KFC SuperCoach NRL 2020 position breakdown: Halfback & 5/8
With so few standout options halfback and five-eighth, the halves could be the positions that make or break your SuperCoach NRL season in 2020.
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While your forwards are the engine room of your SuperCoach side, it’s positions like the halves that can really make or break your SuperCoach season, with some of the fewest quality options and arguably the worst depth.
With such few options do you follow the crowd and pick one of the more expensive, safer options like Nathan Cleary, or do you take a risk on someone like Anthony Milford?
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Given HFB and 5/8 have lower depth we combined them together for this analysis, but not every player will be covered and cheapies will be looked at in our Cheapie Bible here.
If you have a sneaky POD, think we got our analysis wrong – or much more rarely – right, then let us know in the comments below and let the SuperCoach banter begin.
PREMIUM $550K+
Cameron Munster 5/8 ($644,400) 2019 Avg: 69.3
With few quality options in the halves, I believe you need to lock in at least one premium halfback or 5/8, and you could hardly do better than Cameron Munster. Not only does he average the highest base stat points for a starting 5/8, he also had only one game in 2019 where he scored zero points for creative stats (Try Assist, Line Break assists and forced drop outs). He is the most consistent, and safest option at 5/8, but you will have to pay up for him.
Nathan Cleary HFB ($631,500) 2019 Avg: 68
Nathan Cleary might be is the best halfback in SuperCoach and he is worth the extra cash over someone like Shaun Johnson or Mitchell Moses. If you opt not to go with Munster at 5/8, then a gun HFB like Cleary is nearly a must have. While he isn’t a clear leader of the halves in too many metrics outside of scoring, he is the most well rounded option. With James Maloney departing the Panthers, Clearly also seems to have the most room for growth at the position and could go to another level in 2020. Cleary’s Panthers do have a pretty tough start to the season, with games against the Roosters, Storm and Raiders in the first five weeks, but overall they have one of the better draws.
Cody Walker 5/8 ($602,800) 2019 Avg: 64.9
If you want to take a bit more of a risk at 5/8 and pick a player with a higher ceiling but lower floor than Munster, Cody Walker is the guy for you. Walker scored more tries than any other 5/8 in 2019 with 16 and in games where he scored a try he averaged 78 points, but where he did not cross the stripe he averaged just 51. Still respectable, but potentially not worth it at his high price point. Walker is unlikely to play State of Origin again in 2020, so he will cover the all-important Round 12 bye!
Shaun Johnson HFB|5/8 ($585,500) 2019 Avg: 63
The SuperCoach halfback of the decade had a mixed year in 2019, managing an average of 63 despite a slow start and injury forcing him to miss seven games. His scoring stats also suffered as he struggled with his goal kicking and shared the responsibilities with Chad Townsend. If you started the season with Johnson you were probably pretty disappointed and maybe even traded him out, but if you brought him in late you were loving life. While Nathan Cleary was the best halfback in SuperCoach last year, you can never write off SJ.
Mitchell Moses HFB ($579,300) 2019 Avg: 62.3
If Moses had kept his dual eligibility, he would have been one of my first choices at 5/8, but he has a lot of upside in 2020 and is still worth taking a look at. At the time of Moses is currently the second most owned 5/8 in SuperCoach, not surprising given he comes much cheaper than the other gun options. After a down year in 2018, the Parramatta playmaker bounced back in superb form, leading the competition in try assists in 2019 with 25 and as the Eels improved, Moses also saw more goal kicking opportunities. Parramatta also have one of the best schedules in the NRL, including a great start to the season facing bottom eight teams from 2019 in the first six weeks, as well as covering the round 12 bye.
Daly Cherry-Evans HFB ($576,200) 2019 Avg: 62
The best halfback in SuperCoach of 2018, Cherry-Evans had a down year in 2019, with injury limiting him to 19 games, a big drop in base stats and the loss of goal kicking duties. Despite this, DCE’s average remained exactly the same year on year, as he picked up the slack with more try assists. Cherry-Evans has averaged exactly 62 for three years in a row now, so you cant say he isn’t consistent. If Cherry-Evans were goal kicking he would have a lot more upside and would be a much more tempting option, but at his price I think you’re better off spending a bit more for a player with more upside.
Luke Keary 5/8 ($569,400) 2019 Avg: 61.3
Being a playmaker for arguably the best attacking team in the competition, Keary had more try assists than any other 5/8 in 2019, despite missing five games throughout the season. As a result he averaged more creative points than any other 5/8’s, but unfortunately this is the only area he leads at the position and seems dependant on Try Assists for decent scores. It’s also worth noting that he has had a shocking run with concussions and could miss significant time if he suffers a bad head knock in 2020.
Ben Hunt HFB ($553,600) 2019 Avg: 59.6
With Gareth Widdop gone Ben Hunt will be under all sorts of pressure to really show he is worth his huge price tag at the Dragons. Whether he can actually live up to the expectation is another question however. That being said Hunt did still manage to have a decent 2019 in terms of SuperCoach, averaging just under 60 with Gareth Widdop missing most of the season. At his price you can still rely on him to get you a respectable score at a near $80k discount from Cleary; but again, there are better options in his price range.
