SuperCoach: The leading POD contenders for season 2020
With plenty of popular SuperCoach picks, a host of noted scorers are flying under the radar. Find out who can give you the edge over your competitors, while making the game a lot more fun.
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While selecting the best players is the key to KFC SuperCoach, no one is taking out the $50,000 prize without taking some risks.
Point-of-difference (POD) selections can help give you the edge over your competitors, and they also make SuperCoach a lot more fun.
PODs are generally considered to be selections owned by less than 10 per cent of SuperCoach teams.
The lower their ownership, the greater the advantage.
These picks can have dangerous consequencese if they go wrong – that it is why it’s crucial to get them right.
But not all of these hidden gems are necessarily high risk.
Here are the leading early POD contenders ahead of season 2020.
Defence
Shannon Hurn (West Coast, $562.2k)
2019 average: 103.5 (19 matches)
Ownership: 7 per cent
Hurn is no stranger to being a SuperCoach POD and those who started with the reliable defender last year at his low ownership were handsomely rewarded. Hurn averaged a formidable 113.5 points in the first half of the year, ranking him among Lachie Whitfield and Jake Lloyd as the top defenders to that point. He failed to reach the same heights from thereon after missing games with injury over the byes, which has clearly scared SuperCoaches off.
The Eagles use Hurn’s booming right foot as a weapon, and he hit the target with 82.6 per cent of kicks last season – the highest of the top-20 ranked defenders. Kick-ins are also a valuable source of points for the veteran, playing on 72.5 per cent of the time, and his kick-to-handball ratio of 3.7 is SuperCoach gold.
Caleb Daniel (Western Bulldogs, $537.9k)
2019 average: 99.1 (19 matches)
Ownership: 7 per cent
Speaking of kick-in merchants, Caleb Daniel gets plenty of extra points from the wayward kicking of his opposition. Daniel played on from 85.2 per cent of kick-ins – just behind Swans rebounder Jake Lloyd (87.2 per cent) – with these bonus points ensuring he rarely fails to deliver. Given the Bulldogs’ distributor role at the beginning of last season, Daniel fell below 93 just twice to Round 15, averaging 99.1 points in 2019. Repeat hamstring injuries held him back late in the season, and this coupled with a loss of forward status has seen SuperCoaches lose interest. He averaged 103 points per game under the roof of Marvel Stadium last season, where the Bulldogs play 12 games in 2020, and looms as a low-risk POD option.
Darcy Byrne-Jones (Port Adelaide, $473.4k)
2019 average: 87.2 (22 matches)
Ownership: 1 per cent
While many SuperCoaches have been enticed by Dan Houston’s (18 per cent ownership) new midfield role, his teammate Darcy Byrne-Jones has been left untouched. The 24-year-old, who was a promising cash cow way back in 2016, burst onto the scene as a potential premium in the back-half of 2019. Byrne-Jones registered eight tons from Round 8 onwards, averaging 95.9 points per game - including a stretch of three 115-plus totals. He also burnt teams who brought him late, scoring just 7 points in Round 22 after back-to-back tons. That aberration aside, we should see strong scoring from Byrne-Jones with another pre-season under his belt. One to keep a close eye on during the pre-season.
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Midfield
Adam Treloar (Collingwood, $615.8k)
2019 average: 113.4 (22 games)
Ownership: 7 per cent
With so many damaging midfield scorers to choose from, Adam Treloar generally feels the ownership squeeze despite his noted scoring ability. The Pies ball-magnet has averaged more than 109 points in three of his past four seasons and enjoyed a career best SuperCoach season last year. Treloar averaged 32.9 disposals, a tick under six clearances and 113.4 points. Coaches have been turned off Treloar in the past for his low SuperCoach output for the amount of Sherrin he gets, but the 26-year-old reached the 150 mark on three occasions last season, highlighted by his monster 177-point total against the Gold Coast. Most sides are likely to have Macrae, Fyfe, Cripps and Danger – why not throw Treloar into the mix?
