KFC SuperCoach NRL: Round 19 captaincy tips from Trent Copeland

No James Tedesco, no Payne Haas, lots of big name players out this week, and with them go some of our best captaincy options in semi final week.

No Tedesco, No Haas, lots of big name players out this week, and with them go some of our best captaincy options in semi final week for H2H competitions.

That just creates an opportunity to seperate the best from the rest, and I’m here to help you do that.

There are some matchup delights on offer looking ahead, so here we go for this week’s best Orange Armband options.

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Copes' Captains: Who should you put the orange armband on?

VICE CAPTAIN

Damien Cook | HOK (Rabbitohs) vs. Bulldogs

Cook’s season has been ‘rubbished’ in certain quarters of the KFC SuperCoach community, largely because of how dominant his previous season have been. But, let me be the one to remind you that Cook is averaging 71.4PPG on the season, with scores of 93, 71, 69 and 84 the past four rounds. The Bulldogs matchup is a great one for hookers, a team Cook scored 78 points against in round eight this year with very little attacking stats. First game of the round, perfect time to load up on Cook.

Josh Mansour | CTW (Panthers) vs. Cowboys

So much Sauce. Like, would you like some sausage roll with that sauce? He’s everywhere! Mansour’s last five matches have been incredible with scores of 75, 118, 76, 69 and 85 points for an average of 84.6PPG. With matchups to come against the Cowboys and Broncos all of your Panthers assets should be primed for massive returns. If you’re not going Cleary with the armbands, Sauce is a great option.

Mitchell Moses | HFB/5/8 (Eels) vs. Broncos

Moses (and the Eels in general) has been in a bit of a nose dive of late, with only one game in the past six matches with a single attacking stat to his name. But, things are getting real with only two regular season rounds to go and a matchup with the Broncos is the perfect tonic to get things back on track. We all know the upside this man has attached to his game, and I think we see that this week. Only owned by 17% of teams at this point, and many of which are not even playing the Eels halfback… A great POD if you think you’re an underdog in your finals matchup.

Other options: Kotoni Staggs, Ryan Matterson, Cody Walker, Daly Cherry-Evans

COPES’ CAPTAINS

Nathan Cleary | HFB (Panthers) vs. Cowboys

I think Cleary has changed the game. Yep, I’m calling him the new-era ‘safe’ captain. Never have we been able to captain a halfback with the comfort of only one score below 50 ALL SEASON. I mean, his last seven games are ridiculous… 138, 88, 92, 99, 89, 73 and 104 points for an average of 97.6PPG. Now he gets the understrength Cowboys who have been one of the leakiest defenses in the entire NRL. In a week without Tedesco taking the field, Cleary should be the number one option for you.

Nathan Cleary is a popular captaincy choice this week. Picture: Phil Hillyard

Cameron Munster | 5/8 (Storm) & Cam Smith | HOK (Storm) vs. Tigers

Pick your favourite flavour here, as both are elite, both always deliver and both have a delicious matchup against the Tigers. Not just because the Tigers have been poor defensively, but they are also now mathematically eliminated from finals chances despite being in 9th on the ladder. So, Munster and Smith coming off 97 and 114 points respectively last weekend against the Cowboys give me huge confidence. Smith the safe option, Munster if its upside you’re after. The only concern is a rest if they get well in front.

Kalyn Ponga | FLB (Knights) vs. Dragons

Ponga plays in the last match of the round, on the back of a ‘rest’ last weekend, but let me remind you that his last outing against the Sharks the superstar fullback scored 158 points with three tries and a whopping 28 points in tackle busts! Huge. The matchup against the Dragons is a friendly one and across his four career meetings with them Ponga has an incredible average of 84.3PPG with a high score of 118 points. Love it, particularly as a lot of people sold him last week!

Other options: John Bateman, Cam Smith, Brett Morris, Tom Trbojevic

There you have it. Good luck, may the Orange Armband fall on the right man! Hit us up @Copes9 or @SuperCoachNRL if you have any other suggestions.