Six strategies for selecting your ruckmen in SuperCoach

Two months after SuperCoach opened for 2019, the rucks are still providing the biggest selection headache. Should you start both big guns or are there smarter options? SAMPLE TEAMS

How can a position with just three players cause so many headaches?

When SuperCoach prices were revealed last December the first thing that stood out was the price of the top two ruck options, Brodie Grundy and Max Gawn.

We asked back then if you could afford to pay $1.4 million on just two players, and with just days until the first lockout of the season, we still don’t have a clear answer.

PRE-SEASON: EVERY JLT SERIES SUPERCOACH SCORE

BRAGGING RIGHTS: HOW TO DOMINATE YOUR PRIVATE LEAGUE

RISKY PICKS: THE PHANTOM’S MID-PRICE MEGA GUIDE

ROOKIE BIBLE: EVERY CHEAPIE YOU NEED TO KNOW

Many coaches will lock in two of the top-scoring players from 2018 and move on, but there are plenty more searching for some value to help finance improving their squad in other positions.

Whatever your approach is, it’s vital you know why you’re doing it — and stick tot he plan.

Here are six different ways you can approach the ruck line in 2019.

1. SET AND FORGET

Brodie Grundy scored more SuperCoach points than any other player last season and Max Gawn was ranked third, behind the injured Tom Mitchell. The simplest move is just to pony up the cash and have the two scoring behemeths from the start.

The pros for this strategy are obvious. Grundy averaged 130.5 points a game in 2018, Gawn was at 127.5 and the next-best scoring ruckman, Brisbane’s Stefan Martin, averaged 105.7. That’s a ridiculous gap from the top two to the rest.

Maintaining their scoring from last year will be tough but even if they drop off a little bit, it’s still going to take a monumental effort to find the money to bring them into your team. So why not avoid the stress and save the trade?

Brodie Grundy was a must-have in SuperCoach last year.

Both players also make excellent captain choices — Grundy topped 140 points 10 times last season, Gawn did it eight times.

The biggest con is their prices — and that’s a big one. Spending so much in one position compromises other parts of the ground and might mean picking a risky mid-pricer instead of a proven premium.

Grundy had a couple of light weeks on the training track after Jordan Roughead stood on his foot but played both JLT games, while fears recruit Braydon Preuss could steal Gawn’s points appear unfounded.

The set and forget ruck set up is a popular option.

2. GUN AND ONE

There is a small group of rucks below the top two who make up a clear second-tier in SuperCoach scoring — Martin, Ben McEvoy (av 101.9), Todd Goldstein (101) and Toby Nankervis (98.2).

Martin has been a solid choice for several seasons but the emergence of Archie Smith makes him a risky proposition this season. McEvoy averaged over 100 last year for the first time in six years and Nankervis has steadily increased his average each year of his career.

But the standout of this group is Goldstein, who has a proven SuperCoach pedigree, averaging over 100 in six of the past eight seasons, including a 129 in 2015.

-------

SUPERCOACH STRATEGY IN OTHER POSITIONS:

DEFENCE | MIDFIELD | FORWARD LINE

-------

Last year he started slowly but motored home, scoring 100-plus in 12 of the last 14 rounds. he has lost 5kg this pre-season and is set to ruck solo again at the Kangaroos.

Take a punt on Goldy if you think he can average above 110 again and Grundy or Gawn will drop below 120 — you should more than make up that points gap by improving your side in other positions.

The downside is if he can’t close that gap you are giving up 20 points or more every week. And you are likely to either be stuck in that position all year or you’ll have to use a trade to move on a premium starter, which is far from ideal when trades are at a premium.

One more factor to consider - Goldstein has a bye in Round 14 compared to Grundy, Gawn and martin in Round 13.

Partnering one of the high-priced rucks with a second-tier big man.

3. MID-PRICE MADNESS

Plan C is to partner one of the big dogs with a mid-price ruckman.

In adopting this strategy you are committing to a trade but the trade-off is saving about $400,000, which can make a huge difference to your team.

If everything goes according to plan, your ruck will put up decent scores and gain in value until you can snare one of the super premiums — hopefully after they have a dip in price.

The plan makes sense, the problem is finding the right player to fit the strategy.

Names such as Billy Longer and Sam Naismith were floated early in the pre-season but have since succumbed to injury. Nathan Vardy, Tom Hickey and Scott Lycett could all fit the bill but all have question marks over their scoring and reliability given all are part of a two-man (or more) ruck approach at their club.

The remaining standout is Bulldog Tim English. Entering his third season, English has the No.1 ruck role all to himself at the kennel and appears ready to blossom — his 85 points in the final JLT game was very encouraging.

But the fact remains he has played just nine matches for a career average of 57 points. Gawn or Grundy usually have that by quarter-time.

Can you get away with one big gun and a mid-pricer?

4. MUMMY RETURNS

The merits and risks of starting returning GWS ruckman Shane Mumford have been explored in detail, but the short version is:

Pro — he’s great value at just $320,200 after returning from a year out of the game. Mumford averaged 90-plus for seven straight years including 98 in his last season in 2017, a season that included six 120-plus scores.

Con — durability has to be a concern considering he retired because of injuries. But the biggest problem is he is suspended for the first two rounds.

Shane Mumford is back. Picture. Phil Hillyard

To make this plan work you need either a playing bench ruckman or a dual-position ruck/forward bench player who can switch with another DPP in your forward line (such as Scott Lycett or Rory Lobb) to provide cover for those first two rounds.

Head-to-head league matches don’t start until Round 3 so if you can cope with a zero on the field in the first two rounds (and can live without $50,000), you could get away with it.

Giants ruckman Shane Mumford starts at a tempting price.

5. GUN AND ROOKIE

We know “guns and rookies” is a favoured selection strategy in other SuperCoach positions but in the ruck things look a bit different with just two players on the field.

This is an approach that has worked spectacularly well in the past but it relies on a dirt cheap ruckman who will play every week and shoot up in value (remember Jonathan Giles?).

This year there are a few cheap rucks who look a chance of getting some games — Darcy Fort at Geelong, Archie Smith at Brisbane, Zac Clarke at Essendon — but none are their team’s No.1 ruckman which severely limits their scoring potential. And they aren’t guaranteed to play every week.

EXPERT: FANTASY FREAKO’S SUPERCOACH TEAM REVEALED

UNIQUE: UNDER THE RADAR JLT SERIES STARS

EXPLAINER: HOW SUPERCOACH SCORING WORKS

HINTS: FIVE TRICKS TO BOOST YOUR SUPERCOACH SCORE

Lewis Pearce is just above rookie price at $235,600 and is likely to start as St Kilda’s No.1 ruck with Billy Longer injured. But he has played just four games in six years on the Saints list, and was concussed early in JLT1, scoring just 14 and missing the next week — when Rowan Marshall did an admirable job in the ruck. And Longer will be back soon.

What a gun and rookie ruck approach looks like.

6. DON’T DO THIS

A few months ago it was possible to dream about starting two rookie ruckmen and saving over $1 million compared to players going with the Gawn and Grundy combo.

That was before the JLT Series made it clear players like Fort are not viable starting options (he scored 21 and 13 in his two pre-season games).

This strategy only works if both players score well enough to keep in your side all year or at least jump enough in value to trade them up to a premium. Both scenarios look highly unlikely.

We’re begging you, don’t start with a ruck line like this.