KFC SuperCoach: Round 8 late mail, burning questions

The cheapie cupboard is almost bare in KFC SuperCoach but a bargain-basement Kangaroo will make his debut this week. Get all the late mail and team whispers here.

Alastair Clarkson may have come to the rescue for thousands of KFC SuperCoach players desperate for rookie relief.

With cash cows drying up many coaches have started to wonder where the money will come from to keep trading and improving their teams.

But Clarkson delivered the news we needed to hear on Thursday when he revealed pint-sized rookie Blake Drury will make his debut for North Melbourne on Sunday against St Kilda.

SCROLL DOWN FOR THIS WEEK’S BURNING KFC SUPERCOACH QUESTIONS

The 19-year-old was recruited with pick 1 in last year’s rookie draft as a small forward – averaging 91 KFC SuperCoach points for the Oakleigh Chargers – but impressed over the pre-season with his skills and decision making at half-back.

He has kicked three goals over the past two weeks for North Melbourne’s VFL team but coaches will be hoping a spot across half-back beckons after watching Harry Sheezel become one of the picks of the season following a role change in defence.

The Roos’ final 22 will be revealed on Friday afternoon.

Blake Drury tries to break clear in a pre-season intraclub game. Picture: Michael Klein

"I hope you play your footy better than you draw your ovals, lad." 👨‍🎨

Blake's in.

📝: https://t.co/bPcWvfYa6G#Kangaspic.twitter.com/cJY6dC1pCN

— North Melbourne FC (@NMFCOfficial) May 4, 2023

ANOTHER NERVOUS WEEK FOR LAIRD OWNERS
Adelaide coach Matthew Nicks has raised fresh doubts about Rory Laird’s fitness in a worrying sign for more than 40,000 KFC SuperCoach teams.

The star Crow had to pass a fitness test to prove he had overcome a calf concern to face Collingwood last Sunday, but still managed 100 points.

Just when Laird owners thought they had dodged a bullet, he was “managed” and missed training on Wednesday.

Nicks was quick to play down injury concerns regarding Laird, but was unable to confirm the top KFC SuperCoach scorer from 2022 would face Geelong this weekend.

“Lairdy is just management. He pulled up well from the weekend,” Nicks said.

“Ongoing management with a number of players. There’s a fair bit of talk around about how you manage players through the season.

“ I know Tex (Taylor Walker) is one that people are talking about, Sloaney (Rory Sloane) with what he has come off of. There are different ways you can do it. During the week. The loads that we put into these guys during the week is one way.

Rory Laird reveals how close he was to missing last week's game. #AFL#Adelaidepic.twitter.com/nvnfMJXVSX

— Crows Nation (@CrowsNationSEN) May 2, 2023

“Missing a game here or there is another way. We’d love to have guys play every game, every week.

“That’s our preference to keep that experience in the side. But at times we’ll manage, like we have with Lairdy today.”

Pressed on whether there was any doubt Laird would tackle the Cats, Nicks added: “There’s always a little bit (of doubt) with Lairdy at the moment, just general soreness. We’re confident and he’s confident that he’ll be right for the weekend.”

Sean Darcy and Rory Laird are under fitness clouds.

BIG DOCKER IN DOUBT

Meanwhile, the 20,000 coaches who have enjoyed Sean Darcy’s superb run in the past five rounds could be brought crashing back to earth this week.

Reports from Western Australia suggest Darcy did not finish Fremantle’s match simulation on Wednesday, putting him in doubt for Saturday’s clash against Hawthorn.

Journalist Jordan McArdle tweeted on Wednesday afternoon: “Sean Darcy didn’t get through match sim, booting the ball in frustration after trudging off over the sidelines. Luke Jackson a strong chance to lead ruck. Nat Fyfe looked the goods playing a mix of midfield and forward. Got through the two-hour session.”

Ruckman Sean Darcy appears to be doing a fitness test on the outer side of the oval at Cockburn with his left knee heavily strapped. A watch ahead of Hawthorn clash on Saturday. Heath Chapman (hamstring) walking laps, Longmuir says 6-8 weeks out is best case scenario for him. pic.twitter.com/oMNwxElE9B

— Jordan McArdle (@jordan_mc12) May 3, 2023

ZIEBELL SET TO FACE FITNESS TEST AHEAD OF ROUND 8

North Melbourne has put KFC SuperCoaches on notice by declaring Jack Ziebell will need to pass a fitness test to feature in round 8.

