SuperCoach NRL Draft 2025: Top sleepers, ultimate value picks to help win your league
While most people in NRL SuperCoach Draft focus on early picks, the coaches who often go on to win leagues are those with a solid game plan for the later rounds.
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While most people in NRL SuperCoach Draft focus solely on early picks, the coaches who often go on to win leagues are those who also have a solid game plan for the mid to late rounds of the draft.
While it’s obviously crucial to nail your early picks with some legitimate guns and fill low depth positions, the real meat of the draft is much later … the hidden gems and the ultimate value.
Everyone has their eyes on the proven players, but how many people will looking for true value with players like Peter Mamouzelos or Lewis Dodd?
With the way the draft picker works, every player will have a pre-draft position and, unless you alter your pre-draft rankings manually (PDR), when the live draft starts they will be ordered like this for everyone in your league. And we can use this to our advantage.
The pre-draft ranking system means that players could have a deceptively low ranking and be extremely far down the list for your rivals, despite them having some massive upside or potential.
This means you can often afford to wait on these guys, keep them in your back pocket and get some value on them late in the draft.
The average draft position filter in SuperCoach helps you see where players are actually being taken in drafts, in order to get a sense of just how long you can realistically afford to wait.
In this analysis we’ll only be looking at players with a pre-draft ranking (PDR) over 150, with an average draft position (ADP) over 150 and/or players ranked outside the top 10 at their position.
In an ideal world, these are the players you can look to draft in the later rounds. In a standard 10-person draft league a total of 170 players (204 in a 12-person league) will be drafted, so anyone with a low pre-draft ranking could be missed entirely.
Maybe its their first year playing in the NRL or maybe they’re extremely low because of a down or injury-affected year. Whatever the reason, these are the high upside guys you should consider targeting late in your draft.
P.S: Be sure to come back here throughout the pre-season as there will be more names to add to the list as we get closer to season kick-off and we have a better sense of how teams will look in Round 1.
HONOURABLE MENTION: TINO FA’ASUAMALEAUI (2RF/FRF) – TITANS
Now I know I just said I’d only be looking at players with a pre-draft ranking of 150+ etc but I would be remiss if I did not at least mention Tino, who’s PDR of 121 is still deceptively low. At the start of 2024 he was being drafted very early after coming off his 2023 average of 78, but after suffering an ACL injury after just two poor games in 2024 his draft position has plummeted. He will need to be drafted much higher than the majority of people on the rest of this list, but he does still offer some extreme value. Be aware he does have the Round 1 bye however.
PETER MAMOUZELOS (HOK) – RABBITOHS
The departure of Damien Cook means the Rabbitohs No.9 jersey is up for grabs, and Mamouzelos shapes to be the big winner. His 2024 average of 30.94 is a bit misleading given he mostly played off the bench, but in the one game he started (Round 6) he scored an impressive 73, while also averaging 59.8 in games where he played 55 minutes or more. His low average means he has a PDR of 350 and is the 32nd ranked hooker, so you should be able to get him pretty late!
SANDON SMITH (HFB/HOK) – ROOSTERS
Injuries and some big name departures mean that Sandon Smith is in line for the starting five-eighth role for the Roosters in 2025. While his 2024 numbers aren’t too impressive, he did score 88 and 51 points in his two games as a starter, while also having a handy dual position. Has a pre-draft ranking of 390.
DANIEL SAIFITI (FRF) – DOLPHINS
Saifiti is off to the Dolphins in 2025, a team somewhat desperate for middle forwards since joining the competition. His numbers were down at Newcastle in 2024, averaging just 44 points and 43 minutes a game, but he has shown in the past that he can be a SuperCoach relevant prop when he plays bigger minutes. In the final six rounds of 2024 his minutes were up to 49.5 a game and we saw his average points jump to 51.8. I expect him to see more minutes at the Dolphins in 2025 and while there are already a host of acceptable front rowers in the mid to late rounds, he is one of the few with some real value given his PDR of 223.
TOM GILBERT (2RF) – DOLPHINS
The Dolphins forward is among the best sleepers to target in 2025 and pretty much the epitome of this list. He missed the entire 2024 season with an ACL injury, so comes in with a PDR of 191, and is the 57th ranked 2RF. But he was a revelation in his first season at the Dolphins in 2023, averaging a respectable 59 points a game. Now while this number would have only seen him finish as the 23rd highest averaging 2RF of 2024, he still offers tremendous value considering you can likely pick him up late in your drafts.
