to help you with today – identifying the top targets for the Round 12 bye.

When assessing the best bye targets there are three factors we need to take into consideration. The first is ability, the second is availability and the third is match-ups.

Before we get onto the targets though, here’s a quick refresher on how the bye rounds work for SuperCoach Classic.

How the Byes work

The period between Rounds 12 and 19 is the Origin period and features both ‘Major’ and ‘Minor’ byes.

A ‘Major’ bye falls directly in the rounds leading into the State of Origin fixtures in Rounds 12, 15 and 18. During these weeks, State of Origin squad members are unavailable for their club sides and seven clubs also have a bye.

In these ‘Major’ weeks, scoring changes from your best 17 to your best 13 scoring players.

The ‘Minor’ or ‘Mini’ bye weeks fall directly after the State of Origin fixtures in Rounds 13, 16 and 19. Origin players will need to get through the Wednesday night games un-injured if they’re a chance to backup for their clubs.

They will also need to factor in things like travel if the State of Origin game is a long flight away from their club game.

In these ‘Minor’ bye weeks, three clubs are on the bye but scoring is as usual, with your best 17 scoring players counting towards your score.

While a lot of focus rightly goes towards the teams playing the “Major” bye weeks, it’s just as crucial to factor in availability for the ‘Minor’ bye weeks, especially if you have a lot of Origin players in your squad of 26.

NRL SuperCoach bye planner 2025.

Which Teams play the most Major Byes

Teams that play every Major bye: Bulldogs, Sea Eagles, Roosters.

Teams that play two major byes: Dragons, Knights, Cowboys, Rabbitohs, Dolphins, Sharks, Raiders.

Teams that play just one major bye: Titans, Storm, Warriors, Eels, Panthers, Broncos, Tigers.

Now we would never recommend you rip apart your side to ensure you can get bye coverage, but ensuring you’re tipping the scales of ownership towards the sides that play two or more byes will help your overall numbers.

Which Teams play the most Minor Byes

Teams that play every Minor bye: Titans, Storm, Knights, Warriors, Cowboys, Eels, Roosters, Panthers, Broncos, Tigers.

Teams that play two Minor byes: Dragons, Rabbitohs, Dolphins, Sharks, Raiders.

Teams that play just one Minor bye: Bulldogs, Sea Eagles.

Arguably the trickier weeks for the factors mentioned above, having a full side on deck for the Minor byes can actually provide you an advantage in difficult weeks.

There’s clearly a correlation between missing Major byes and playing Minor byes too which is important to consider.

Which sides are the best to target for Round 12

When it comes to the best sides to target for Round 12 it again comes down to availability and match-ups.

Off the bat, the best sides are the Sydney Roosters and Newcastle Knights who play the Major and Minor bye and have outstanding bye coverage overall.

The Panthers, Eels, Sea Eagles, Warriors and Raiders also play both the Major and Mini byes around this first State of Origin game, with the Sea Eagles also playing the second Major bye. These are accordingly the best clubs to focus on.

Conversely, the Dolphins play Round 12 against the Bulldogs who have the best defence in the competition, then a bye in Round 13 so are a side to avoid.

The Sharks have a bye in Round 13 but as they play the second Major bye are another side to strongly consider.

The best targets for Round 12

James Tedesco | FLB | $856,100 | 11.5 per cent owned

With Dylan Edwards expected to play State of Origin, Tedesco is a priority purchase for the Origin period. The Roosters’ bye coverage is superb and he is a skipper option every Major and Minor bye.

James Tedesco is a great buy for the byes. Picture: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

Dylan Lucas | 2RF / CTW | $646,900 | 13.2 per cent owned

An Origin smokey, Lucas is another priority target right now with his ability to finish as a Top 5 averaging player at both 2RF and CTW. The Knights don’t have a bye between now and Round 18 so the sooner you buy, the sooner you can enjoy his awesome work rate.

