SuperCoach AFL 2024: Champion Data round 4 formguide, Fantasy Freako explains round 3 scores
Sam Darcy is the most popular trade recruit in SuperCoach this week – by a big margin. But read this analysis before pulling the trigger. Key rookie advice and round 4 captain tips.
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There’s no hiding behind best 18 scores this week as we revert to the customary best 22. So, any poor rookie scores won’t drop off.
Our defensive stocks have taken another hit after Marty Hore was ruled out for up to four weeks with a thumb injury. With Steven May returning, Hore may have been the one to make way anyway.
If we look back at last round there were some poor returns from popular rookies, namely Darcy Wilson (25) and Blake Howes (26), and Break Evens are now in the positives for both players. Harley Reid is another player that has a positive BE (22) so his cash generation may not last much longer.
With the Eagles losing by an average of 63 points per game, he really needs to get involved early to get some points on the board before the scoreboard goes against him.
The standout bubble boy this round is Sam Darcy (BE -92). He wasn’t as prominent last week as he was in round 2, but he still managed 54 points against the Eagles from 11 disposals and a goal, once again sharing the ruck duties with Tim English.
But we can’t forget that Rory Lobb is breathing down Darcy’s neck. Lobb has booted a combined nine goals in the VFL over the first two rounds and scored 148 and 155 SuperCoach points in those games.
Is there a world in which Luke Beveridge brings Lobb back at the expense of Darcy? Yes, there is. So we can’t get too comfortable with the Darcy pick as the swap can be made at Bulldogs selection at any time. But in saying that, it’s hard to bypass him this week.
In defence, we have two viable options to look at – Tom Brown (BE -35) and Josh Draper (BE -32). Both have been given early opportunities due to injury and, based on performances so far, they should continue playing, in the short-term at least.
If we look at those coming off the bye and with a price rise under their belt already, Harvey Thomas (BE -52) and Aaron Cadman (BE -51) are still cheap enough to pounce on. But Thomas’s average is inflated by the 107 he scored against West Coast, so if I was picking between the two it would have to be Cadman.
It’s crucial to play the BE game with our rookies, so make sure you monitor these over the coming weeks as prices mature.
Trade wisely and best of luck for the round ahead!
CAPTAINS CORNER
Clayton Oliver returns to Adelaide Oval to face the Crows this week, match-ups that have returned scores of 176 (2022) and 204 (2021) in recent meetings. If you’re one of the 3 per cent of coaches with Oliver, put the captaincy on him this week!
Christian Petracca (average 144 in his past three) also has a great record against the Crows, while Max Gawn is coming off a massive 177 last round, although his average against Adelaide is more modest (average 115 in his past three).
Looking elsewhere Dan Houston loves playing Essendon and at Adelaide Oval, Tom Stewart has a strong record against the Bulldogs and Jack Steele should enjoy the tight confines of Norwood Oval against a depleted Richmond midfield.
The Swans will be the focus of captaincy discussions this round with Isaac Heeney – the No.1 scoring player in SuperCoach this season with a low score of 128 likely to be a very popular choice. He scored 150 last time he faced West Coast, in round 15 last year.
If you don’t own Heeney then Brodie Grundy is worth strong consideration. In a disappointing 2023 season his highest score (144) came against the Eagles, who give up more points to opposition rucks than any other team.
ROUND 3 SUPERCOACH SCORES EXPLAINED
Kicks, marks and handballs all score points, but there is a lot more to the SuperCoach scoring formula than that.
Champion Data’s SuperCoach guru Fantasy Freako will be here every week to explain key scoring trends and moments from the round just gone.
This intel is crucial to gaining a deeper understanding of the game and how players score – info you can use to make the best trade and selection decisions every week.
Here are eight key stats you need to know from round 3.
BONTEMPELLI v MARTIN
Nic Martin bounced back in a huge way in Essendon’s thrilling win against St Kilda, racking up 44 disposals and scoring 136 SuperCoach points. The next day Marcus Bontempelli registered 110 points from just 16 disposals against West Coast.
The way each player reached their score is a great window into how players are rewarded in SuperCoach.
The first point to note is that every game is judged in isolation based on how individual players influenced that match.
Bontempelli’s points were spread out with 26.2 coming from tackles, 20.7 from effective kicks, 19.4 from contested marks and 18.4 from his three goals. More importantly, only three disposals didn’t hit the target – he lost just 13.7 points from negative acts.
Martin’s score was based on volume, scoring 65.9 points from effective kicks alone. He scored 18.2 from loose ball-gets, 16.8 from handball receives and 11.6 for uncontested marks. His score could have been much higher if he hadn’t lost 20.5 points from negative acts.
CLANGER KING
Hayden Young was another player to bounce back in round 3, rewarding coaches who kept the faith with 132 points. After a wayward opening two rounds, 13 of Young’s 18 kicks were effective against the Crows. He had four ineffective kicks and one direct turnover.
Jordan Dawson had 27 disposals in the same game but his radar is still broken. He recorded just eight effective kicks for the match, plus six ineffective kicks and five direct turnovers.
Only Errol Gulden (11) has had more clanger kicks than Dawson (10) this year.
DON’T CRY OVER SPILT MARKS
Last week we mentioned that retaining possession is the key to recording an effective disposal, but there is an exception to the rule.
A dropped mark costs you points in SuperCoach, but it doesn’t hurt the player delivering the ball.
Jack Steele sent a perfect pass inside 50 to Tim Membrey on Saturday, only for Membrey to spill the mark. Steele was still credited with an effective kick, although he missed the opportunity to add a score assist to his tally.
Nick Daicos was part of a similar play on Thursday night when Reef McInnes couldn’t hold onto his long kick to the goalsquare. The Daicos kick was effective and in this case McInnes wasn’t awarded a dropped mark as he was under pressure. He was credited with a loose ball-get when he picked up the ball and snapped a goal.
Daicos was moved back to defence against the Lions, playing 80 per cent of game time in that role, compared to just 20 per cent in the midfield.
GOING BACKWARDS
Coaches relying on Blake Howes and Toby Pink to hold up their backlines would have watched in alarm at both players’ scores on the weekend.
Howes had zero points to his name at halftime of Melbourne’s win against Port Adelaide while Pink was in the negatives for much of Good Friday, before the pair finished with 26 and 19 points respectively.
Howes had seven disposals, hitting the target with four of them, and lost a total of 10.4 points for negative acts consisting of a clanger kick and free kick against. Pink had just five disposals against Carlton and lost 18 points for negative acts including giving away a free kick and a 50m penalty – the worst offence a player can commit in SuperCoach.
He wasn’t alone, with North Melbourne giving away six 50m penalties for the match, the equal fourth-most every recorded.
SAVING BEST TIL LAST
Making an impact when the game is on the line is given extra weight in SuperCoach, as Caleb Windsor demonstrated against the Power.
Windsor had 12 disposals for the game including four in the final quarter, but he scored 41 of his 56 points in the close final term. Nine of those came from his big goal and he added 4.6 for a goal assist.
POWELL MAKES HIS MOVE
Tom Powell was one of the most traded in players last round, with his ownership spiking from 520 to over 28,000. He repaid his new owners with 92 points against Carlton, including a major boost in the third quarter when he picked off a behind kick-in. Powell completed a 16-point play made up of the intercept mark, effective kick, and goal.
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Originally published as SuperCoach AFL 2024: Champion Data round 4 formguide, Fantasy Freako explains round 3 scores
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