AFL SuperCoach 2025: The Phantom’s ultimate premium upgrade guide by position
Stuck on how to finish your SuperCoach team? Or just can’t decide who to target this week? The Phantom looks for the answers to both questions in the ultimate trade guide.
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The bye rounds are almost here, upgrade season is in full swing and there are premium bargains galore.
But who – and what – should take priority in SuperCoach?
To help you answer that question, The Phantom looks at the best trade options on every line – and where they fit into the final SuperCoach picture.
DEFENDERS
The looming new dual-position player Connor Rozee aside, the top eight or nine in defence looks pretty set. And there’s some serious value on offer right now, given the price tags of some of those players well entrenched in that group. With boom cash cow Riley Bice’s Break Even soaring past 100, it’s time to start your shopping here. At 61 per cent owned, I’ve excluded Harry Sheezel from this list.
1. Jack Sinclair (StK, $529,300)
Average: 111.6
Back to his best against the Blues with his first ton for a month, roaming around in a SuperCoach-friendly role, mainly behind the ball, and playing on from all four kick-ins. Pushed up the ground and into the middle with the game on the line late – but it’s easy to see why, given his influence forward of centre. Regardless, the Saints just want the ball in his hands. And they play West Coast, Gold Coast and Melbourne in the next three matches – all sides that rank in the top-six for SuperCoach points conceded to general defenders. Available for $63k less than his starting price, and he’s unlikely to get much cheaper.
2. Dayne Zorko (Bris, $531,900)
Average: 113.4
Also available at a $63k discount on his starting price tag, Zorko was at his SuperCoach best down in Tassie, hitting the target with 26 of his 29 kicks. A season-high 166 makes it four scores of 130 or more this season – and it’s that ceiling that makes him great buying at the price ahead of a clash with Melbourne at home on Sunday. Last week, Hawks James Sicily and Changkuoth Jiath had 29 kicks, 19 marks and 253 SuperCoach points between them against the Dees.
3. Lachie Whitfield (GWS, $591,600)
Average: 117.6
A score of 116 against the Cats in round 9 made it 20 SuperCoach tons in the past 22 games for the Giants star. And the two sub-100 scores were 97 and 86. He’ll take some beating as the No.1 SuperCoach defender this year, but he sits down these rankings due to the value of the two above. Given the consistency, we’re probably not getting him much cheaper – but it’s more about taking the bargain while it’s there this week.
4. Jordan Clark (Freo, $519,900)
Average: 105.6
Speaking of consistency, the Dockers defender has only failed to score less than 94 once in 2025. And he showed maybe he does have the ceiling after all, tallying a season-high 146 points on the back of 34 disposals, eight intercepts, eight marks and five inside-50s against the Magpies. Might not consistently win you SuperCoach head-to-head match-ups like the three names above, but he’s a safe pick with a high floor.
5. Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera (StK, $553,700)
Average: 109.4
A treat to watch, Wanganeen-Milera only sits so far down here because of the other premium price tags this week. The young Saint has posted six SuperCoach tons this year and scored 96 or more in every game. With an appealing three-match stretch for defenders, he’s another great buy this week, if you don’t need the extra cash elsewhere.
6. Bailey Dale (WB, $494,300)
Average: 104.6
We’re not getting the same type of consistency here, but Dale’s big scores make up for the quiet weeks, with four of his five SuperCoach tons this year in excess of 120. And the Bulldogs play five of their next seven at Marvel Stadium, including match-ups against Essendon, St Kilda, Richmond and North Melbourne.
MY FINAL PREDICTED TOP 8 FROM HERE
1. Lachie Whitfield
2. Jack Sinclair
3. Harry Sheezel
4. Dayne Zorko
5. Jordan Clark
6. Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera
7. Bailey Dale
8. Lachie Ash
*Connor Rozee will feature here if he gets DPP status ahead of round 12.
MIDFIELDERS
Despite the players you’ll need to break the bank for, it’s not quite as clear cut in the midfield. Typical SuperCoach strategy suggests you’re better off not sacrificing the rest of your team for a $691k Zak Butters or $674k Marcus Bontempelli – but who else can you really be sure about? Andy Brayshaw, yes, but he’s almost out of reach now, too.
1. Josh Dunkley (Bris, $539,000)
Average: 114.2
See, I’m not even sure about the No.1 option this week. After a slight dip in CBAs against Collingwood and St Kilda, Dunkley has been back in the 80 per cent plus range – behind only Lachie Neale at Brisbane – in the past two matches. The 139-point performance against the Roos may have been his highest since round 1, but it was still his seventh SuperCoach ton for the year. There are a few other buts, too, including the fact he was used to negate Matt Rowell in round 8. The price – for a player who has averaged 112 or more in each of the past two seasons – keeps him just ahead here, though.
