Eight fearless predictions for SuperCoach 2019

Will Dan Hannebery silence his critics or prove a giant bust for St Kilda and SuperCoach? We’ve dusted off the crystal ball to see what the future holds for some of this year’s biggest SuperCoach stars.

What is Supercoach if it isn’t a number of massive calls?

We are all searching for that one thing that we think will happen that no one else knows yet. We don’t always get those big calls right, but they are certainly fun to make.

When the Herald Sun asked me to have a go at making some big calls for the season ahead I admit I was a bit worried, but hey, here are a few things that I think might happen this season. Hopefully when we look back at this in eight months’ time you can say you read the news here first, and it helped you make some good calls when selecting your squad.

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1. Brodie Grundy will break the ‘Cox curse’

Dean Cox in 2008-09 is the last player to finish as the top-scoring ruckman two years in a row. Nic Naitanui, Will Minson, Sam Jacobs, Todd Goldstein and Matthew Kreuzer have all rocketed to the top since only to fall away the next year. But this is the year the curse ends.

Not only was Grundy the top-scoring player in SuperCoach last year, he is an absolute gun who has just come into his prime. He also doesn’t rely on hitouts for his points, effectively playing as an extra midfielder — just like the Eagles champ. Cox lost one point off his average in 2009 but still finished top of the ruck tree and Grundy has exactly what it takes to emulate this feat.

Brodie Grundy is set to take no prisoners again in 2019.

2. Max Gawn will prove all the doubters wrong

Last year we were all worried about the “Cox effect”. The theory went that on Brodie Grundy couldn’t score big with Mason Cox playing in the same team. So much for that idea. Now the SuperCoach world seems gripped by fear that the arrival of Braydon Preuss will decimate Max Gawn’s scores. Let’s remember that Preuss had no effect on Todd Goldstein at North Melbourne and has played only eight AFL games. Lock it in: Gawn will be the second-highest averaging ruck.

3. Tom Rockliff will bounce back to his former glory

The planets have aligned for Rockliff at the Power this season. Chad Wingard has moved on and Ollie Wines has injured himself waterskiing. This all points to Rocky having more time in the middle, where he does his best work. Last year he struggled to find his place in the Port Adelaide team and battled ongoing shoulder injuries. This year he’s feeling good after post-season surgery. Mark it down — Rocky will bounce back to a 100-plus average this season.

Tom Rockliff is looking sharp at pre-season training. Picture: Simon Cross

4. Dan Hannebery will get back to the Dan that we knew

New club, new Hanners. Last season was his worst for a decade and this change of scenery and a full pre-season will see him bounce back to a solid average. He might not get back to super premium status but I’m tipping a figure somewhere near 100, which will make him a huge value option. There was a little bit of cloudiness in the crystal ball with talk of hamstring issues, but the Saints have played at that down. Assuming it’s nothing to worry about, he will bounce back.

5. The move to Brisbane won’t be a points bonanza for Lachie Neale

Lachie Neale has averaged at least 109 points a game for the past three seasons and most expect that to continue at Brisbane. But he may get more attention than he previously had at the Dockers. He was able to fly under the radar at Freo, often operating in Nat Fyfe’s shadow, and something is telling me that he isn’t going to have things all his own way at the Lions. I have a feeling that his average will drop by 5-8 points this season. Not a disaster, but enough to knock him out of the super elite.

6. Buddy will be a bust

Lance Franklin finished 2018 as the fourth-highest averaging forward, of players who played more than 10 games. But he did only play 18 games last season. As the game continues to evolve and Buddy continues to age and have more and more injury niggles, his scoring will suffer. Three monster 160-plus scores last year mask a season that featured totals of 48, 52, 60 (twice) and 61. He has done a remarkable job to average 95-plus in each of the past three years, but this year he won’t make 90 and will be outside the top-six averaging forwards.

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7. This is the year of the expensive rookie

Canny SuperCoach players often stay away from many of the top draft picks from the previous year as they attract a higher price than other first-year players, and usually score at a similar level (Cam Rayner averaged 60 last season, seven points fewer than Nick Holman who started $100k cheaper). But this year the top-priced rookies look so good that they will finally provide some great return for the investment. At least five of the top 10 on draft night will play a significant role this season and will be among the top 10 rookies of the season. I am going to predict that at least two of them will be keepers.

Brad Crouch steps up his pre-season training load. Picture: Sarah Reed

8. Brad Crouch will play 20-plus games and show us what we have known all along

Finally Brad will get to show us that he is a Supercoach gun by having no injury issues during the season. He has teased us for five years, including averaging 108 over his final 11 games in 2017. After a minor pre-season setback he’s back in full training; look for him to have an average over 100 and challenge his brother Matt for the highest average at the Crows (along with Rory Laird).

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Now you may have read these and thought these are some outlandish claims. But what is this game if it isn’t one of making the big gamble to get ahead of the rest of the competition?

Hopefully some of your big calls come off and you find your way to the top of your SuperCoach leagues at the end of the season. I am sure that we will revisit these big calls later in the year to see how I have gone. If I can get at least three of these right I will take it as a win!

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