KFC SuperCoach: The best point-of-difference buys of 2021

Get a break on the KFC SuperCoach pack with these gun scorers who are being ignored by the masses. See the best PODs of 2021.

Hunter Clark of the Saints in action.

A lot of teams look eerily similar at this time of the KFC SuperCoach season.

Originality goes out the window as many coaches resort to safe, cookie-cutter teams.

But as any winner of KFC SuperCoach will tell you, going against the crowd pays off, with point of difference (POD) selections giving you the power to climb up the ranks and beat your mates.

You just need to pick the right ones.

Like Saints jet Jack Steele, who went from a smokie midfield selection at the beginning of last season to the third-highest scorer in the competition by year’s end.

Essendon pair Zach Merrett and Jordan Ridley both finished 2020 among the top scorers in their respective positions despite starting the year with low ownership numbers.

PODs are generally considered to be players with less than 10 per cent ownership.

Here are 11 hidden gems that can help set your team apart on the eve of the season.

MORE: 10 ROOKIES FLYING UNDER THE RADAR

EXPERT PICKS: 11 PLAYERS YOU MUST START IN SUPERCOACH

Have coaches been too quick to jump off Luke McDonald?

Hunter Clark is capable of a big jump in 2021.

DEFENCE

Luke McDonald (NM) $512,900

2020 average: 95.5

Ownership: 2.6 per cent

Are coaches sleeping on McDonald?

While similarly priced Tiger Jayden Short (31 per cent ownership) is the third-most popular defensive premium, McDonald currently resides in less than 3 per cent of sides.

This is likely a result of their contrasting AAMI Series scores, with Short pumping out a monster 165 compared to McDonald’s dismal 46 (he still tallied 24 disposals but was hurt significantly by 10 clangers).

To judge him as a pick off this one score would be discrediting his dominant back end of 2020, where he averaged 118.4 KFC SuperCoach points, 24.9 disposals and 7.2 rebound-50s as a running defender in his last 10 matches.

SC verdict: May prove the doubters wrong this year. Jack Ziebell going into defence could stymie his numbers to a degree, but there will be no shortage of footy in the Roos’ backline.

Liam Duggan (WCE) $448,600

2020 average: 83.5

Ownership: 5.4 per cent

Duggan remains a point-of-difference selection despite a promising pre-season.

Spending greater time as an inside midfielder, where the Eagle played as a junior, Duggan punched out a score of 98 points from 22 disposals in the AAMI Series.

Duggan attended eight centre bounces and was also deployed on the wing and in defence against Fremantle.

It was in the latter two roles where Duggan showed the capabilities of a premium KFC SuperCoach scorer last year, averaging 96 points in his last eight matches.

SC verdict: Looked a nice pick without the on-ball minutes, and this factor should improve his consistency. Locked and loaded in my team.

Ben McEvoy (Haw) $456,000 DEF/RUC

2020 average: 84.9

Ownership: 3.2 per cent

The experiment of McEvoy the key defender is over. The Hawthorn veteran has returned to his post as No.1 ruckman.

Last year he put up a 147-point outing without Jon Ceglar against the Power, as well as two tons in a row in Rounds 5 and 6 after being moved from his defensive post mid-game.

McEvoy averaged 92 and 102 points in his last two seasons as a ruckman and while he turns 32 this season, a 90-plus average certainly isn’t beyond him — even when sharing the duties with Ceglar.

SC verdict: Ruckmen who can be picked in other positions in SuperCoach often prove to be worthwhile selections. It’d be brave to start him but watch him closely during the season.

Merry #SuperCoach eve!

👉🏻 MY FINAL TEAM: https://t.co/OFfiqWxcBCpic.twitter.com/idWVLQIFii

— The Phantom (@ThePhantomSC) March 16, 2021

Hunter Clark (StK) $438,900

2020 average: 81.9

Ownership: 4.8 per cent

The Phantom won’t be too happy that Clark has made the cut here.

Clark hit the sweet spot of posting a good score of without dominating KFC SuperCoach headlines in the AAMI Series, tallying 21 disposals, 15 contested possessions, eight clearances and 96 points in just three quarters.

It means he remains a hidden gem with less than 5 per cent ownership.

In those three quarters he attended 16 centre bounces in a sign of an enhanced midfield role this season – the position he played as junior.

SC verdict: I have Duggan marginally ahead with Brad Crouch to return to the Saints’ on-ball brigade. Still, the former first-round draftee is every chance to blossom into a premium defender in 2021.

Josh Kelly has fallen under the radar again — but he comes with an injury risk.

MIDFIELD

Josh Kelly $615,600

2020 average: 114.6 (14 matches)

Ownership: 5.8 per cent

Kelly does not get the kudos he deserves in the footy or KFC SuperCoach landscape.

Three injury-interrupted campaigns mean we have seen less of him in recent years, but he still managed to average above 113 points across each of these seasons.

Kelly expressed his desire to return to the competition’s elite in a recent interview with The Daily Telegraph and from all reports his pre-season has been superb.