2. Jordan Dawson (Adel, $522,200)
Average: 103.3
The Crows skipper would’ve been close to the top of these rankings last week after his bounce-back, 156-point performance against the Blues. But Ken Hinkley surprised us all with a Miles Bergman tag – and it worked for the Power. A third score of less than 80 for the season – a worry in itself – saw Dawson add just $700 to his price tag after the Showdown. But the next two weeks might ensure he’s not this cheap for long. Dawson has scored 107, 149 and 150 in his past three games against Collingwood – the team that has conceded the fourth-most SuperCoach points to midfielders in 2025. Then it’s West Coast at home.
3. Zach Merrett (Ess, $589,400)
Average: 113.4
Another big score against the Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium could see Merrett roughly hold his price over the next few weeks despite the tag-affected 76-point score against the Swans. After this weekend, it’s Richmond twice in the next seven matches. If you have the money, anything under $600k is good buying for the Essendon skipper in my book.
4. Connor Rozee (Port, $535,600)
Average: 107.6
Is he a genuine top-eight contender in the SuperCoach midfield? In the role across half-back, I think he is. But it doesn’t really matter, given that role is set to earn him dual-position status as a defender in the lead-up to round 12. And five of the Power’s next eight matches are at Adelaide Oval, with match-ups against Melbourne, Sydney, Carlton and West Coast.
5. Ed Richards (WB, $573,400)
Average: 111.7
After a point-of-difference to make up some ground? Richards, who appears to be enjoying the return of Marcus Bontempelli more than most, could be your man. The 25-year-old is only in 2.1 per cent of teams and he’s booted five goals from the midfield in his past four matches alongside his skipper and posted SuperCoach scores of 127 and 156 in his past two.
6. Marcus Bontempelli (WB, $674,900)
Average: 131.8
One of them had to make the list – and it’s Bontempelli, whose 99-point effort against the Suns in Darwin saw his price fall by $19k. And, yes, after he averaged 143 in his first three games back from injury – one of them sub-affected – we will bloody take it. You want him in your final team – ideally Butters, too – it’s just all a matter of timing. Post bye?
Entering this list soon:Nick Daicos (BE: 193), Zak Butters (BE: 189), Lachie Neale (BE: 140)
MY FINAL PREDICTED TOP 8 FROM HERE
1. Marcus Bontempelli
2. Zak Butters
3. Nick Daicos
4. Andrew Brayshaw
5. Zach Merrett
6. Tom Liberatore
7. Lachie Neale
8. Ed Richards
RUCKS
Tristan Xerri (NM, $681,500)
Max Gawn (Melb, $735,000)
Daylight.
For the 15 per cent of coaches in the top 5 per cent of overall rankings, this is probably your last week for Xerri. While he’s still under $700k, you could just get it over with and forget it ever happened. Maybe. Almost 50 per cent of SuperCoaches in the top 5 per cent don’t have Gawn, the man with a three-round average of 171. I think you have to wait for a drop now. Before Sunday, there was hope it may have been in round 10 after a meeting with Oscar McInerney, who kept Jarrod Witts to 54, Darcy Cameron to 90 and Toby Nankervis to 87 recently. But then Xerri put 186 on the Brisbane ruckman. Even though it is Max, is blowing up your upgrade plan for one player the right call? Not usually.
FORWARDS
Like in defence, the top group – which is expanding – appears pretty clear. But the forward line is different. With the bargain-price starting picks in Jack Macrae and Bailey Smith, and the addition of fallen premiums Christian Petracca and Chad Warner, every SuperCoach forward line is very similar and, in most cases, very full. So, we’re going to do things differently down here – this IS my final top-eight prediction. And we are going with most SuperCoach points from round 10 onwards.
1. Bailey Smith
2. Christian Petracca
3. Jack Macrae
4. Jason Horne-Francis
5. Izak Rankine
6. Chad Warner
7. Ryan Maric
8. Luke Jackson
Yes, Maric has played Melbourne and Richmond in the past two weeks, but the Eagles play both sides again before the year is out and Maric has played on from 59 kick-ins this season – 10 more than the second-ranked Luke Ryan. Bulldogs recruit Matt Kennedy is very close to the bottom two, but Jackson’s spot in the final rankings is still very Sean-Darcy dependant. If you rage traded Jason Horne-Francis out earlier in the season, I’d be swallowing my pride and getting him back in at some point.
MY ROUND 10 TRADES
Edging close to the top 1000 (current ranking of 1116), I want to keep the upgrade momentum going. And I can’t ignore the value in defence. After starting with Zorko and going early on Sinclair two weeks ago, I’m leaning towards Riley Bice to Clark.
Originally published as AFL SuperCoach 2025: The Phantom’s ultimate premium upgrade guide by position
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