SuperCoach NRL: Rob Sutherland’s final update for 2024

Some fresh faces, and a tear-jerking confession, are the features of Rob Sutherland’s updated round one team as he reacts to the Team List Tuesday surprises.

At this point of the season last year I can remember looking at the 438th edit of my team, the one I was locking in to start round one 2023, and thinking ‘that’s pretty bloody good Rob, well done young fella.’

I don’t feel the same this year.

There are selections I don’t love, picks I think are questionable, ‘green dots’ I doubt.

But at some point you need to stop. Take a step back, admit you may not love every ‘cheapie’ but have locked in the guns you absolutely want and then cross your fingers and hope for the best in round one and beyond.

And that’s what I’m doing here, as I, with a somewhat heavy heart reveal the final iteration of the Belalie Beasts ahead of the resumption of round one.

HOOKER

Harry Grant HOK $750,000/Brandon Smith HOK $471,300

I’ve tried cheaper hookers than Harry but none have his ability to so regularly punch out scores of 70+ and that upside is a H2H winner and path to overall success.

Smith (48 points in Vegas) is a selection somewhat forced upon me by a lack of love for the cheapie options at the position. His $470K price tag is awkward but I liked quite a bit of what I saw from him in Las Vegas as he played his hand in attack - and his feet too with a nice 40/20 kick. I’m not locked in on the Cheese and should Api Koroisau start well come round two (and crucially also be taking the shots at goal for the Tigers) then I only need to find $100K to make the upgrade.

There’s no hooker quite like Harry Grant. Picture: NRL Imagery

FRONT ROW

Max King $547,800/Jai Arrow FRF/2RF $466,000/Sam Hughes FRF $238,900/Liam Henry $238,900

I have been uncomfortable with my FRF(1) and FRF (2) all pre-season (the cheapies were much more straightforward). Having decided to spend big on my backs (not my usual approach) I knew a premium FRF was out of reach and so have tried multiple combinations.

Max King is pretty expensive and I have had Tom Flegler pencilled in as FRF(1) plenty of times all season but TLT forced my hand. The Bulldogs are thin at FRF with three forward utilities and a rookie FRF on their bench, they’ll need big minutes from King and with 55 minutes I am counting on him to average around 60PPG.

Arrow(39 points in Vegas) is a guy I had on my ‘never again’ list, but after being largely used as a prop in 2023 it looked like he had reverted back to an edge so I made him a Vegas gamble. It did not really pay off. I’ll stick fat for one more round but he’s on my ‘trade watch list’ already - not great from me.

Hughes and Henry are the pick of the cheapies for mine, both are young props on the rise and should start from the bench for their respective sides.

Brendan Piakura. Picture: NRL Photos

SECOND ROW

Heilum Luki 2RF $471,200/Beau Fermor 2RF $467,300/Brendan Piakura 2RF $426,800/Keenan Palasia 2RF/FRF $365,200/Morgan Smithies 2RF $345,000/Kai Pearce-Paul $345,000

Normally the engine room of SuperCoach in which we load up with premium-priced workhorses, this year presents a bumper crop of mid-range options. I’ve loaded up on comeback kings and fresh faced Poms. There are some I have regretfully left behind too (more below).

Luki has had little luck in his career to date with injuries limiting him to 11, 14 and 13 games over the past three seasons. He’s healthy now and opportunity knocks with the Cowboys trading away his main competition for minutes in Luciano Leilua. When Luki played 55+ minute sin 2023 he averaged 61PPG, priced well below that he’s a real upside guy.

Fermor is another on the comeback trail who is priced at a big discount due to missing all of 2023 with an ACL injury. Trialled well, looks fit. Lock him in.

Piakura is not a workhorse, but he is a hole runner who will score double-figure tries in 2024 now that he has the left-edge starting role sewn up following the departure of Kurt Capewell.

Piakura (4 points in Vegas) had rotten luck in Vegas getting his head in the wrong position in the opening minutes of the game and being forced from the field with a concussion. I’ve seen plenty planning to sell the young man but that’s a mistake IMO. We picked him for a reason and one bad tackle does not vitiate that pre-season analysis.

Palasia is a post-TLT addition to my team. I thought he had a bit of a dull trial if I’m to be honest and I put a line through him after it. However, a starting role (he has been named in the 13 jersey for the Titans) at his price and with dual-position eligibility is nothing to sneeze at. We all have bad days at the office on occasion and I’m hoping the trial was that.