A feature of the classy midfielder’s game is scoring well from limited possessions, displaying this in the AAMI Series with 109 points from 24 disposals.

SC verdict: If you’re looking for a POD in the midfield, Kelly is your man. However, there is always the risk that he misses the odd game through injury.

Taylor Adams $588,800

2020 average: 109.6 (17 matches)

Ownership: 1.6 per cent

Adams was out of SuperCoach calculations following an injury-hampered preparation. Now, he is poised to face the Bulldogs on Friday night after a speedy recovery.

The ball magnet had the best SuperCoach season of his career in 2020, averaging 109.6 points, and most of that success came while Adam Treloar was out of the Magpies’ team.

Adams averaged 14 more points without Treloar in 2020, a significant stat considering the latter’s well documented departure in the off-season.

Will it be the 27-year-old Adams who steps up once again to fill the gaping midfield hole?

SC verdict: Did somebody say first midfield upgrade? A big roll of the dice to start a player who has been injured for most of the pre-season.

Andrew Brayshaw stepped up as a key cog in Fremantle’s midfield last season.

Andrew Brayshaw (Frem) $544,200

2020 average: 101.3

Ownership: 1.9 per cent

Brayshaw has lost his dual-position status in KFC SuperCoach and his ownership has plummeted as a consequence.

The Dockers midfielder showed signs of uber-premium scoring last season after an indifferent start, scoring five 120-plus totals and averaging 107.6 points after Round 4.

This is perhaps a more accurate reflection of his breakout 2020 campaign.

With superstar teammate Nat Fyfe likely to spend time forward, Brayshaw may shoulder even more responsibility in 2021.

SC verdict: Brayshaw would need to average above the 110 mark to justify him as a selection, which certainly isn’t out of the question. One who should be an uber-premium in time, but is 2021 a bit premature?

Reilly O’Brien is the only premium ruckman you should consider outside Gawn and Grundy.

RUCK

Reilly O’Brien (Adel) $570,800

2020 average: 106.2 (17 matches)

Ownership: 6.7 per cent

Max Gawn and Brodie Grundy are in a different KFC SuperCoach stratosphere, but O’Brien looks to be the only ruckman capable of challenging them.

The Crows big man averaged 106.2 KFC SuperCoach points in 2020 and rated above average for disposals, marks and hitouts-to-advantage.

It is easy to forget that O’Brien has played just 37 games across his career, scoring tons in 16 of them.

At 25, O’Brien has the tools to eclipse a 110-point average in 2021.

SC verdict:Your next best bet if you are avoiding either Gawn or Grundy. And if you are, all the best...

Dayne Zorko is just in POD territory.

Nick Hind has transitioned to the halfback line at Essendon.

FORWARDS

Dayne Zorko (Bris) $525,800, MID

2020 average: 97.9 (15 matches)

Ownership: 10 per cent

Zorko falls into the point-of-difference category – just.

The Lions skipper’s 2020 average is affected by an in-game injury in Round 4. If we take this score of 47 out, Zorko averaged a more respectable 101.5 points per game.

Herald Sun Chief Footy Writer Mark Robinson believed it was an average year from Zorko – could we see him lift as the Lions hunt a premiership?

He is no spring chicken at 32, but it is worth remembering he has averaged above 95 points in eight of his nine seasons.

SC verdict: The depleted forward premium stocks mean he has to be considered with his high ceiling. Probably a better shout as an upgrade target during the year, though.

Zak Butters (PA) $471,400

2020 average: 87.7

Ownership: 8 per cent

Slated for more centre-bounce minutes this year, Butters tantalised coaches in the AAMI Series with a 124-point score.

Butters had 24 disposals – including 18 kicks – at 91 per cent efficiency and booted a goal against the lowly Crows.

From a SuperCoach perspective, Butters’ 2020 campaign was a rollercoaster, pumping out five 110-plus scores and falling below 45 twice.

His high impact per possession play is a major plus and greater midfield time should help sure up his standard deviation.

SC verdict: Plenty of upside, but how much midfield time will he receive? He had just four centre bounce attendances in the AAMI Series. Keep him in your thoughts.

Nick Hind (Ess) $331,000

2020 average: 61.6 (10 matches)

Ownership: 1.4 per cent

Hind has been tasked with providing dash from defence after crossing from St Kilda, where he played 21 games in two seasons as a forward.

The reinvention looked to work a treat in the AAMI Series, scoring 60 points and gathering 20 disposals from just 60 per cent game time before being rested with a minor shoulder injury.

Hind appears set to play a prominent role in defence for the Bombers with backline runners Adam Saad and Conor McKenna no longer at Windy Hill - and we like running defenders in SuperCoach.

SC verdict: Arguably the leading forward point-of-difference option due to his price, but it comes with a warning label. However, with slim pickings in the forward line, it may be a risk worth taking.

Originally published as KFC SuperCoach: The best point-of-difference buys of 2021