Herald Sun AFL journo Al Paton reveals his SuperCoach BBL team

With the start of a new footy season still months away, it’s time for a free hit. AFL tragic Al Paton reveals how he’ll transfer his SuperCoach talents to the BBL, and his two golden rules for success.

Alistair Paton

3 min read

December 8, 2019 - 6:19PM

SuperCoach BBL

Don't miss out on the headlines from SuperCoach BBL. Followed categories will be added to My News.

Footy is the biggest game in town, but the excitement and pressure of a new AFL season is still a few months away. That makes this the perfect time for a SuperCoach free hit.

SuperCoach BBL is free to play, there are more than $50,000 in prizes up for grabs, and after dabbling last summer I can confirm it makes watching the Big Bash a lot more fun.

Although I spend most of my time thinking about footy I do have some cricket experience, donning the whites on Saturday mornings from my early primary school years until I graduated to lower grades of senior competition where much older and angrier fast bowlers wanted to remove my head from my body.

It’s fair to say my role as a stoic opener wouldn’t have demanded much of a price in any T20 auction, with subtle deflections and solid forward defence the mainstays of my game.

When it comes to SuperCoach BBL, that doesn’t cut it. You need monster hitters like Chris Lynn who can put the ball on the stadium roof (that’s worth two points).

Having said that, what quickly became obvious last season was SuperCoach BBL is more of a bowler’s game, mainly because one bad shot can leave you with a terrible score from a very expensive player. Bowlers are more reliable scorers, with a point for every dot ball, 15 for a maiden and a massive 25 for a wicket.

Marcus Stoinis can rack up points with the bat and ball.

Even better, why not have both?

All-rounders are the dual-position stars of SuperCoach BBL, and my best tip is to load up your batting slots with players who also bowl — three of my five batters are all-rounders. So is my wicketkeeper, which I’m sure can also be helpful even if I’m not really sure how at this stage.

OTHER EXPERT TEAM REVEALS:

Shane Warne’s star-studded SuperCoach team

SuperCoach BBL: Sam Landsberger’s team reveal

Brad reveals Haddin’s Heroes for the new season

Three big risks in Tim Michell’s SuperCoach BBL team

Ben Horne reveals his SuperCoach line-up

The other piece of advice I’ve taken to heart is to always have the fixture on hand when making starting selections, and trades throughout the summer.

Unlike the AFL there isn’t five days between rounds to weigh up your next move — sometimes a new round starts the day after the previous one ends. And with some teams playing twice in a round, it’s an easy way to get a double shot at a big score. That’s why my starting side is stuffed full of Heat, Sixers and Thunder players, who all have a double game round to kick off the comp.

Three trades every round allows a lot of chopping and changing to make the most of the draw. The next level will be playing the market to buy and sell players at opportune times, for now I’ve just picked some cheap players on the bench who are a chance to get games.

Think you can do better? You’re probably right! Pick a team now and take me on.

AL PATON’S SUPERCOACH BBL TEAM

Don’t Argue

BATTERS

Marcus Stoinis (Melbourne Stars) $278,900 BAT/BWL

Chris Lynn (Brisbane Heat) $173,000 BAT

Shaun Marsh (Melbourne Renegades) $147,700 BAT

Daniel Sams (Sydney Thunder) $170,200 BAT/BWL

Chris Morris (Sydney Thunder) $125,000 BAT/BWL

Bench:

Caleb Jewell (Hobart Hurricanes) $67,300 BAT

Marcus Harris (Melbourne Renegades) $62,500 BAT