Seven selection strategies you can use to build a winning KFC SuperCoach team
There is more than one way to win in SuperCoach. Here are seven ways to pick a team that could deliver SuperCoach glory. SAMPLE TEAMS
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Looking at a blank KFC SuperCoach squad with every AFL player to pick from is a moment filled with excitement and possibility.
Picking all your favourite players at random is fun but leaves you at risk of starting with an unbalanced team (and running out of cash!). Having a plan before you start is a wise move.
Experienced KFC SuperCoach players have learned that there is more than one winning approach — do you take a Richmond-style strategy and build from defence or channel your inner Chris Fagan and complement a gun midfield with exciting options in attack?
The game is always evolving and the best coaches stay ahead of the pack by tailoring their selections to the latest prices and conditions.
Here’s a run-down of seven selection strategies you could employ this year.
1. GUNS AND ROOKIES
A popular strategy with long-time KFC SuperCoach players based on picking exclusively high-scoring stars and cheap players with scoring potential.
The idea is simple — when building your squad, pick one gun (priced over $500,000) then one rookie (priced under $210,000) through all the lines (defence, midfield, rucks, forwards) until you run out of money to pick any more premium players. Then fill the remaining spots with rookies.
MORE: 11 PLAYERS YOU MUST PICK IN SUPERCOACH THIS YEAR
ROOKIE BIBLE: THIS YEAR’S TOP KFC SUPERCOACH CHEAPIES
PROS
— This strategy allows you to pick more premiums than any other. The sample squad below features 13 KFC SuperCoach A-graders who you can bank on for big scores every week.
— With a little bit of research SuperCoaches can quite successfully select rookies who will play and increase in value. They can then traded for more established stars during the season.
— Avoids the risks associated with picking mid-priced players.
CONS
— You get more premiums but also more rookies on the field who can deliver regular low scores.
— Most rookie-priced players are unknown quantities. Just because they are named in Round 1 doesn’t mean they are safe in a team’s best 22. Remember Deven Robertson?
— We remember the big rookie scores but 40s and 50s are much more common from first-year players. You can lessen the risk by picking as many mature-aged rookies as possible and starting some of the higher-priced rookies who traditionally have better job security.
— This strategy will be tougher to employ in 2021 because of the very high price tags on many premium players. You might have to settle for a few ‘bargain’ premos like Patrick Cripps and Tom Stewart.
SAMPLE TEAM:
2. MID-PRICE MADNESS
A team based around a core of mid-price players allows you to spread your risk and get maximum value out of players who are underpriced at the start of the season.
Generally, a mid-price player is valued from $215,000-$500,000. When picking one of these players SuperCoaches are looking above all for value for money.
PROS
— If you can pick the right mid-pricer in your initial team you gain a significant advantage over the rest of the pack.
— A mid-priced strategy is likely to outscore a guns and rookies team early in the season because you can keep low-scoring rookies on the bench. SuperCoaches who adopt this tactic are more likely to gain valuable wins in the early stages of their leagues and keep them in the hunt for the $50,000 grand prize.
— A fully mid-priced team avoids the low scores and high risk of relying on rookies. The sample team below doesn’t have a single cheapie on the field.
CONS
— For every Christian Petracca who breaks out and becomes an elite scorer, there are just as many “value” selections who stagnate or even go backwards (remember Connor Rozee last year?). Finding that diamond in the rough isn’t as easy as many think.
— Starting without the top-priced players in each position will save you a stack of money, but it will be hard to trade up to multiple players valued $650,000 or above like Max Gawn, Lachie Neale and Jake Lloyd during the season. It can pay to pick one to start who can also serve as a reliable captaincy choice.
— Picking fewer rookies means you could miss out on a success story like Matt Rowell, who was a must-have last year.
— Trading your way out of a large number of mid-price misses can turn into a downward spiral you can’t escape all season, leading to sideways moves to other dubious selections and missing out on other trades that would improve your team.
SAMPLE TEAM:
3. LOCKED AND LOADED MIDFIELD
This approach is as simple as loading up the midfield with elite and super elite players, throwing away the key and forgetting about them for the rest of the year.
PROS
— Midfielders make up most of the elite KFC SuperCoach players. By picking as many of these elite premiums as possible in your starting squad, you maximise your midfield scoring potential over the entire season.
— Stacking your team with top-scoring players guarantees you will make a flying start to the year.
— It looks amazing on paper. Just admire that midfield for a minute!
CONS
— Just as the best scoring premiums are midfielders, so too are most of the highest-scoring rookies. SuperCoaches who go with this strategy will most likely be forfeiting some of the best rookies in the competition, which will limit their team’s ability to generate cash for later trades.
— These players are also the most expensive and will leave you with a lot less money to spend in other positions. In the sample team below the midfield alone uses up more than half the $10 million salary cap, meaning you’re cutting corners (see the ruck) or taking big risks in other parts of the ground.
— By stacking your midfield from the start you might be stuck with a player who performs below expectation and not have spots to add surprise stars or a premium who becomes available for a bargain price.
SAMPLE TEAM:
4. COOKIE CUTTER TEAM
This is a simple strategy — just pick the most popular players in SuperCoach.
