SuperCoach cheapie bible Round 7: Welcome to the house of Payne
SuperCoach expert Trent Copeland runs his eye over the star cheapies on offer this week as well as the hidden gems who could change the game for your team.
STAYING: Brown to be spared the axe
TEAM LISTS: Who’s in, who’s out
It’s Payne Haas time.
This year’s cheapie crop could be the best we’ve ever seen, with CHT, Xerri adding to the list and my boy Corey Waddell proving it pays to dig deeper than the ‘buzz buys’ for gold, absolute gold for the some five per cent of people who jumped on with me.
This week is no different with the Broncos young gun set to be the most purchased player of the week, along with another $181k cheapie front rower you may not be aware of - but, that’s why I am here to serve at your pleasure!
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 a huge edition of the Cheapie Bible. Here we go…
Payne Haas FRF (BRO | $181,100) - 74 points
My goodness, we thought last week’s 77 points in 63 minutes (over 70 points in base!) was incredible… Well, didn’t he just go and show us all there was more in the tank! Haas played the full 80 minutes which is remarkable in the middle rotation as such a young player, scoring another 74 points entirely in base stats and looks to be in season-long keeper territory with the trust shown in him by Seibold. The money coming in will be nice, but just watch the return of Pangai Jnr and Matt Lodge in the coming weeks to be sure about playing Haas in your 17. The hype is real.
VERDICT: Buy. Could rival Briton Nikora for the cheapie of the year if this continues.
Jai Whitbread FRF (GCT | $181,100) - 48 points
37 points in 37 minutes in his first game of the season last week was a nice start, but in his second game he really showed us what he’s capable of when Ryan James went down tragically with his knee injury - scoring 48 points in 41 minutes, all in base stats! Given the Titans play the all-important round 12 bye week, not only will Whitbread make good money, but he will also provide very handy points that week before being on-sold to a gun.
The only concern I have with Whitbread is the return of Jarrod Wallace next week. If you believe Whitbread stays in the side regardless of that, then jump on!
VERDICT: Buy! Will fly under the radar Corey Waddell style with everyone focused on Payne Haas, but I think Whitbread has really prospects with the long-term injury to Ryan James, at his fantastic PPM.
Chanel Harris-Tavita HFB (NZL | $265,700) - 44 points
CHT was the most purchased player last week with a game at home against the leaky Cowboys seemingly perfect for another big score. Ah, not so much, but we’ll certainly take the $100k price rise! The Cowboys turned up the heat in this one, stifling the young half’s time and space and despite having a try assist and 17 tackles this wasn’t his best performance. Given the kid is playing without the leadership and organisation of his halves partner Blake Green, it is understandable. This week comes the toughest test yet, with the Storm in Melbourne. I am confident CHT continues to make good money, just don’t be playing him in your 17 this coming week.
VERDICT: Buy/Hold. The upside is huge, and while Roger Tuivasa-Sheck is at his peak Dally M form, CHT will always threaten opposition defences. Plenty more cash to come!
Bronson Xerri CTW (SHA | $236,200) - 73 points
What a game from Xerri! Everyone is talking about this kid and the speed he is constantly burning teams with, and thankfully that means he is out in the open accruing points (and cash!) for us. A try, try contribution, line break, 23 points in hit ups, 11 tackles and eight points in tackle busts - just remarkable what this youngster is doing week-in, week-out. Most importantly what we learned from this game was that Sione Katoa was dropped, with Josh Dugan moving to the right wing outside Xerri, which bodes extremely well for Xerri’s spot once Moylan returns in round 9-10. You beauty!
VERDICT: Buy. The initial cash influx is a dream for those that bought last week, but not enough to deter you from getting on now if you missed the boat as his low score of 28 in round five will roll out of his average after this week.
Corey Waddell 2RF (MNL | $252,900) - 77 points
“People will be focusing on CHT, Xerri and even Haas a week early, but I’m telling you this kid is the real deal” was the Cheapie Bible line last week, and in the absence of Fonua-Blake, Waddell delivered in style. 77 points in 49 minutes with a try assist, three offloads, 21 tackles and 27 points in hit ups. With this huge score, Waddell looks likely to peak at around $350k-$400k in round 12 with likely huge minutes on offer in Jake Turbo’s Origin absence. Many SuperCoaches will view Waddell as the one that got away…
VERDICT: Hold. It’s too late to jump on given Payne Haas is there for the taking this week, for the 5% of owners, enjoy the ride and pray for no more injuries.
Corey Allan FLB | CTW (STH | $221,800) - 54 points
Isn’t this a sight for sore (Allan owners’) eyes? 54 points in a dour affair against the Bulldogs without a try or try assist. Two linebreaks, 11 points in hit ups, a forced drop out and an offload were all improvements on any other game Allan has played thus far. Hopefully this is a sign of things to come, and it certainly has started a nice - and much needed - price rise cycle before round 12.
VERDICT: Hold. With matches coming up against the leaky Panthers, Broncos and Cowboys in coming weeks the prospect of a few tries is real.
Moeaki Fotuaika FRF (GCT | $290,900) - 36 points
Here’s a smoky for you, and yes ‘Fotu’ is above your traditional cheapie price but the upside is in the opportunity. PPM-wise Fotu sits between 1.1-1.2 which is very good, and the tragic ACL injury to Ryan James opens a massive hole in the front row rotation at the Titans. Having seen minutes in the low 20’s most games this season, it is feasible that Fotu could be looking at mid 30’s or even 40+ in a perfect world. In games where he played more than 35 minutes last season, Fotu had scores of…
59 points (41 minutes)
60 points (62 minutes)
85 points (57 minutes)
34 points (36 minutes)
62 points (43 minutes)
62 points (39 minutes)
That’s good for an average of 60.3PPG in 46 minutes at a CRAZY good 1.31PPM. That’s Niiiiiiice Gary.