Andrew Gaff (West Coast, $583.2k)
2019 average: 107.4 (20 matches)
Ownership: 2 per cent
Outside midfielders don’t make for reliable and consistent SuperCoach scorers, but Andrew Gaff is the exception to the rule. The smooth-moving Eagle has returned season averages of 108.2 and 107.4 in 2018 and 2019 respectively, falling below 85 points on just two occasions across 39 matches. Last season he was an extremely dependable ball-winner, recording 27 disposals or more in every game. Will the extra midfield assistance of Tim Kelly hinder or enhance Gaff’s SuperCoach influence? Considering he does most of his best work on the outside, it could see the left-footer creep closer towards a 110-point average. See how he fares during the pre-season before taking the punt.
Dion Prestia (Richmond, $550.2k)
2019 average: 101.3 (22 matches)
Ownership: 1 per cent
Dion Prestia comes into this season a touch under-priced considering his finals series is not factored into his 2020 starting price. The strong midfielder had a major impact in the Tiger’s first two finals, posting 109 points against the Lions and then backing it up with a whopping 164-point display in the preliminary final. He also held his own among the top premiums in the competition from Round 10 onward, averaging a formidable 111.9 points per game. The injuries that usually follow Prestia at every corner were non-existent last season, playing every game in 2019 – the first time he has achieved this feat since 2014. With Dustin Martin spending more time close to goal and Trent Cotchin’s ball-winning presence fading, Prestia could elevate into the uber-premium bracket.
Ruck
Scott Lycett (Port Adelaide, $550.6k)
2019 average: 101.4 (18 matches)
Ownership: 1 per cent
It was a rollercoaster year for Lycett in 2019, posting two scores of 160 or more, another three below 60 and also getting dropped for youngster Peter Ladhams. While his season was marred by inconsistency, an average of 101.4 points per game while sharing ruck duties is encouraging. Expect greater stability from the Power ruckman this season without Paddy Ryder in the Power line-up. Returning key forward Charlie Dixon will most likely pinch-hit in the ruck to give Lycett a break, but the former Eagle should add to his 2019 average. Will it be enough to justify starting him over Gawn or Grundy? Probably not, but he is worth watching out for in their pre-season games.
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Forward
Hugh Greenwood (Gold Coast, $463.1k)
2019 average: 85.3 (14 matches)
Ownership: 8 per cent
While Hugh Greenwood’s move from the Crows to the Suns barely made headlines in the trade period, astute SuperCoaches were licking their lips. Why? Because they know Greenwood has all the tools to be a formidable SuperCoach scorer – he just needs the midfield time. The big-bodied midfielder won 64.1 per cent of his possessions in a contest last season and is a noted tackler – two significant scoring avenues. Last season Greenwood spent 52 per cent of time in the midfield compared to 42 per cent as a forward at the Crows. You would expect that midfield time to rise in a young Suns midfield that is crying out for mature bodies. Playing as a full-time midfielder in the SANFL, Greenwood averaged 125 points in the final four rounds.
Hugh Greenwood played as a midfielder in his six SANFL games last season. His last four #SuperCoach scores were:
— Fantasy Freako (@FantasyFreako) January 29, 2020
159
126
119
156
He averaged 125 points overall. #2020AFLProspectus
Jordan Dawson (Sydney, $467.8k)
2019 average: 86.2 (20 matches)
Ownership: 8 per cent
Dawson impressed in a variety of roles last season and finished with an impressive return of 86.2 points per game. Considering Dawson had played five games before his eye-catching 2019 campaign, there is plenty of scope for growth. The 22-year-old should receive greater opportunity for the Swans next season with a host of experienced players finishing and it could mean more midfield time for the accurate kicker – spending just 26 per cent of gametime there last year. He is certainly fit enough, winning both of the Swans’ 2km time-trials before Christmas. His rare DEF/FWD eligibility is another reason to get excited about this tantalising point-of-difference.
Blake Acres (Fremantle, $384.4k)
2019 average: 70.8 (19 matches)
Ownership: 1 per cent
One for the risk-takers. Like Greenwood, Acres was played out of position at his former club, spending 55 per cent of time as a forward in 2019. His scoring suffered as a result, slumping to his lowest season average since 2015. Acres began the 2018 season as a midfielder, averaging 106 points across the first five rounds. The 24-year-old is set to take up a midfield role at the Dockers and is set to fill the vacant wing spot left by runner Brad Hill.
“(Justin Longmuir) was pretty keen on the wing role for me and I was pretty happy with that,” Acres said in October after crossing to the club. Another to keep a close eye on the pre-season at that price.