SuperCoach NRL: Wilfred Zee’s Five Fearless Predictions for round four

FORMER SuperCoach NRL champion Wilfred Zee gazes deep into his crystal ball to deliver five fearless predictions for round four.

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I DON’T know about you, but I have been enjoying the footy so far this season. Sure, it’s not always perfect, but isn’t that the opening month in every year?

I’m loving the footy for the unpredictability, the upsets, the last-gasp wins — it’s been great! From the Broncos to the Warriors to the Bulldogs and the Rabbitohs, the wins could not be more different yet they are all worth two competition points at the end of the day.

Sorry, back to SuperCoach — presented by hipages — hmm, now I’m depressed! How can such exciting footy translate to such a bad SuperCoach week!

I mean, aside from those who owned Widdop or one of Dufty, Lafai or Hunt, your team most likely struggled this week.

Throw in subpar SuperCoach performances from almost all the popular players and it’s been a tough week that I’m sure we’re all keen to put behind us.

Let’s look at Round 4.

Anthony Milford is the latest candidate for the Catfish curse. Picture: Getty Images

1. Captain Pick

I think I might just retire this section or place it on suspension until I can get my act together. 20 points?! Just 20 points?! You gotta be kidding me Teddy!

That’s easily my worst Captain score since Sam Burgess got injured and scored 20 as my Captain in 2016 (I can confirm that your Captain scoring 20x2 hurts a lot more when you’re sitting No.1 in the overall standings than back in the 8000s).

I’m going back to the well on this one — Anthony Milford playing at Suncorp Stadium, against the Titans.

I mean, Gareth Widdop just dropped 173 points on them from the same position (left side of the field, playing five-eighth).

He has a low score of 37 and a high score of 167, averaging 78.1 from the seven games he has played against the Titans.

Hoping that he can nudge his average against the Titans to well above 80 after this week.

Johnathan Thurston is poised to make the Panthers pay. Picture: Getty Images

2. Stud of the Week — Johnathan Thurston

I must have put the mock on almost all the players I picked to do well. Last week Lolo only managed 44 and scored well below his average against the Storm. Naturally, right?

Well, word of warning to owners of this popular player: this week I’m going to nominate JT as the Stud of the Week — his second time in four rounds.

The reason? Well, injury has rocked the Panthers, and no injury will be felt more than their star halfback, Nathan Cleary.

The Cowboys are also coming off two losses and need this win to get their top four prospects back on track.

The Panthers have also given up the second most points to the halfback position in 2018, albeit it’s a small sample size of only three games so far.

Cameron Munster has struggled to find his feet at five-eighth. Picture: AAP

3. Flop of the Week — Cameron Munster

Ignoring his Round 1 score, since he was playing fullback, Munster has been relatively disappointing at five eighth so far. This is despite the Storm scoring 30 points on the Cowboys last week. He doesn’t quite look the same, and with a break-even of 119 this week, he needs to go before he bleeds more cash. He’s also up against the Sharks this week, who areone of the stronger defensive sides in the competition. In fact, he scored only 30-odd points against the Sharks last year, when playing at five eighth. That’s enough for me to call him as this week’s Flop. Of course, if you think he’s still the real deal, then stick with him and ride the POD train!

Anthony Milford and Suncorp Stadium ... enough said. Picture: AAP

4. Highest pointscorer for this week

Getting straight to the point on this one: Anthony Milford. Plays five-eighth, just like Gareth Widdop. Plays on the left side predominantly, just like Gareth Widdop. Plays the Titans this week, just like Gareth Widdop last week.

Specific to Milford, he is also playing at Suncorp Stadium, easily his happiest hunting ground where he consistently busts out big SuperCoach scores. I don’t need any more reasons to pick him as the highest pointscorer this week!

This is (maybe) the week the Eels get their act together. Picture. Phil Hillyard

5. Upset of the Round — the Eels

This is a tough call to make, because I actually quite like all the favourites in this week’s match-ups.

The Eels have their backs to the wall, sitting dead last on the competition ladder with a 0-3 record and the worst points differential.

They are also affected by injuries, and this week they face the giant-killing Tigers.

Last year, the Eels were a physical, mentally tough team who weren’t afraid to grind out wins. Could we see a return to that team this week?

The Tigers have shown that they are a different team this season and they will drag teams down to into their game plan.

I just have a little feeling about the Eels this week though, we could see something start to build …

Bring on Round 4

I am super undecided on my trades this week. It’s probably the toughest start to the SuperCoach season that I can remember for a number of years now.

There are so many options that are floating around the same place, and minimal standouts aside from in positions that are overflowing with good options … it’s a tough one this week. Good luck to all of you in deciding your trades this week — bring on the footy!

Originally published as SuperCoach NRL: Wilfred Zee’s Five Fearless Predictions for round four