NRL SuperCoach Cheapie Bible Round 17

There are cheapies and nuffs galore this week as SuperCoaches look to free up cash for the run home.

SuperCoaches, you’re welcome.

I’m sure the words ‘thank you’ were just about to come rolling off the collective tongue after “cheapie of the week” last week, Brodie Croft, went out to absolutely tear up the Dragons for 85 points and earn a massive $45k price rise.

In a big bye round it’s always nice when a cheapie turns up a massive score!

All jokes aside, now is the time to put the foot down, accelerating your squad to the best possible starting 17, and nailing that one last cheapie or picking the right ‘nuff’ is our perfect avenue to doing so. The run home people, and we’ve got both avenues covered here!

Cheapies are the keys to SuperCoach success, and each week I will have your verdict on the most popular and relevant names under the $280k bracket. Once a player eclipses that price we shall say bon voyage with a final verdict.

We’re looking at minutes played, relevant injuries, torrential rain affected scores and an outlook of the prospects moving forward.

Settle in for an important edition of the Cheapie Bible. Here we go…

NRL SuperCoach Cheapie Bible Round 17.

‘GENUINE CHEAPIES’

Brodie Croft HFB (MEL | $308,000) - 85 points

That’s 47 and 85 points in consecutive games for ‘Lara’, to go with a $45,000 price rise and -19 BE this week with matchups against the struggling Sharks and Titans to come over the next two weeks… What a gem! Croft is no longer a buy, so will disappear after this edition of the Cheapie Bible, but plan for a sideways sell to a gun in two or three weeks time at a tad over $400k hopefully.

VERDICT: HOLD. What a great result, and importantly compared to most cheapies at this time of year, Croft is zero chance of missing selection so can cover the likes of Ponga/Cleary/SJ if need be.

Scott Drinkwater FLB (NQC | $219,400) - 0 points

Coming off the bye, many will forget just how good Drinkwater was on his debut for the Cowboys. Let me refresh your memory… 74 points, with a try, try assist, line break, forced drop out, to go with an effective offload and 19 points in hitups. Yep, in his FIRST game not only at his new club, but of the season after a torn pec. Seriously impressive. A matchup in his second game against the Roosters this weekend is less than ideal, but next week it could be our last GUN cheapie of the season for all of those teams who don’t currently own two of Teddy/Turbo/RTS.

VERDICT: WAIT. Drinkwater is absolutely a buy next week, the only way it would be a yes this week is if you’re stuck with Teddy and say, Corey Allan and Teddy gets rested post Origin.

All teams are back on deck after the bye but will Origin players back up? Join Tom Sangster and Rob Sutherland for the lowdown.

Xavier Coates CTW (BRO | $168,100) - 31 points

Surely no one saw the Broncos beating the Sharks with one of the most inexperienced backlines in their history, but, they did and Coates showed he has what it takes to stick in the NRL. Scoring one try from a kick and had another disallowed somewhat controversially, his score of 31 points could well have been a lot better. Matchups against the Warriors, Bulldogs and Titans over the next three weeks bodes well for scoring upside but you can absolutely wait and watch for one more week here before jumping on.

VERDICT: WATCHLIST. At this time of year do NOT jump early on cheap wingers that are prone to low scores naturally.

NOTE: For the record, Herbie Farnworth CTW (BRO | $168,100) is in the exact same boat.

Brent Naden CTW (PTH | $282,200) - 0 points

Prior to last weekend’s bye for the Panthers, Naden had not only exploded as a cheapie but also scored what was a contender for try of the season. Already with $114,100 in the green for his owners, Naden still has a BE of -10 and is projected by SuperCoach Stats to make another $43k this week. Averaging 50PPG through his four matches thus far, and a matchup this weekend with the Titans - it could scarcely be a better scenario for owners. It is however, too late to be jumping on in my opinion.

VERDICT: HOLD. Naden has been terrific against some tough opposition to this point, now that the Panthers are on a roll and playing against the leaky Titans this weekend there could be plenty more cash to come!

Dylan Brown HFB | 5/8 (PAR | $273,900) - 0 points

Brown returned to the Eels lineup in the win over the Cowboys prior to the bye, scoring just the 33 points but earning owners a very handy $41k. Now, Brown should be back to full health with a week off and ready to roll against the Tigers at Bankwest Stadium, Whilst it’s a Tigers home game, we all know how well the Eels score at this venue, so I wouldn’t worry about Brown’s BE of 32 in fact I would expect a few more cash injections to come yet.

