SuperCoach NRL: Draft expert Wilson Smith deals with Classic calamities

Resident SuperCoach Draft expert Wilson Smith’s best laid plans for conquering Classic have been laid waste with suspensions and injuries. Here’s Wilson’s Team 2.0.

It’s been a difficult pre-season for SuperCoaches and the Fantasy Gods have not been kind to us, with trial injuries and suspensions sending me back to the drawing board multiple times.

Ben Barba, Tevita Pangai Jr and Payne Haas were all essential cogs in my plans to start the year, and working around their absence has been a major headache, particularly the TPJ injury cloud.

Despite my SuperCoach forte being Draft, 2018 was still a decent year for me in Classic, finishing in the top three per cent with a rank of 3636. But for context I was still a whopping 1619 points behind winner Guy Feeney’s Munsters Inc.

The Daily Telegraph's SuperCoach Draft expert Wilson Smith reveals his Classic team.

While Draft will remain my focus, I’ll be paying a lot more attention to Classic this year, hoping to achieve my goal of cracking the top 1000.

Whether I’ll get a key ring, however is a whole other question.

Thankfully trials have also pointed out some potential cheapies, which has made altering my team slightly more bearable. While parts of my team will inevitably change after the first

team list Tuesday, for now this is who I’m going with.

HOOKER

Damien Cook ($726,000)

I don’t care about the fears of regression under Wayne Bennett or his huge price tag, Cook is the best hooker in the game now and I want him in my team. I actually think Cook could go to another level under Bennett, who will really let Cook off the leash and let him offload at will and, maybe, even get him to kick in play. As far as I’m concerned, the only downside to Cook is that you won’t be able to play him in the round 12 bye. The fact that this guy only has 18 per cent ownership at the moment also makes him a something of a POD, yet another reason I’m all over him.

Victor Radley ($400,700)

There really are no exciting cheapie options at hooker but there are a couple of mid-range picks that peak my interest. Radley should start at lock for the Roosters in 2019 and see an improvement on the 44 minutes he averaged last year, and is probably looking around the 55-60 minute mark. Radley averaged 51.8 when he played 50 minutes or more in 2018, which I think is good value at his price. My plan is to hopefully upgrade him to Josh Hodgson in time for the round 12 bye if possible, since Cook won’t be available for me. His dual position means I could even upgrade one of my forwards and move Radley to the 2RF if I decide to hang on to him. That all being said, if a good cheapie option is named to start in round 1, I will probably pivot from Radley to bring in a cheap mid-ranger like Wayde Egan, Sione Katoa or Reed Mahoney.

Dual-position eligible Rooster Victor Radley wins a spot on Wilson’s bench. Picture: Mark Nolan/Getty Images

FRONT ROW

Martin Taupau ($605,100)

Marty Taupau is the 2nd best prop in SuperCoach and I think SuperCoaches have to have either him or Andrew Fifita in their starting side, if not both. I’ve gone Taupau over Fifita, purely because he covers the Round 12 bye and you don’t lose too much by passing on Fifita. The dual position of Taupau is also handy, and could come into play later on in the season depending on trades. I may look to upgrade Cameron Murray into Fifita (if he makes some decent money) and move one of my front rowers to the back row.

Sam Burgess ($560,000)

Like Taupau, Burgess will also cover the round 12 bye and carries a nifty dual position status as well, but I am far from settled on Burgess. His regression over the past few seasons does have me concerned, as does his likely move to an edge, which could see his work rate reduced. I may decide to try and somehow upgrade him into Fifita before the season starts, but for now Burgess will do.

Dylan Napa ($288,100)

Having escaped suspension for off-field incidents this pre-season, Napa finds himself back in my team as I think he is heavily underpriced. Napa saw his minutes drop over his past three seasons at the Roosters, and his averages have dropped as a result.

But the Bulldogs have paid a fair bit for him (considering their salary cap mess) and I see his usage definitely going up there. Assuming he gets similar game time to Klemmer in 2018, Napa should average an extra 14 minutes or so, which would be at least an extra ten points per game at his PPM.

Cheapie

At the moment Patrick Carrigan ($168,100) is my placeholder pick until I know which FRF cheapie to lock in. I may still persist with Payne Haas ($181,100) who should still be a good cheapie when he returns from suspension, but given he won’t make any money while suspended I am torn.

Cameron Murray of the Rabbitohs (centre) has been impressive in the pre-season. Picture: Mark Kolbe/Getty Images

SECOND ROW

Jake Trbojevic ($667,600)

Playing 80 minutes and a top two SuperCoach Player for the past two seasons, with averages of 71.3 and 73.3, is enough to make Jurbo an auto start for me. Plus he plays for Manly, who really depend on him to make bulk tackles and play a role in attack. Lock him in!

Nathan Brown ($582,000)

Brown missed nine games in an injury affected 2018, and when he made it back on the field, he never really found his groove, and yet still managed to end the season with an average of 62. He averaged 55 points in base stats alone in both his last two seasons, and should keep that going in 2019, after hopefully shaking off his injury woes. Plus at only five per cent ownership he is a great POD option!