Ziebell, who features in more than 47,000 teams, left the ground in the first quarter against Melbourne with an issue the club described as “an acute moment with his plantar fascia”.

North’s head of performance Kevin White didn’t sound overly concerned, but Ziebell is still one to watch later in the week to see how he pulls up.

“He just had some soreness there, was able to return to the field and he pulled up pretty well, but we’ll offload that for the start of the week and look to get him main training at the back end of the week just to test his function,” White told the Roos website.

North said Luke Davies-Uniacke, who missed the loss to Melbourne with feel bruising, would be assessed in coming days and hopefully take part in main training on Thursday.

Jack Ziebell will have to pass a fitness test to feature in round 8.

HUGE BOOST FOR MCKENNA OWNERS

Don’t go trading Conor McKenna just yet.

The Irishman’s scoring potential has received a significant boost with news Daniel Rich is set to miss 2-3 weeks with a calf injury.

McKenna was Brisbane’s main kick-in taker in rounds 3 and 4 when Rich also missed, scoring 57 and 86 in those games.

With a break even of 48 and no scores below 55, there was always a chance you could hold McKenna for at least another week anyway.

McKenna has only had one kick out in each of the past three weeks while Rich has been available.

Dayne Zorko has also been ruled out with a hamstring injury.

“Daniel Rich is similar, he’s got a little bit of a calf injury,” Lions coach Chris Fagan told Fox Footy.

“He’ll be probably that 2-3 week bracket as well. Not as bad as I first thought, so good news in a way, although we’ll miss those two fellas because they’re pretty important to us.”

As of Tuesday night, more than 1000 coaches had traded McKenna with James Sicily, Luke Ryan and Jack Sinclair the top replacements.

Hold onto Conor McKenna for at least a few more weeks.

DAVEY RESTING EXPLAINED

Essendon coach Brad Scott has provided an insight into why Alwyn Davey was among the Bombers managed in round 7.

The first-year father-son pick played the opening six games for the Bombers, averaging 51.6 KFC SuperCoach points.

Despite some thought he could be the sub against Geelong, Davey was left out altogether.

“We knew we would need to manage our squad this week, so we do have some options to come back in,” Scott told reporters post-match.

“It was a very difficult decision to sort of look after the young players like Alwyn Davey and Jye Menzie. But again, we thought we had to do that.”

With a break even of 32, Davey is projected to make about $30k in his next three matches.

More than 3000 coaches have already traded Davey this week.

Alwyn Davey was managed last round.

Josh Fahey (right) battles Josh Kelly at GWS training.

HOW FAR AWAY IS PROLIFIC VFL GIANT?

The debut KFC SuperCoaches have been waiting for is likely to be a while away yet.

Young Giant Josh Fahey has been posting ridiculous numbers in the VFL, scoring 171, 151 and 105 ranking points in his last three matches.

In that time he’s averaged 32.5 disposals, 80.8 per cent kicking efficiency, 82 per cent DE, 8.8 rebound 50s, 8.8 marks and 5.8 intercepts.

We know, those figures have the hallmarks of a KFC SuperCoach star.

Giants coach Adam Kingsley was quizzed about whether Fahey, a $123k DEF-MID, was closing in on a debut this week.

“It’s hard to know (how far away he is). He’s in really good form in the VFL,” Kingsley said.

“The VFL played Port Melbourne and had a gutsy two-point win and Josh played really well in that game.

“The reality is he’s sitting behind Whitfield and Ash at the moment for a position in the team, two really good players for us. That’s difficult for him.

“We’ve been trying to shift him around a little bit to try and create an opportunity where he can fight his way into the team, while both Whitfield and Ash are in the team.

“He played a fair bit more on the wing last weekend. We were really pleased with him. He’s just got to keep persisting … and fight his way into the team.

“I can see him debuting soon for us but it’s hard to be exact in terms of when that will be.”

The issue might be that if Fahey breaks in, one of this week’s only bubble boys Ryan Angwin could be squeezed out.