Smithies and Pearce-Paul are a couple of Englishman fresh to the NRL. Smithies is a bulldog, named to start at lock for the Raiders and if he does I’m counting on 35 tackles and 10 runs. That’s good return for the price. Pearce-Paul is a riskier pick. Not a pure worker like smithies what he brings to the team is upside with offloads and tackle busts. Starting off the bench in round one the word is he’s set to start when fully fit.

HALFBACK

Nicho Hynes HFB $970,000/Drew Hutchison HFB/CTW $354,900

It’s awfully hard to fit in both premium halfbacks in Sir Nicho and Nathan Cleary so I’ll start with the guy who has proven more durable over the past three seasons with Hynes playing 65 games (scoring 5594 points at 86PPG) compared to Cleary’s 49 games (4,550 points at 92.8PPG). That Cleary PPG is why I’ll work towards having both in my team as soon as I can afford them, and yes, I know I promised less stats, but I couldn’t help myself.

DHutch looks to have the starting halfback job at the Dogs sewn up – for now – and that’s enough to get him into my team – for now.

FIVE-EIGHTH

Dylan Brown 5/8 $780,800/Max Plath $278,200

There’s a big gap between the elite five-eighths (Brown and Munster) and the rest of the options at the position and I think you need to have one of them in your team. I’ve opted for Brown because his draw is kinder, he does not play Origin and his big defensive workrate imbues him with a reliable base.

Plath is another TLT reaction selection. I originally had young tiger Lachlan Galvin here as a stash because I think the kid will play and play well in the NRL sooner rather than later. But, Plath is no slouch himself and after training at lock, hooker and five-eighth at different periods in the pre-season he might be the Dolphins super sub 14 in the Dylan Walker mould. The Dolphins have a very old pack, and with age come niggling injuries, young is in position to benefit should these occur.

CENTRE/WING

Dylan Lucas 2RF|CTW $502,300/Taylan May CTW $458,800/Jaeman Salmon CTW/2RF $317,100/Ben Trbojevic CTW/2RF $277,400/Jack Bostock CTW $314,500/Ethan Strange CTW|5/8 $238,900/Taine Tuaupiki $277,700

After some sensational trial form I had Roger Tuivasa-Sheck penned in as my premium CTW to start the season. But 1. I needed about $40K from somewhere, 2. I LOVE having a starting 2RF in my CTW and 3. Lucas was pretty darn sexy in his pre-season too. Not RTS sexy, but enough to catch my eye. Pearce-Paul (see above) is lurking behind Lucas and should he usurp my guy then I’ll be forced into a trade but for now I think they can coexist in my team.

May is a bit of an unknown quantity in that he came to prominence playing on the wing for the Panthers in 2022, missed the 2023 season due to an ACL injury and now is set to play centre in 2024. He was good though not great in the World Club Challenge and at his price I’ll take good in a great team.

Salmon was in my team as a bit of a bench filler but he’s looked better than that in the trials and has been promoted to start at lock for the Bulldogs. He’s got plenty of competition for minutes/role with the likes of Kurt Mann and Kurtis Morrin on the bench but you have to respect the team named on TLT and Salmon is in front of both for now.

Trbojevic(72 points in Vegas), or Burbo if you will, started at 2RF for the Sea Eagles in round one and did a fine job at it. A try and linebreak saw him score an impressive 72 points but what I liked was his workrate in defence (31 tackles with just three misses) and ten hit-ups. He’ll face a challenge for that spot once Josh Schuster is fit and healthy, but at this price I’m willing to back him.

Bostock is starting on the wing for the Dolphins. He was good though not great in the trials but cheapie stocks are thin at the position.

Strange nabbed the starting five-eighth spot at the Raiders with a willing defensive effort against the Cowboys in the trials.

Tuaupiki is a pick I do not love. Named to start at fullback and he has scored well there in the past but his job security is poor with regular fullback Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad expected back in round three or four. That said, hamstrings can be tricky things …

Kalyn Ponga of the Knights.

FULLBACK

Kalyn Ponga FLB $892,800/Tom Trbojevic FLB $833,500

I have LOADED up here spending the money I saved at FRF to grab double studs. Ponga was electric to close out 2023 and once he took on the goalkicking at the Knights he averaged almost 120PPG. I’d ‘settle’ for 20PPG less to be honest.

Tommy Turbo (81 points in Vegas) is the best player in SuperCoach and he looked great in Vegas chiming in particularly well on the left with new five-eighth Luke Brooks. His 81 points was not the top score of any fullback this round but I have little doubt it was just a stepping stone to what we’ll see as the season progresses. I can make arguments for a plethora of other fullbacks but this is the pairing that makes me happiest and so that’s the way I have gone.

Originally published as SuperCoach NRL: Rob Sutherland’s final update for 2024