Joseph Tapine | FRF | $751,200 | 4.7 per cent owned

Origin is ‘Tapine Time’. As a proud Kiwi, he is a perennial player of interest during this period. Tapine represents a great sideways move from a Payne Haas or Terrell May with those two likely to be the starting props for the NSW Blues and potentially get reduced minutes during the eight weeks over Origin.

Reuben Garrick | CTW | $698,200 | 37.9 per cent owned

Manly play every Major bye but only one of the Minors. Given it’s the first Minor, Garrick is a great purchase and a player to lock into your team for the whole season. He likely finishes the year as the highest scoring CTW and one of the highest scoring players overall.

Greg Marzhew | CTW | $625,300 | 24.7 per cent owned

Greg’s strength is his floor. Few CTWs boast the ability to never score below 40 and that’s thanks to his insane work rate and tackle busting ability. He’s a set and forget for the season and surely a benefactor once the Knights work out how to attack.

Paul Alamoti | CTW | $574,700 | 4 per cent owned

Alamoti has quietly ticked along this year and has scored a lot of tries since shifting to the right wing. The Panthers play Round 12 without Nathan Cleary but come into a period with games against the Eels and Tigers straight afterwards. He will likely kick goals in Round 12 as well which is a plus.

Fletcher Sharpe | FLB / CTW | $587,600 | 10.4 per cent owned

Sharpe is another whose snuck along with an average of 60. With the Knights good bye coverage and the chance for him to play fullback with Ponga on rep duties, he’s a great point of difference.

Mark Nawaqanitawase | CTW | $575,200 | 7.6 per cent owned

A shift to the right wing in Round 8 didn’t slow down Mark, whose been one of the best mid-rangers of the year. He looks set to hold down a 65 average for the year and is still undervalued. The only caveat is the amount of Roosters you might have in your side - the maximum you want is probably five.

Kai Pearce-Paul | 2RF | $590,600 | 0.8 per cent owned

He’s flying under the radar big time but is banging out keeper numbers on his preferred right edge. Undervalued, consistent and super lowly owned. It’s a great week to buy KPP.

Erin Clark | FRF / 2RF | $577,200 | 11.9 per cent owned

You can pretty much copy paste the description of KPP. Clark’s work rate is insane and the only thing holding him back is minutes. In Round 8 he played 64 - his most of the season - and notched his first century of the year to boot. He’s looking like a guy who can bang a 60-65 score regularly.

Jacob Kiraz | CTW | $680,900 | 10.1 per cent owned

Kiraz is a keeper who plays the byes, so he’s a serious consideration for all non-owners. The slight risk that he plays for the NSW Blues this year probably keeps you away until at least Round 12. But with the Dogs playing every Major bye but just one Minor, he’s going to be an important piece over this period.

Nicho Hynes | HFB | $618,700 | 18.4 per cent owned

Nicho loses a point just based on the Sharks not backing up in Round 13. But the Sharks do play the first two majors which offsets that and he’s a likely VC or C option those weeks.

Addin Fonua-Blake | FRF | $662,600 | 21.1 per cent owned

Again, another player not impacted by State of Origin whose a very useful piece historically through this period. AFB has had his title for best FRF in the game challenged and taken this year by May and Haas, but with their Origin commitments Fonua-Blake will become relevant.

Players not considered but worth monitoring

To come up with this list I’ve had to take into account some expected State of Origin call ups. There are several players who become great purchases should they miss Origin, specifically Tom Trbojevic, Haumole Olakau’atu, Dylan Edwards and Hudson Young.

If you think those guys don’t play Origin, then have them in your trade plans too.

Final Thoughts

Quality over quantity is a great mantra for this period of SuperCoach. One gun can easily match or outscore two middling players during a bye week, and nailing your skipper is ultimately the great leveller even if your overall bye numbers are low.

It’s not worth trading out Origin bound guns just for plodders, but finding players you’re happy with week in and week out who also happen to have great bye coverage is the sweet spot.

Originally published as NRL SuperCoach bye planner 2025: James Tedesco leads top purchases for Origin period