VERDICT: HOLD. Great coverage for Ponga/Cleary this week, with a plan to move him up to a Munster or even teammate Mitch Moses in the coming weeks.

Joe Tapine 2RF (CBR | $298,300) - 0 points

Here’s my smoky cheapie of the week… And it’s not even for a BUY, but for the watchlist for this week. After two really bad injuries this season have held him back, Tapine has taken a nose dive from his starting price of $590,100 by a whopping $291k to sit this week at UNDER $300,000. This is a guy who last year averaged a stellar 63.1PPG and had multiple 100+ point efforts along the way. Let me make it clear, Tapine is a watch this week as I believe the minutes will be increasing (from an average of 35.4MPG since round one) post bye now that he’s healthy to around, or hopefully over the 60 mark. If there’s no increase, then it’s a no go.

VERDICT: WATCHLIST. If he does indeed start at lock, and play 60+ minutes as I think he will, then Tapine could be the perfect 18th/19th man for the run home for teams struggling for cash.

Moses Suli CTW (MNL | $279,000) - 0 points

If you’re looking for a cheap option in the CTW then here’s a smoky for you. Suli had a horrific start to the season in SuperCoach terms, as well as off-field dramas that lead to him being dropped. But, since his return, Suli has scores of 27, 45 and 76 points in the three games since, with a HUGE uptick in hit up, tackle bust and line break numbers - a good sign that his intent is there. Suli hits round 17 with a BE of -18 and some nice matchups the next two rounds.

VERDICT: BUY*. There’s serious risk here that goes along with the upside, and you must have 8 or more trades remaining to even consider it as you’ll need to trade him back out to a gun later on.

‘NUFFS’

A Nuff, as defined by the SuperCoach Dictionary, is a player who is as far from selection in the NRL as possible, ideally has a season-long injury or playing in the UK, who will not become an AE-nightmare at any point in the future. They shall ALWAYS possess dual position to add flexibility for injury cover, and are also very handy for VC-loophole later down the track.

NOTE: Dragons play a LOT of the remaining rounds as the last match on a Sunday which is priceless for loophole purposes.

FORWARDS:

Keaon Koloamatungi FRF | 2RF (STH | $168,100)

Kayleb Milne FRF | 2RF (MEL | $168,100)

Pasami Saulo FRF | 2RF (NEW | $168,100)

HALVES

Billy Walters HFB | HOK (MEL | $168,100).

Zach Dockar-Clay HFB | HOK (MNL | $168,100)

Hayze Perham HFB | FLB (NZL | $168,100) - great for Jahrome Hughes owners!

CTW | 2RF

Jared Anderson CTW | 2RF (BUL | $168,100)

Jed Cartwright CTW | 2RF (PTH | $168,100)

Tom Eisenhuth CTW | 2RF (MEL | $168,100)

CTW | FLB

Albert Hopoate CTW | FLB (MNL | $168,100)

Tristan Sailor CTW | FLB (STG | $168,100)

BON VOYAGE

Players who eclipse the $280k cheapie cut-off, or plateau in price will be given a final verdict for owners moving forward.

Kotoni Staggs CTW | 2RF (BRO | $342,500) - 51 points

Staggs has been fantastic for his owners in covering a tricky bye round, dual flexibility and con tinting to slowly make money - importantly, the money isn’t done yet! With a BE of 19 coming into round 17 and a matchup against the Warriors at home, SuperCoach Stats projects another $25k this week and with the Bulldogs and Titans the following two weeks we could see Staggs end up at $450k in round 20 to be sold sideways to a gun. You beauty.

VERDICT: HOLD. Plan for a sell in round 19/20.

Patrick Herbert CTW (NZL | $308,200) - 0 points

Oh man. What a painful series of events the past few weeks have been for Herbert owners who held him just for coverage of round 16… A late out a few weeks ago, and then dropped in a late change with Gerard Beale taking his place this round. Ouch. Unfortunately as with any cheapie that is dropped (or gun if we’re talking about Dean Pay), you just have to cop it on the chin and move on.

VERDICT: SELL.

Kurt Mann CTW | HOK (NEW | $314,800) - 34 points

Mann has done his job for owners, covering the bye and making around $60k in the past three weeks in Kalyn Ponga’s absence. But the time has come to either ‘nuff him out’ or get him up to a gun like Clint Gutherson who isn’t too far away in price.

VERDICT: SELL. BE is manageable at 24 this week, but it will quickly escalate thereafter.

If a player is not on this list, they are deemed not relevant either because of role or price. Let us know if you think we’ve missed anyone @SuperCoachNRL or @Copes9.