Key SuperCoach takeaways from super Sunday of AFL Round 8

Matt Rowell has dropped another horror SuperCoach score after Brisbane did its homework on the Suns clearance beast. Here are the key SuperCoach takeaways from super Sunday.

Brisbane is a game clear on top of the ladder after a 22nd Q-Clash win over Gold Coast from 29 meetings.

The Sunday night game closed the curtain on a big weekend of footy – and SuperCoach, with some performances that will dominate trade talk this week.

Here’s what we learned.

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IS IT CHAD TIME?

Sydney superstar Chad Warner unloaded against the arch enemy in a monster afternoon at the SCG.

Warner had 10 disposals in an electric opening term and showed no signs of slowing down across the afternoon.

The running machine gathered 24 disposals, seven clearances, 10 inside-50s, nine score involvements, 574 metres gained and 140 SuperCoach points.

Warner is owned by just 8 per cent of SuperCoaches but that is about to surge.

He went toe-to-toe with GWS jet Finn Callaghan, who recorded a team-high 133 points.

Matt Rowell was under pressure all night. Picture: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

ROWELL GOES COLD

Which Matt Rowell will we get on a given week? The Rowell who has pumped out scores of 136, 137, 126 and 130 so far this year? Or the Rowell who battled to get his hands on the footy and could manage only 52 points against the Lions on Sunday?

Lions coach Chris Fagan said on Fox Footy that his “first crack” from the game was “Josh Dunkley did a brilliant job on Matt Rowell tonight.” Dunkley was given the job of putting physical pressure on Rowell at stoppages in the QClash and completely took away the Suns star’s one-wood – restricting him to one clearance for the match.

Next week he comes up against another quality midfield in the Western Bulldogs in a Saturday night clash in Darwin.

WHITFIELD’S COSTLY SURGE

Lachie Whitfield’s late SuperCoach burst came at a cost.

The star Giant was followed around all afternoon by Sydney tagger James Jordon.

Jordon had quelled Whitfield relatively well until the last quarter when the dasher tried to win the game.

But as Whitfield found more of the footy, rocketing past his Break Even with 104, he allowed Jordon to get off the chain going the other way. Jordon kicked two final-quarter goals to help Sydney ice the game in a tense final stanza.

Whitfield finished 111 SuperCoach points.

HAWK BACKS QUEUE UP

If you want some SuperCoach points, play in defence in a team that faces Richmond.

The Tigers worked hard to match Hawthorn at the MCG on Sunday, and did a reasonable job in the first half at least when they were leading the inside-50 count.

The problem was Tom Lynch looked miles off it and Richmond’s other tall target was Jonty Faull, playing his fourth AFL game.

With the delivery not exactly prestine, the Hawks defenders feasted. Josh Battle took 12 marks and had 10 intercepts to finish with 142 SuperCoach points, Changkuoth Jiath scored 135, Tom Barrass 116 and James Sicily 111.

LEVI REPAYS FAITH

The Ashcroft brothers combined for 228 SuperCoach points against the Suns, with Will claiming the Marcus Ashcroft Medal for best on ground and Levi just falling short of a career-first SuperCoach ton.

He was on his way out of many teams last week before trade plans changed at the last minute following the news Clayton Oliver would miss the weekend’s action.

Those coaches dodged a bullet with a premium-worthy score and an impending price bump, and another low Break Even next week. Is he an auto trade this week or can we hang on for a few more weeks?

Scroll down to replay all Sunday’s action.

Originally published as Key SuperCoach takeaways from super Sunday of AFL Round 8