KFC SuperCoach 2021: Gilbert Gardiner’s seven must-have starters

From a player branded the Christian Petracca of 2021 to a huge pre-season bolter, Gilbert Gardiner names the KFC SuperCoach players you can’t go without.

Jordan De Goey is primed for more midfield action in 2021.

Would you build a house without a foundation?

No!

So, why run the risk of picking a KFC SuperCoach team without one?

Everyone knows the big name stars to pick — the Jake Lloyds, Lachie Neales and Max Gawns of this world — but it is the players you miss that separate the contenders from the pretenders.

If you’re going to challenge for the $50,000 grand prize — or league bragging rights — you must nail the starting 30-man, $10 million squad.

Gilbert Gardiner’s Magnificent Seven may not be the biggest stars in our game, but they will be your cement slab for a season of success, pumping out points early and setting you up for the crucial mid-season upgrades.

Over the next few weeks astute SuperCoach minds will digest a range of list management questions.

How many elite scorers can we squeeze in? What is the right balance of mid-priced and cash cow prospects? Who can we afford to leave out?

Do yourself a favour and start with the Magnificent Seven.

MATT ROWELL (GC) $495,100 MID

Paging Captain Obvious here, but to be clear, the Suns prodigy must be among the first players picked in every KFC SuperCoach team this year. Enough said.

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Matt Rowell averaged 102 KFC SuperCoach points in his first six AFL games.

BEN CUNNINGTON (NM) $439,800 MID

Someone give the Oxford Dictionary folks a nudge and get them to include a picture of Cunnington next to the definition for ARBITRAGE. Buy now, thank me later.

Ben Cunnington is coming back from a back injury.

Jordan De Goey at pre-season training.

JORDAN DE GOEY (Coll) $435,200 FWD

Say hello to the Christian Petracca of 2020. Bull De Goey has all the tools to be the No.1 forward in KFC SuperCoach... as long as he stays injury free and out of trouble. Looms as a major beneficiary of the Pies’ off-season bloodletting.

JIATH CHANGKUOTH (HAW) $266,500 DEF

Tread carefully around mid-priced prospects but the athletic half-back flanker is exactly what the regenerating Hawks need. With speed to burn and the required dare to make things happen, Changkuoth looks primed for a breakout season.

New Roo Will Phillips crashes into Jy Simpkin at North Melbourne training. Picture: Michael Klein

WILL PHILLIPS (NM) $198,300 MID

You know how we were enamoured with Matt Rowell last year? Winning the ball inside and out, calm and composed, and able to drift forward and hit the scoreboard? Well, that could be Phillips this year.

TOM POWELL (NM) $153,300 MID

Serial ball magnet who, in time, could be one of the first picked players in KFC SuperCoach. The South Australian averaged 33.5 disposals in the 2020 SANFL U18s, including 14.6 contested possessions and eight clearances.

Ely Smith is hoping to break into Brisbane’s senior line-up in this third year on the list.

ELY SMITH (Bris) $123,900 FWD/MID

Tough team to crack into but uncapped third-year Lion cub Smith is certainly one to watch in the AAMI Community Series. Bargain basement price, dual-position status and three AFL pre-seasons puts him ahead of many in the price range.

Originally published as KFC SuperCoach 2021: Gilbert Gardiner’s seven must-have starters