VERDICT: Watch. The BE is 42 this week, so you can wait and watch to see what the minutes shake out at. But I love this guy.
Thomas Flegler FRF | 2RF (BRO | $245,900) - 45 points
In TPJ’s last game of his suspension, coach Seibold pulled a last minute switch to the named 17, with Flegler replacing David Fifita in the starting side at prop and Payne Haas moving to lock. But, unfortunately Flegler didn’t see a huge uptick in minutes as we had all hoped, moving up from the mid 20’s to 34 minutes in this game, but keeping his fantastic PPM of 1.3 to score 40 points entirely in base stats.
VERDICT: Hold. If Flegler is your only avenue to getting Payne Haas I would absolutely do that trade, otherwise his dual flexibility and slow burn cash injections are quite handy to hold.
Braden Uele FRF (SHA | $196,900) - 43 points
I flagged last week in the Cheapie Bible that I love this kid, he is built for SuperCoach with tackle busting, offloading and metres-after-contact for breakfast and that was shown in spades in this one. 43 points in 25 minutes in pure big man fashion, including 15 tackles, a massive TEN points in tackle busts an offload and 18 points in hit ups. Yes, all of that in just 25 minutes of action. It’s hard to promote Uele as a buy given the lack of minutes coming his way, but if anything were to happen to Matt Prior or Paul Gallen, I cannot explain how quickly you should jump on.
VERDICT: Watchlist. Certainly not a priority, but could jump out of the pack if given the minutes.
Pat Carrigan FRF | 2RF (BRO | $168,100) - 28 points
Carrigan delivered 22 points in 14 minutes on debut which equates to an incredible PPM of 1.6, followed up by scoring 28 points in 22 minutes in his second game entirely in base stats to show us what ‘could’ be there in an increased role. Unfortunately with the return of TPJ this week, and Lodge in the coming weeks there just simply isn’t room for Carrigan to flourish.
VERDICT: Avoid.
Zac Lomax CTW (STG | $192,400) - 0 points
This one is important to monitor, as team lists wont always tell the story. Lomax was named last weekend in the 17 for the Dragons but didn’t end up taking the field. Whilst the Dragons did win that match, Tim Lafai missed three ‘sitters’ (goals) that could have locked away the win much earlier. Lomax is undoubtedly a huge talent, but finding a place in this Dragons backline may be a necessity for McGregor for his elite goal kicking alone. If that happens, Lomax is a must own.
VERDICT: Watch. Pounce if there are ANY injury or selection changes to that Dragons backline, as Lomax will kick goals full time.
Jaeman Salmon CTW | 5/8 (PAR | $213,400) - 56 points
A Salmon sighting! The 51-6 thumping of the Wests Tigers was always going to have attacking stats aplenty, but even with a try, try assist and line break assist the score only just crept over the 50 mark. Whilst it was a great NRL game for the kid, his game just simply doesn’t translate to SuperCoach as a ‘pass-first’ guy who runs the ball less than four or five times per game. The 56 points has kickstarted a price rise cycle with his BE now at just 1, but there are much better options elsewhere.
VERDICT: Avoid. Nice game for Salmon, but Dylan Brown could pop back up at any stage also, so he’s definitely an avoid for now.
Sitili Tupounuia 2RF (SYD | $181,100) - 44 points
What a start for Sitili! Our very own Anthony Minichiello flagged in pre-season that this kid was a standout and would play NRL at some stage. Well, not only has he played NRL, against the Storm in a GF-rematch, in golden point, made the linebreak that lead to the Roosters winning this game. Way to earn the coaches trust! But, this is one of the strongest 17’s in the entire competition so holding his spot will be tough. Fingers crossed.
VERDICT: Watchlist
Dallin Watene-Zelezniak CTW | FLB (PTH | $274,500) - 42 points
After flagging DWZ as a smoky purchase with round 12 bye coverage as an added bonus, he promptly went to work with big increases across the board - notching 14 points in tackle busts, a line break and 24 points in hitups. The Panthers look to be turning things around despite this close loss, and DWZ certainly passed the eyeball test. Unfortunately for those interested, DWZ has been moved back to the centres with Caleb Aekins to debut at fullback. Not ideal!
VERDICT: AVOID. The positional switch kills this one for me.
BON VOYAGE
Players who eclipse the $280k cheapie cut-off, or plateau in price will be given a final verdict for owners moving forward.
Jayden Okunbor CTW | 2RF (BUL | $329,200) - 19 points
Uh oh. After Okunbor’s shaky night under the high ball in round five, he followed that up with a disappointing effort against the Rabbitohs this week scoring just the 19 points and dropping a pass from Kerrod Holland (it was behind him mind you) for what could have been a try - with Dean Pay noticeably blowing up in the coaches box. Worrying signs given the price rises are coming to an abrupt halt, but given we know how high his upside is I am advising patience, hold until round 12 at least.
VERDICT: Hold. That was a tough pill to swallow, but the upside is there.
Kotoni Staggs CTW | 2RF (NZL | $277,000) - 10 points
As flagged last week, at any given stage James Roberts (who was named on an extended bench) could return from his Achilles injury - and that is exactly what happened against the Raiders, albeit initially from the bench. That meant Staggs only saw 46 minutes of game time (delivering an awfully low 10 points) and you can only assume that number will get much, much less in the coming weeks. Jump off now.
VERDICT: Sell. It’s only downhill, and with a big BE already that cash will drop fast.
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.
Let the cash roll in!
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