KFC SuperCoach 2021: Quick guide to picking a winning team

Thirty players to pick, $10 million to spend. Where do you start? Follow SuperCoach expert Al Paton’s step-by-step guide.

You’ve signed up for KFC SuperCoach, have a killer team name and uniform and you’re ready to start your charge to league domination, and maybe even the $50,000 grand prize. Now what?

Staring at the team screen with 30 blank boxes — and more than 700 players to choose from — can be daunting.

Here’s a simple step-by-step guide to picking a winning team.

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Just like an AFL list manager, you only have limited funds to work with when selecting your squad. A $10 million salary cap sounds a lot but it will disappear fast, so look for players who provide value for money as well as scoring potential. Players returning from injury are often attractively priced, but come with some risk, so you don’t want too many.

You need a balance of superstars, mid-range players and kids who are ready to emerge.

Note: You can make as many trades as you like before Round 1, so decisions made now aren’t final. Expect to make some changes as we get hints on form, injuries and likely Round 1 selection. It’s possible to save a partially-finished team, but make sure you have a full squad of 30 players saved before Round 1 lockout to be part of the action.

1. START IN THE RUCK

The ruck is the third of the four positions on the SuperCoach player menu, but this is the place to start because these decisions will impact every other position.

The easiest — and potentially smartest — call is to pick Demon Max Gawn and Magpie Brodie Grundy. They have been the highest-scoring rucks of the past three seasons by a big margin — last year Gawn had the highest average of any player (140) and Grundy had the sixth-highest (120).

MORE: 11 PLAYERS YOU MUST PICK IN KFC SUPERCOACH

Brodie Grundy is a proven KFC SuperCoach performer. Picture: Brett Costello

They are likely to deliver big scores every week and save you a lot of stress. The sticking point in selecting both is that it will use up almost $1.4 million — 14 per cent — of your salary cap on two players.

There are other elite ruckmen who come a bit cheaper — Todd Goldstein and Nic Naitanui have a good scoring history — but you are likely to be giving up points to opponents with Gawn and Grundy, especially if one of them is captain — earning double points.

There are some mid-price rucks that could save you cash, like Essendon’s Sam Draper ($379,100) or new Swan Tom Hickey ($261,100), but the really bold play here would be to pick one of Grundy or Gawn and then select two of the several bargain-basement rucks that seem likely to play in Round 1 — Docker Lloyd Meek ($123,900), Giant Matt Flynn ($123,900) or Saint Paul Hunter ($102,400).

Most players will just take one of these players as their bench ruckman — you don’t want to spend more than $150,000 on this position.

2. FILL YOUR BENCH

The next step is to pick your bargain basement players — aim for under $130,000 — in defence (two), the midfield (three) and forward line (two). These are your bench players who will rise in value once they start playing and can fill in if one of your first-choice 22 is injured.

The most important goal when picking a SuperCoach team is to find bench players who will get game time. Many teams have unravelled because there are too many cheapies who aren’t even playing.

Check out our ROOKIE BIBLE for a guide to the bottom-priced players likely to get a game in Round 1. Mature-age recruits are good options because they are ready to play straight away and are often signed to fill a specific role in the team — lock James Rowe at the Crows in your forward line and 25-year-old rookie Anthony Scott from the Bulldogs can be selected as a midfield or forward.

Adelaide draftees Riley Thilthorpe (left) and James Rowe are both hoping to play in Round 1.

3. SOME MORE CHEAPIES

To fit your team under the salary cap you’ll need to start some of these cheap players on the field — so it’s even more important they are getting games!

Pick two more in the midfield and one more in the defence and forward line. You can up your budget here a little bit to include players like Braeden Campbell ($189,300) or Paddy Dow ($202,400).

With all your rookies it’s OK to take a bit of a guess now and pick players to fill these roles who might not make your final team. Just remember to check back in before Round 1 to make sure you have the best cheapies — they aren’t much use to us if they’re aren’t scoring any points.

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4. GET SOME BIG GUNS

Now for the fun bit. It’s time to splash some cash on the biggest — and most expensive — players in the game.