Cameron Murray ($458,900)

I haven’t been the biggest Cameron Murray lover, but his form this pre-season has been impressive and now I’m sold on him. He looks to have locked down the number 13 jersey and should see an increase in minutes this year from 48 to over 60 hopefully.

Luke Garner ($265,100)

This is a bit of a left-field pick, but Chris Lawrence suffered a broken jaw in the pre-season which saw Garner start and score a try in the Tigers’ loss to the Warriors. He is a borderline cheapie and has less than one per cent ownership, but his game time is a bit of a question mark when Chris Lawrence comes back. I’m not fully sold on Garner yet, but he could be a good POD cheapie for the opening few rounds. Depending on the severity of his injury, Chris Lawrence could be out for anywhere between four and 12 weeks, and will be a few kgs lighter when he does return. But Garner has started just once and only scored 29 in 49 minutes, so he’s by no means a must-own cheapie.

Corey Waddell ($168,100) and Briton Nikora ($168,100)

These two guys are just placeholders at the moment, but do look like two of the best cheapie options at the position for now. I’ll reassess after team lists Tuesday if these players stay in my team or not, but if some better cheapie options emerge I will definitely pivot away from Waddell and Nikora.

HALVES

Shaun Johnson ($603,000)

Given that all of my halves have the dual position, I’ve just lumped them all together here. I was hesitant on SJ after his move to the Sharks, but after seeing his side destroy the Knights in their trial match I am now completely back on him. He had a try assist and also kicked goals, and combined well with his fullback Matt Moylan. Like Damien Cook, SJ also finds himself at an awkward 18 per cent ownership and is something of a POD despite his elite pedigree.

Michael Morgan ($409,200)

After averaging 59 for the past three seasons, Morgan suffered a huge regression in 2018, as the Cowboys attack struggled to get going, and a torn bicep ended his season prematurely. Now, with Thurston gone, Morgan finds himself as the man to lead the Cows around the park and will be the centre of their attack. In the absence of JT, Morgan has been a standout in the past, whether it be at fullback or in the halves, so I think he is heavily underpriced this year and should make some decent cash, possibly enough to upgrade to another gun half later on in the year (hopefully before Round 12!).

Adam Keighran ($168,100), Dylan Brown ($168,100)

Nothing more to say about these guys, they are hands down the best cheapie options in the halves and are must-owns.

Expensive centre Jarrod Croker leads Wilson’s CTW. Picture: AAP Image/Lukas Coch

CTW

Jarrod Croker ($509,700)

While many other SuperCoaches are stacking their CTWs with cheapies, I just can’t convince myself to do it. I need to start off with at least two good options here, and Croker is one of the best. The Raiders were one of the best attacking teams in 2018 and Croker is their goal kicker, so his ceiling is extremely high. He also finds himself relatively affordable this year, after missing the last seven games of 2018, and back to back years of regression.

Josh Mansour ($459,200)

Like Croker, Mansour is super affordable this year after missing 11 games due to a fractured

cheekbone, but I’m backing him to get back to his best and hopefully get near his 2016 average of 63. This will be his second full season back in the NRL after his ACL injury, which NRL Physio has told us is when we can typically expect to see players return to their best.

Jordan Kahu ($278,700)

Kahu looks to have locked up the fullback spot for the Cowboys in 2019 and he could also take over the goal kicking duties, which has me interested. Although he only averaged 30 points for the Broncos in 2018, he was playing injured and also lost his goal kicking to the young Jamayne Isaako. With better job security, higher upside and a cheap price in 2019, I am somewhat excited to see what Kahu could do, but I may still pivot depending on what cheapies are named for round 1.

Zac Lomax ($196,900)

The most owned player in SuperCoach looks to be locked in for a wing spot at the Dragons and could end up being one of the breakout players of 2019. If Widdop goes down at any stage Lomax would also likely pick up the goal kicking duties, which would be amazing.

Cheapies

I’m saving my last three CTW spots for cheapies, and at the moment I’ll be going with Reuben Garrick, Bronson Xerri and Corey Allan, who all cost only $168,100. I will make changes after team list Tuesday, if these guys don’t earn a starting gig.

FULLBACK

James Tedesco ($689,000)

I’ve never been able to fit both James Tedesco and Tom Trbojevic in my team while Damien Cook is my starting hooker, so the injury to Turbo has meant I’m starting off with Teddy. Not much more to say here, with Teddy arguably being the best fullback in SuperCoach, and one of the best SuperCoach players overall.

Matt Moylan ($483,500)

It has not been a good time for me picking a back-up fullback this off-season. I had Ben Barba locked into this position until his sacking from the Cowboys, then I dumped Damien Cook and went with the Teddy-Turbo combo before Turbo was injured, and then brought in Scott Drinkwater after it looked like he had won the Storm fullback battle. I’ve now gone with Moylan after seeing him team up with Shaun Johnson in their trial against the Knights. While I was hesitant just a few weeks ago, I’m now definitely interested as a reserve option and I’m hoping I’ll be able to upgrade him to Turbo or Ponga at some point in the season.

Originally published as SuperCoach NRL: Draft expert Wilson Smith deals with Classic calamities