KFC SuperCoach AFL trade guide: Best targets for Round 18
Finals are just around the corner in KFC SuperCoach. Here are the gun players for any budget to top up your squad for a premiership tilt.
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If you think the battle for the AFL top eight is going to be frantic, brace yourself for the next six weeks of KFC SuperCoach.
Somehow it’s Round 18 next week which means there are just three weeks left to lock in your spot in your league finals, and to start making plans for KFC SuperCoach Grand Final day.
And that’s not to mention the chase for overall rankings glory.
Trades are dwindling across the competition but decisions on how to use the precious few remaining will be the difference between success and failure in the run home.
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Teams that are still relying on a rookie on field will know the highs (Cody Weightman scoring 115 last week) and lows (Cody Weightman scoring 28 this week) that can bring.
While you might spike one great score, getting a reliable premium in that spot will get you well ahead over six weeks.
And there are some fantastic scorers who are coming down in price fast, and some late-season bolters available at bargain prices.
For some of them we might have to use the word “reliable” loosely, but all we need is six weeks.
Welcome to the run home!
RUNNING HOT
Jack Steele $675,700 MID
If you just want great scores every week and price isn’t an issue it’s hard to go past the Saints skipper. Since he dipped to $563,000 after scoring 99 in Round 10 he has peeled off six mammoth scores in a row. Four of those have been over 140 including another captain-worthy return against the Lions. St Kilda’s fixture doesn’t get any easier but high tackle numbers mean he’s always in the game.
Touk Miller $656,600 MID
The POD of the year — in just 7 per cent of teams — just keeps getting it done. Ask Stuart Dew, who remarkably was prepared to play with just 17 men on field in the dying minutes against GWS to get Touk back on the field (he rewarded the coach by winning the next clearance). Since Round 3 he has scored under 100 once — and that was a 96. Since Round 10 he is averaging 134 points a game. But, like Steele, he’s well over $600k.
Sean Darcy $648,000
Anyone up for a crazy late-season gamble? A side-swap from Max Gawn to Sean Darcy would cost some loose change but could deliver massive dividends if both players’ recent form continues. Gawn is a KFC SuperCoach legend but he has scored 103, 100 and 102 in his past three games as Luke Jackson takes more of the ruck load at the Demons. In the same time frame Darcy has pumped out 90, 193 and 183. Freo plays Geelong, Sydney and Richmond in its next three — teams not noted for their strong ruck divisions. Just putting it on the table!
Callum Mills $572,800
Not having the No.1 KFC SuperCoach defender is hurting non-Mills owners more by the week. If you’re waiting for a poor game to pounce, give up on that idea — Mills has posted 11 scores in a row over 100 including 121 and 127 in his past two. Remarkably, his price tag is only about $30k up on his starting value and he’s arguably a better bet than anyone you’ll find for around the same price in the midfield. A DPP switch (for example, Rory Laird to the mids) could create an opening to snare the Swans gun.
Ben Cunnington $598,800 MID
We wrote about Cunnington as a pre-season bargain and he quietly slipped off the radar after missing the first two rounds then starting the season slowly with an 82.5 average in his first four games. But he’s firmly back on it now after seven consecutive tons leading into the final game of Round 17, averaging 123.8 in that time. He’s not the steal he was in Round 1 but could be well worth the roughly $600k investment.
Charlie Dixon $540,300 FWD
Will we never learn? Key forwards are a huge KFC SuperCoach risk — hello, Tom Hawkins owners — but Dixon has posted remarkably consistent numbers over the past 10 weeks. He has dropped below 100 three times — scoring 83, 90, 88. It’s hard to find any forward who can match that and Dixon could be a very nice point of difference (3 per cent of teams) to finish your forward line.
BARGAINS
Nat Fyfe $483,200 MID
True KFC SuperCoach royalty, Fyfe will be available for under $500k heading into Round 18 after falling short of his huge 154 break even against the Hawks. His scoring in recent weeks has been down on his lofty standards — hence the big price drop — but he was back in three figures at the weekend and with the Dockers a red-hot chance to pinch a top-eight spot it’s time to strap the Superman cape on.
Clayton Oliver $579,200 MID
A test case on why we need to resist the temptation to pay absolute top dollar for players on a crazy hot streak. Clarry topped the $700k mark a few weeks after his monster 204-point game in Round 10 but he has shed over $100k in the past month and is now available for comfortably under $600k. After a lean couple of weeks (by his standards) there were plenty of signs of a return to form with his best score in six weeks against Port Adelaide. Keep an eye on Marcus Bontempelli too — he’s on the downward section of the price rollercoaster but will take a few weeks to get anywhere near “bargain” territory.
Jordan De Goey $456,300 FWD
The hype is real. Robert Harvey is playing De Goey as a full-time midfielder and he is repaying the faith with three straight tons including a season-high 124 against Richmond, helped by a massive last quarter. De Goey was just $407,200 entering Round 17 but he obliterated his break even (10) so you’ll have to fork out a bit more this week, but he’s still massive unders especially as a forward.
Taylor Adams $516,600 MID
A high-risk but high-reward option, Adams has an edge on De Goey in having runs on the board as a proven KFC SuperCoach premium — in 2020 he averaged 109.6 over 17 games. This year has been interrupted by multiple soft-tissue injuries which are always a worry, but he has strung the past three together for scores of 110, 112 and 140. He’s also set for a big price jump after Monday night’s lockout but you should be able to snap him up for under $500k.
Luke Dunstan $505,800 MID
Has a player ever been so out of favour and returned to form like this? Dunstan’s papers seemed all but stamped for the first half of the season, but eventually selectors couldn’t ignore his massive VFL numbers — which have translated to the top level. Since returning to the seniors in Round 11 Dunstan has posted five tons in six games and averaged 109.3. And the best part — he’s just over $500k.
Rowan Marshall $438,900 FWD/RUC
A popular target last week, Marshall rewarded his new owners with 95 points against Brisbane but that won’t change his price too much from the bargain basement $437,200 we paid before Round 17. And he’s one player who won’t be bothered by the Saints’ draw — in his past two games against Port Adelaide he has scored 139 and 160.
Nick Haynes $431,100 DEf
If you’re struggling to scrape any money together Haynes could fill a spot in your defence for minimal outlay (he was $424k heading into the weekend). A true premium in 2020, he has still posted just one score over 100 for the year but he seems to have regained his favourable intercepting role, scoring 86 or more in his past five games.
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