How SuperCoach experts are tackling Jason Horne-Francis, Nic Martin, Tristan Xerri crisis
It’s been the most chaotic week in the SuperCoach season, and we’ve assembled the experts to see how they’re tackling injuries to Nic Martin, Jason Horne-Francis and a ban to Tristan Xerri.
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With one of the biggest SuperCoach weeks of the year, we’ve assembled the experts to unpack how they’re dealing with the carnage.
Here’s what they have planned – with plenty of time to change.
HAYDN ‘DOS’ KENNY
Rank: 2002
Trades left (before trading this week): 2
Keepers: All of them! Full faith in the squad.
Pressing issues: JHF, Xerri, Rozee, Docherty, Flanders.
Your tactics: Get Grundy at all costs to ride home the best run in SuperCoach history. Trading JHF and likely Doch to grab him alongside an Archie Perkins type. Yes, an Archie Perkins type. Holding Xerri and eating a donut at flex for the time being. Wish me luck! I’ll need it.
PATCH
Rank: 2605
Trades left: 3
Keepers: 24 (including Tom McCarthy, Shai Bolton, and Jeremy Cameron)
Pressing issues: Rozee, Xerri
Your tactics: I’m in a weird position as on of 2587 teams with Lachie Blakiston, meaning I technically have ruck cover? Doesn’t feel good though, and I can’t get to Brodie Grundy without using two trades. My plan leading into this week was to burn two trades and my 100k bank to turn Zak Johnson and Angus Clark into Lachie Whitfield and a 99k rookie, giving me 25 keepers and a swath of looping options. Will loopholing the likes of Bolton, Cameron, McCarthy and Darcy mean I can make up the points I’d lose by not having my lowest score drop out? Then I’d welcome Xerri back with open arms for games against GWS, Adelaide and Richmond. That said, I might be outsmarting myself. Feels dumb not just trading Xerri to Gawn and sitting on 100k and two trades hey?
THE PHANTOM
Your rank: 2979
Trades left: 2
How many keepers you have: Mills was 23rd and McCarthy 24th – before 3 others above that got injured
Pressing issues: Xerri, JHF, Martin
Your tactics: I was hoping to keep the 24th scorer as a loophole play in the run home – but things have changed. I’ve got that extra number so I’m going to use it, by trading JHF down to allow for Martin to Grundy. It means one less overall ‘keeper’ but hopefully more points. I’ll hold Xerri as a result – at least he’ll play again this year.
DAN BATTEN
Rank: 4762
Trades left: 2
Keepers: 24 (including Tom McCarthy, Shai Bolton, and Callum Mills – who I bought for $390k …)
Pressing issues: Rozee, Xerri
Your tactics: With cash in the bank, I chased points on Saturday night trading Angus Clarke to Andrew Brayshaw and I am regretting that sugar-hit now. Using my last two trades to get Grundy is tempting, but with the carnage we have been hit with over the past few days it is asking for trouble. So with 12k in the bank I am likely to sideways Xerri to Tim English, who has four games at Marvel and Essendon, GWS and West Coast in the run home, and use my last remaining trade on a season-ending injury.
AL PATON
Rank: 4831
Trades left: 4
Keepers: 23 (including Tom McCarthy, Callum Mills, Sam Darcy, Adam Cerra)
Pressing issues: Xerri, Horne-Francis
My tactics: With four trades on hand and no Connor Rozee I felt in a pretty good position to deal with the Xerri situation … then the Port Adelaide injury list dropped. Rozee might play this week but my 2025 nemesis Jason Horne-Francis broke his foot while recording by far his best score during two different stints in my side. So he’s a must trade too – but I might wait a week, play with 22 this week and stick to my plan A of using two trades to turn Xerri into Brodie Grundy. He could score enough points for two players this week anyway and his run home is just too good. I have a week to assess the best option to swap JHF to next week; I will be watching closely to see who gets Touk Miller’s centre bounces at Gold Coast. That would leave me with one trade to survive five rounds and eight months until I’m forced to start Horne-Francis next year at around $450k.
CHLOE WILLIAMS
Your rank: 9,723
Your trades: 2
Keepers: 23 plus McCarthy.
Pressing issues: Xerri/JHF/Rozee/Nic Martin
Your tactics: I will cover Rozee with McCarthy and after naively hoping Xerri’s ban would be thrown out, I’ll trade him to Gawn, and I’ll play Hotton on field for a week until I can trade JHF to Matt Kennedy, who has a BE of 152. Unfortunately, no money for Grundy … I’m scared.
MATTHEW FORREST
Rank: 11,295
Trades Left: 5
Keepers: 23 (including Tom McCarthy)
Pressing Issues: Rozee, Xerri, Horne-Francis
Your tactics: I’m trading Horne-Francis and Xerri out and turning them into two PODs in Jeremy Cameron and Tim English. Cameron has St Kilda, North Melbourne, Port Adelaide, Essendon, Sydney and Richmond on the run home, is leading the Coleman race and is still fighting for a top four/home final so won’t get rested. English hasn’t been an absolute star this year, but has match ups against Essendon, GWS Giants and West Coast in his final six games, and I don’t trust the top-line rucks. Gawn is facing Carlton and known Gawn-stopper in Marc Pittonet this week, Darcy Cameron and Jarrod Witts are primed for rests, and I can’t afford Grundy.
TIM MICHELL
Your rank: [redacted]
Your trades: 2
Keepers: What’s a keeper? 23 but that’s me optimistically counting Tom McCarthy as one.
Pressing issues: No Martin but copped the others.
Tactics: Cry. If Xerri cops 3 weeks he will become Tim English because I don’t have enough trades to get Brodie Grundy. Sam Flanders is the JHF replacement I’m weighing up. Will he get more midfield minutes with Touk Miller hamstrung? I presume Manny Liddy can fill Rozee boots for a week if he misses but JHF is a blow considering how much value he’s lost.
Originally published as How SuperCoach experts are tackling Jason Horne-Francis, Nic Martin, Tristan Xerri crisis
Trade guide: How to save your side from Xerri, JHF, Martin chaos
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Horne-Francis’ season done while injury cloud looms on Rozee
Port Adelaide is expecting to be without Jason Horne-Francis for the rest of 2025 after the star midfielder had surgery on his foot, but Connor Rozee could still play this week.