Watch this space.

Marcus Bontempelli is set for extra attention from GWS.

BONTEMPELLI TAG FLAGGED

Just as he ws hurtling toward $700k, a tag awaits Marcus Bontempelli this week.

Kingsley all but confirmed the Giants would task one of their midfielders — likely Harry Perryman — with stopping the in-form Bulldogs skipper in round 8.

Bontempelli has scored 100, 120 and 127 KFC SuperCoach points in his last three matches against the Giants and has the best three-round average in the game — a whopping 149.7 points.

“We’ll certainly have attention on him, that’s for sure,” Kingsley said.

“If you let him run around by himself, allowed to do whatever he wants, then he’s going to have an enormous impact on the game. We’ll try and nullify that as best as we possibly can. “We haven’t sat down and discussed what it’s going to look like as a coaching group yet. But we’ll certainly be paying him close attention.”

KFC SUPERCOACH’S TOUGHEST TRADE QUESTIONS ANSWERED

What would KFC SuperCoach be without a week of drama?

Thankfully, after a week of will-he-or-won’t-he surrounding Rory Laird, the Adelaide superstar got up to play on Sunday against Collingwood.

And there was a welcome reprieve for KFC SuperCoaches with fewer injuries and team chaos than recent weeks in round 7 too.

But, a lack of rookies on the horizon looms as a huge issue which could put our upgrade plans on hold.

With The Phantom taking a few weeks off, Tim Michell answers this week’s burning questions below.

Rory Laird played on Sunday after days of discussion about his calf.

Can we have a week without KFC SuperCoach drama?

It appears not. The saga around whether Laird would play or not was something else. One minute he was missing a week according to Matthew Nicks, then he just had to get through captain’s run, then he was having a fitness test half an hour before the game. Then less than an hour after that he was on 60 KFC SuperCoach points at halftime. Then, Adelaide tweeted he had been subbed out during the second half, only for Jake Soligo to then be subbed a few minutes later. Seriously, what a first seven rounds this has been. If you’re anything like me you will have burned through almost half your 36 trades covering injuries and trying to upgrade your team through the carnage. Just one quiet week would be nice. No wonder The Phantom needs some time off.

Me, a non-Laird owner #SuperCoachpic.twitter.com/qQdBXPMln1

— Tim Michell (@tim_michell) April 30, 2023

Alex Cincotta is the best cash cow of the week.

Where are the rookies?

Tough question. If you went early on Alex Cincotta, as tens of thousands of coaches did, the rookie cupboard is looking very bare this week. You could pay $166k for Sam Simpson or take a punt on Ryan Angwin from GWS, but both are borderline selections and Simpson is playing predominantly forward. The other options this week for immediate cash generation are Dylan Williams at $198k or Brynn Teakle at $199k, but more on him later. Justin Longmuir could do us all a favour and recall Corey Wagner, but Fremantle’s issues are in the front half and not defence. It seems like we are going to have to get creative to keep the cash generation flowing. Jake Soligo is a player I really like who has had extra midfield time in the past two weeks and has a Break Even of -5. But the issue was he was subbed late with an apparent injury.

Kade Chandler is heading toward a total price rise of $300k.

So, how am I meant to upgrade?

Assuming you aren’t as flippant as me with your boosts, you should still have two up your sleeve. This week you could use one to go Angwin/Simpson, Cincotta and a big gun such as Clayton Oliver or Laird. Things might get tougher from next week though, unless some rookies appear. Kade Chandler looms as a key to the trade plans of more than 50,000 coaches. He’s projected to get to almost $400k in two weeks and could get you to a fallen premium for $100-$150k. That’s an almighty result in a year where most rookies are peaking at $250k-$300k. The other option is just ignoring the $600k-plus players and going for value, but the issue there is Oliver, Jordan Dawson, Marcus Bontempelli and Co are scoring off the charts and it hurts every week you don’t own them.

Guess who didn't get him because you don't pick small forwards in #SuperCoachhttps://t.co/9jci0fOkAf

— Tim Michell (@tim_michell) April 29, 2023

Is it right you didn’t get Kade Chandler?

Yes. And I regret it more every week. Let’s move on. Please.