MID-PRICERS $550K-$400K
Luke Brooks HFB ($539,800) 2019 Avg: 58.1
Luke Brooks was a big surprise for SuperCoach in 2019, averaging 58 for the season and a whopping 76 in the final five games of the season. This is up from his 2018 season average of 48, which is a huge jump! Is Brooks finally starting to live up to his potential? The Tigers open their 2020 season with four games in a row against bottom eight teams from last year, so Brooks could maybe see a decent price rise early on if he performs well. However, with his low floor – Brooks scored under 50PPG in 10 games last year – there is still a fair bit of risk.
Jahrome Hughes HFB/FLB ($524,000) 2019 Avg: 56.4
While some SuperCoaches may think Hughes is set to be a loser from his move back to the halves, I’d like to point out that in four games when playing in the halves in 2019 he averaged 71 as compared to his fullback average of 52.9. Admittedly Hughes’ average at HFB over six games in 2018 was just 46.7, so perhaps his 71PPG average for 2019 was an outlier. Hughes’ dual position is also somewhat interesting, but he also has a tough start to the 2020 season and misses round 12. There are better mid-range options out there.
Adam Reynolds HFB ($509,900) 2019 Avg: 54.9
With 10 try contributions and more forced drop outs in 2019, Reynolds saw a slight buff to his 2018 average. Reynolds was very consistent with only one score below 40 for the season, something none of the premium halfback options managed to achieve. The main problem with Reynolds just seems to be that he doesn't have the upside of other half options, with a 2019 season high score of just 81. Reynolds is a safe but low ceiling option and assuming he doesn't play State of Origin he also covers the Round 12 bye.
Anthony Milford 5/8/FLB ($476,000) 2019 Avg: 51.2
A SuperCoach gun of the past, and honourable mention in the SuperCoach team of the decade, Milford has seen a steep decline in recent seasons, from an average of 70 in 2017, to just over 50 in 2019. The biggest reasons behind this huge drop has been a decline in try assists, line break assists and offloads. The move to fullback in 2019 saw a slight increase to Milford’s average at 5/8 from 50.6 to 52 and nets him a handy dual position status this year, but he looks set to return to the halves for Brisbane. Milf played his best footy with Ben Hunt by his side, so perhaps Brodie Croft can relieve some of the pressure and we can see him bounce back to near his 2017 form, which would make him an absolute bargain at $476k.
Michael Morgan HFB|5/8 ($471,600) 2019 Avg: 50.8
Morgan started off at just $409k in 2019 and looked to be an interesting bounce back player after an injury affected 2018, but SuperCoaches who went with him (myself included) would have been very disappointed. Like Adam Reynolds, Morgan’s ceiling seems to be pretty low, and he also doesn't have a reliable floor with nine games below 50 points. While he’s never really been a SuperCoach relevant option, Morgan is one player who I think should definitely be avoided in 2020. If you want to take a punt on a mid-range option, I’d recommend spending slightly more on one of the players above who have more upside.
Kyle Flanagan HFB|5/8 ($461,200) 2019 Avg: 49.6
Kyle Flanagan has big shoes to fill, as he looks to replace Cooper Cronk at the reigning premiers, but at this stage looks like a player to avoid in 2020. If you remove a game where he played 26 minutes of the bench for the Sharks, his 2019 average jumps up to 54.9. Still not elite by any means but still a big improvement. We just haven't seen enough of him to warrant spending that kind of money when there are safer mid-range options. If you want a low-price half, you’re much better going with our bargain bin option.
BARGAIN BIN $400K-$300K
George Williams HFB | 5/8 ($333,800) 2019 Avg. N/A
The English test halfback joining the Canberra Raiders from the Super League looks set to start for last year’s runners up, and shapes as a must have for SuperCoaches at his bargain price. Although there are no SuperCoach stats to go off, his Super League numbers from 2019 are pretty impressive. Williams made 408 runs in 29 Super League games last season (for an average of 14 hit-ups a game), busting 122 tackles, breaking the line 18 times and offloading 46 times. Add to that 21 try assists and 14 tries and you have a near must-have SuperCoach player given his price.
PPG: Points Per Game
MPG: Minutes Per Game
PPM: Points Per Minute – a useful indication of workrate particularly relevant to forwards (as most backs play the full 80 minutes) as a player with a good PPM who is set to see an increase in MPG could see a big increase in PPG.
Base Points: Base points are those earned in hit-ups plus tackles (some statisticians subtract points lost for missed tackles when calculating this). They are valued by SuperCoaches as it is considered a reliable guide to future output unlike attacking stats which except for the truly exceptional are far less reliable.
BPPM: Base Points Per Minute
POD: Point Of Difference
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Originally published as KFC SuperCoach NRL 2020 position breakdown: Halfback & 5/8