LEWIS DODD (HFB) – RABBITOHS
Rabbitohs recruit Lewis Dodd looks set to start at halfback at the Bunnies in 2024, with Lachlan Ilias off to the Dragons, Jack Wighton moving back to centre and Cody Walker moving back to five-eighth. The Englishman has never played in the NRL but has played 88 games for St Helens since 2020 despite being just 22-years of age. He also played in the 2023 team that beat Penrith in the World Club Challenge. So while we don't have any real data to work with he does have some big raps on him and with a PDR of 322 certainly has some tremendous upside.
LUKE METCALF (5/8) – WARRIORS
While the Warriors’ halves situation is a bit up in the air following the retirement of Shaun Johnson, we expect Metcalf to be the starting five-eighth to start the year. He played just seven games in 2024 due to injury, but showed he has what it takes to be a solid option in SuperCoach Draft. If you take out an injury affected game where he played just 10 minutes, his average jumps from 50 to 58 and with a PDR of 205, he offers some late value at a position where there really isn’t much value to be had.
EZRA MAM (5/8) – BRONCOS
Okay so I know what you’re thinking. Wilson, he’s suspended for the first nine rounds, why on earth would I draft him? And you’re right, he is a player who should absolutely not be drafted in the early rounds. However, he has proven to be a gun five-eighth in the past and the position is pretty dire this year in terms of quality depth, so there is a solid argument for him to be a good stash candidate if you can get him late. As mentioned above he is suspended and coming off a pretty bad year so has a PDR of 167, but I expect the Broncos to be better in 2025 and he could come good when he returns.
CAMPBELL GRAHAM (CTW) – RABBITOHS
Jeez there are a few Rabbitohs on the list this year! After missing the entire 2024 season with a sternum injury, Campbell Graham comes into the 2025 season with a pre-draft ranking of 157, which is one of the highest numbers on this list, but he is well worth mentioning and targeting in your drafts. In the two seasons prior he had season averages of 69 in 2023 and 63 in 2022, finishing among the best performing CTWs of those years. Now he starts the year as the 54th ranked CTW, but has the upside to finish in the top 10. Count me in.
JESSE MCLEAN/ CASEY MCLEAN (CTW) – PANTHERS
The departure of Sunia Turuva means there is a backline spot up for grabs at the Panthers, with one of the McLean brothers in the box seat to win it. Casey (PDR of 206) played seven games in 2024 with an average of 50 and is the most likely of the two to start, while Jesse (PDR of 393) played one game and scored a respectable 48 points. The Panthers have one of the best offences in the league, and whoever gets the starting spot could provide some massive value in draft.
COWBOYS OUTSIDE BACKS
With the departures of Valentine Holmes and Kyle Feldt there are two backline spots up for grabs in 2025, with Viliami Vailea, Jaxon Purdue, Jaxson Paulo, Zac Laybutt and Semi Valemei among the contenders. It’s unclear who actually gets the spots, but given the high attacking potential for the Cowboys, whoever does get the nod could offer tremendous value, especially considering these guys all have a PDR of 243+. Braidon Burns (PDR of 92) is a also a contender, he may be taken earlier in drafts, especially if anyone in your league is autodrafting.
MARK NAWAQANITAWASE/ ROBERT TOIA/ BILLY SMITH (CTW) – ROOSTERS
Just like the Cowboys above, there are backline spots up for grabs at the Roosters following the loss of centres Joseph Sua’ali’i and Joey Manu, and similarly we don’t know exactly who will get the nod, but there are less contenders than at the Cowboys. Mark Nawaqanitawase (PDR of 212) played just one game in 2024, scoring 64 points and definitely passed the eye test. Robert Toia (PDR of 547) is yet to make his debut, but has plenty of raps on him, while Billy Smith (PDR of 342) is the most experienced of the three but also hasn’t featured much in recent years due to injury. The Roosters attack is not expected to be as high powered as it was in 2024, but they still have plenty of threats and whoever gets the starting centre spots could provide some value.
ISAIAH IONGI (FLB) – EELS
The exit of skipper and starting fullback Clint Gutherson means the Parramatta Eels’ No.1 jersey is up for grabs, and new recruit Isaiah Iongi looks set to slip straight into it.
Iongi started just one game for the Panthers in 2024, and while he scored just 47 points, he certainly passed the eye test and there is a lot of potential here. Because of all this he has an extremely low PDR of 433, so should be widely available. The main downside is that he shapes to be a popular cheapie in SuperCoach Classic so could be on the radar of some of your league rivals.
Originally published as SuperCoach NRL Draft 2025: Top sleepers, ultimate value picks to help win your league
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