Will Setterfield scored 51 points against Geelong.

Is the Will Setterfield experiment over?

Yes. Ben Hobbs’ inclusion in the Essendon team and extra midfield time for Jake Stringer seemed to hurt Setterfield on Sunday against Geelong. He hasn’t gone close to this week’s Break Even of 117 since round 2, and you weren’t buying Setterfield as a season keeper. He still had 27 CBAs against the Cats but a score of 51 has alarm bells ringing. Well done if you started him but for those who traded Setterfield in, the cash-making experiment is over. You can get to Jack Steele for just over $100k and he plays North Melbourne this week. Don’t hesitate.

Clayton Oliver’s price looks to have bottomed out.

Do I use my last boost to turn him into Clayton Oliver?

I was hoping you could answer that for me. Watching Demons games is near impossible when you don’t have Oliver. He’s scored less than 113 once, is in 49 per cent of teams and won’t get much cheaper than his current price of $652k. The way he demands the footy reminds me of myself refreshing the KFC SuperCoach app hoping my players’ scores have gone up. He’s just relentless. But that doesn’t answer your question. Oliver has Gold Coast, Hawthorn, Port Adelaide, Fremantle, Carlton and Collingwood before the bye. His next four opponents rank 10th, 11th, 12th, 18th on the scale of hardest to easiest for midfielders to score against. He could be in for a massive month and you want to be on board, even if it means sending that last boost rocket into orbit.

Is Jack Steele back?

Darcy Parish is enjoying another strong season.

What if I only want to use two trades?

Then let’s talk about Jack Steele and Darcy Parish. The Saints skipper has dropped almost $70k and hasn’t been this cheap since the opening rounds of 2020. He’s also up against North Melbourne this week and the Roos have been leaking huge points to midfielders. Parish needs 30-plus disposals to score hundreds but has only dropped below 30 touches once this year. He’s ranked 13th for total points in the midfield but is the 19th most-expensive midfielder. You’ve just got to weigh up whether them scoring 10-15 points a week fewer than Oliver is worth holding onto that extra trade.

Brodie Grundy has a Break Even of 158 this week.

I still have Brodie Grundy. Should I be worried?

I would be. Scores of 81 and 89 in the last two weeks and a Break Even of 158 should be cause for concern. Tim English was below his best against Hawthorn at the weekend and still outscored Grundy (albeit by one point). English and Sean Darcy are the only ruckmen who have set themselves apart this year, and you can get to Darcy for about $47k from Grundy.

Brynn Teakle has taken over as Port Adelaide’s No. 1 ruckman.

Can I trade him to Brynn Teakle?

Now we’re talking. Grundy to Teakle will net almost $390k, allowing you to add a top scorer in another position. Then it’s just a matter of how long you can get away with having Teakle at R2. He could double in price by Port Adelaide’s bye if he can average 80. I’m sort of jealous that I don’t have Grundy in my team so I can make the move.

Patrick Dangerfield has a five-round average of 121.

Why aren’t we talking about Patrick Dangerfield?

Well we can, if you really want. The Phantom did mention him in this column last week but he’s still in just 5 per cent of teams. Danger has scored five successive KFC SuperCoach tons and tallied 124 points despite playing 64 per cent game time against Essendon. In that time he had 28 disposals, 10 clearances, three goal assists and 15 inside-50s. Those numbers are wild. Only five midfielders have a better five-round average that Dangerfield’s 121 and his price is almost $600k now. If you got him at $450k five weeks ago you would be stoked, but he’s too expensive to bring in now.

Should I trade Nick Daicos?

Hahahahahahaha. You’re kidding right? He might cop another Ryan Clarke tag this week though, so look elsewhere for your captain this week.

Hoping this is the round that finally kick starts my #SuperCoach season - 2430.

Went ahead with the Will Day move, and held LDU. Brought Cincotta in as part of it, so first thought is no trades this week.

How did you go?

— The Phantom (@ThePhantomSC) April 30, 2023

Can we have Phantom back?

In a few weeks. For now you’re stuck with me and my Kade Chandler regret. But, the good news is The Lair doesn’t take holidays and if you still need your Phantom fix, you can catch him on there talking about how he’s back in a big way after scoring 2430.