Due to their high price, you can only have a handful in each position — two or three in the backline and forward line and four in the midfield.

You need to spend wisely. Look for proven performers over multiple seasons — a breakout year could be a sign of things to come or it might be a flash in the pan. Players such as Jack Macrae, Jake Lloyd and Patrick Dangerfield have been high scorers for several years, so you can bet they will be again in 2021.

Note that the SuperCoach scoring formula rewards more than just kicks and handballs — players who can win their own footy and use if effectively (Marcus Bontempelli is a great example) are the elite scorers in this fantasy game. Goals, tackles, hitouts to advantage and intercept possessions are all high-scoring stats.

Reliability is a key factor when selecting your top-line stars. Players who appear every week save you trades and headaches throughout the season. You can’t go past Brisbane’s Lachie Neale — he has missed just two games in the past seven seasons.

MORE: SUPERCOACH WINNER’S SIMPLE TIPS FOR SUCCESS

Pick Clayton Oliver in your midfield and watch the points roll in.

5. FIND A BARGAIN OR THREE

There should be a couple of spots to fill in each position (apart from the ruck) and a bit of money left to spend.

These positions are where you can take a punt on a mid-pricer — players who are underpriced based on their scoring potential, but who usually come with a large element of risk as well.

They might be coming back from a serious injury, like Jack Ziebell, looking for a fresh start, like Jeremy Cameron, or a young player ready to take his game to the next level, like Shai Bolton.

Their prices can range anywhere from Joe Daniher’s $223,300 to Jy Simpkin’s $499,700. What they all have in common is the potential to score way above their starting price — if everything goes their way.

Check out our list of the 11 biggest bargains of 2021.

These guys can make your KFC SuperCoach season, or break it. So you don’t want too many.

6. A NOTE ON DUAL-POSITION PLAYERS

Some players in SuperCoach can be picked in more than one position — they are known as dual-position players, or DPPs. Their real value in your team is they can switch between those positions during the year, potentially allowing you to cover for an injury without using a trade.

They also allow us to pack our sides with extra high-scoring midfielders by picking them in defence or the forward line.

As a general rule if high-scoring players are available as MID/FWD pick them in the forward line — so put the likes of Dangerfield and Dustin Martin in your forward line, where dependable high scorers are harder to find. That leaves spots in your midfield for pure mids like Neale, Nat Fyfe and Zach Merrett.

And if you can find a couple of cheap DPPs who are likely to play, stick them on your midfield and forward bench — Sydney’s Braeden Campbell and Hawthorn’s Tyler Brockman fit the bill this year. They can be hugely valuable as the season plays out.

MORE: 11 BIGGEST BARGAINS OF KFC SUPERCOACH 2021

Dyson Heppell is very cheap in KFC SuperCoach after battling injuries last year.

7. ANOTHER NOTE ON TRADES

After Round 1 you’ll have 30 trades throughout the season — a maximum of two per week, or three during the bye rounds — to fix and improve your squad.

If you take a gamble and it doesn’t pay off, it’s not the end of the world. But a strong starting squad will set up your entire season.

8. JOIN A LEAGUE

KFC SuperCoach allows you to challenge yourself but the best part of the game is competing against your family and friends in a private league with head-to-head matches every week and a finals series culminating in KFC SuperCoach Grand Final day in Round 23.

Just click the “leagues” tab on the main menu and you can create a 10 or 18-team league and invite your friends or join a league you have been invited to. Everyone is automatically placed in a public league where you will be facing off against 17 other players of a similar skill level.

9. WE’RE HERE TO HELP!

Don’t stress too much over picking a team for the first time - lock in 30 names and get on for the ride. Check out the Herald Sun and Advertiser websites and our KFC SuperCoach News page for lots of top advice and tips on picking a starting team and throughout the season.

And you can get more tips and join the banter on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, and follow our experts Al Paton, Tim Michell and The Phantom on Twitter.

9. GOOD LUCK!

Keep an eye on pre-season games to refine your team before Round 1, and we’ll have plenty of expert advice to help you make the best selection calls.

The next step is to convince your mates to join your private league so the real battle can begin.

Good luck!