Taking this approach will likely give you a well balanced, low-risk team.
PROS
— Use the wisdom of the crowd. If a player is in a lot of KFC SuperCoach teams, it’s probably for a good reason.
— If you’re new to the game, this is an easy way to avoid poor KFC SuperCoach players. This team is bound to be competitive from the start.
— You won’t be caught out by missing a popular player who goes on a big early scoring run. If a lowly-owned player catches fire you might miss out, but so will most other players.
— Likewise if one of your expensive stars or mid-pricers flops, you won’t lose too much ground because most SuperCoaches will be in the same boat.
CONS
— Part of the fun of KFC SuperCoach is backing your own judgment, research and instincts. The game is a bit boring if everyone has the same players.
— This is far from a guaranteed path to victory. Captaincy choices each week and trading during the season is what really decides who comes out on top over the KFC SuperCoach season.
SAMPLE TEAM:
5. POD POWER
Want to stand out from the crowd? A “POD” in KFC SuperCoach land is a “point of difference”, or a player overlooked by most players who sets your team apart from the pack.
Why not go nuts and pick a whole team of unique selections?
PROS
— All of these players are good KFC SuperCoach scorers, no one is suggesting picking stingy full-backs. Some scoring gems are ignored for dubious reasons, such as losing dual-position status, or just seem to fly under the radar every year.
— Don’t like boring match-ups when your team is almost the same as your opponent? No danger of that here.
— If this comes off you’ll be a KFC SuperCoach legend and your mates will never hear the end of it.
CONS
— Some players have low ownership for a reason even if they look good on paper, sometimes due to inconsistency or a poor injury history.
— If a popular player scores well, you will be one of the few players to miss out on their big returns. If one of your top-priced players fails, you will be one of the few to cop the hit. That could hurt on the overall rankings.
— POD rookies can make life fun too, but don’t go too far — you still need guys who are getting games.
SAMPLE TEAM:
6. RUCK ROULETTE
If you don’t parting with your money then coughing up almost $1.5 million to partner Brodie Grundy and Max Gawn is almost too much to bear.
The AFL and KFC SuperCoach goliaths are likely to be the top-two scoring rucks again in 2021, but if they drop in value you could gain a jump on the competition by saving money in this part of the ground. Is anyone brave enough to gamble on two cheapies in the ruck?
PROS
— Check out that midfield! Saving about $1 million in the ruck allows you to load up on top-scorers in the middle — where historically most points are generated — and take advantage of potential scoring boost up forward. Is that enough to make up for points lost in the ruck?
— This strategy relies on finding two cheap ruckmen who can score enough points to get close to Gawn and Grundy each week and quickly rise in value. This year there are a number of players who could pull this off — Toby Nankervis averaged 98 points a game in 2018, Braydon Preuss is the No.1 ruck for the first time in his career, Sam Draper has the same role at Essendon and Tom Hickey could be the main man at the Swans — he’s just $261k!
— If Grundy or Gawn drop in output this season or suffer an injury, you’ll gain a huge advantage over most of the competition.
EXPERT TIPS: 11 SECRETS TO KFC SUPERCOACH DOMINATION
CONS
— If Grundy and Gawn don’t slide, you’re in massive strife. You could be giving up 120 points before the ball is bounced by starting two 80-average rucks.
— The two big rucks were also great captaincy choices last year. That points gap will only grow if you’re opponent has the C on Grundy or Gawn the week they score 150-plus (which was a lot of them).
— All mid-pricers come with significant risks, and that also applies in the ruck. Any of the names mentioned above could flop, at least as KFC SuperCoach picks. And if a cheap ruck fails, it’s a very deep hole to climb out of. You’ll either have to find another bargain ruck to swap to or a stack of cash to get up to the big two.
— If you’re plan is to get Grundy and Gawn in your finished side, you’re relying on a lot of cash generation and a number of trades to get there.
SAMPLE TEAM:
7. ROOKIE MIDFIELD MAYHEM
Instead of loading up the midfield with elite players, fill your midfield positions with rookies instead. You can then fill all your other lines with elite premiums.
PROS
— The best rookies are almost always in the midfield so it makes sense to pick a cheapie who could average 80 in the mids compared to picking a rookie in the backline that might only average 50.
— By selecting so many of the higher scoring rookies, KFC SuperCoaches who adopt this strategy will ensure fast cash generation for their sides.
— Putting all your rookies in the midfield means you avoid having to play unreliable and generally low-scoring rookies in the forward line (remember Aiden Bonar?)
CONS
— Rookies remain dicey propositions even in the midfield, with a high chance of being rested at some stage early in the season.
— If you don’t start with the gun midfielders you will have to spend a lot to trade them in during the season. While you might get a star in defence or up forward for a bargain price, midfielders tend to hold their value and you will probably have to cough up more than $600,000 to bring the elite stars into your team.
— There is big gulf between an 80 average from a rookie and a 120 average from a super elite player. If this margin can’t be made up by your forward and defender premiums, then you might struggle early until you can upgrade those rookies.
— If you employ this strategy, make sure you select at least one super elite player in your midfield who can be your captain in the early rounds of the season. Can’t go wrong with Lachie Neale.
SAMPLE TEAM:
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