SuperCoach: Five defenders to consider for your team in 2025

Stuck with who you should pick in your SuperCoach defence? Check out these five options in this FREE guide – including a bona fide superstar coaches are sleeping on.

It’s time to build your SuperCoach defence!

The backbone of your side, it’s vital to nail your starting selections for the beginning of the AFL season.

So, what are the options?

While lockdown defenders can be important in shutting down the opposition’s best forwards, in SuperCoach we turn the other way.

We need players that hunt the ball, rack up disposals and take intercept marks.

With that in mind, take a look at five players for you to consider in 2025.

Sam Flanders. Picture: Getty Images

SAM FLANDERS $641,500 (DEF-MID)

No, you can’t have him as a forward this time.

But it’s crucial you pay attention to Sam Flanders again this year.

In a 2024 season where finding reliable forwards in SuperCoach was like searching for a needle in a haystack, Flanders stood up as the best of the lot. So much so that he’s a terrific pick in defence or midfield this year. An average of 119, boosted by a 161 in the final round against Richmond, means the Sun heads into 2025 cherry ripe for another big SuperCoach season.

Flanders is dealing with a back issue in pre-season, so make sure he’s fit and firing for round 1 before committing.

Harry Sheezel. Picture: David Crosling

HARRY SHEEZEL $635,600

This might be the last time we can pick Harry Sheezel in our SuperCoach defence.

I don’t plan on missing out.

The third-year Kangaroo is a joy to watch and only took a couple of games to figure out how to score big SuperCoach points while playing in the guts, averaging a tick over 120 points after moving up the ground in round 9 last year. While he didn’t get as many cheap touches as he did in defence, Sheezel had no issues winning the hard ball and added scoreboard impact to his game as a midfielder. That’s where he’ll be playing majority of his footy this year, likely addding dual-position status at the first in-season update – and I’m all in.

Luke Ryan. Picture: Fremantle FC

LUKE RYAN $628,300

Are we sleeping on Luke Ryan, again?

Yes, the answer is yes.

No other defender available scored more SuperCoach points than Ryan did in 2024. The past two years he has started the season with low ownership, then by round 3 we are scrambling to make space in our teams to bring him in. Ryan currently sits at just 8 per cent ownership, mostly due to his hefty price tag. Some coaches might also think he fell away in the second half of last year, which is somewhat true. But the Docker still finished with three healthy tons in his last four games, averaging 116 points across that time. I just don’t see a fall-off in scoring from a guy who adores playing on from a kick-in and racking up uncontested marks, even if his coach isn’t a fan. I am, and I’m seriously considering paying up.

Jack Sinclair. Picture: Mark Stewart

JACK SINCLAIR $592,200 (DEF-MID)

Priced a touch below the three players mentioned above, Sinclair is great buying for your SuperCoach team.

His back half of 2024 was sensational, the Saints’ bye week in round 13 alongside only Fremantle is super handy and he has dual-position status. That’s a lot of positives. The only real question mark is where Sinclair is going to play. But here’s another positive – the Saint has proven he can score well playing onball or in defence. The addition of Jack Macrae does point towards Sinclair patrolling the defensive 50, taking kick-ins and rebounding off half-back. That equals SuperCoach points.

Keidean Coleman. Picture: Getty Images

KEIDEAN COLEMAN $269,100

Opening Round of 2024 delivered a cruel blow when Kiddy Coleman went down with an ACL injury.

Twelve months later, it’s only right to give him another chance.

The Lion’s last full AFL match was the 2023 grand final, when he top-scored with 127 points. There’s no doubt if Coleman is fit for the start of the campaign he is severely underpriced. That’s just a big if. Word out of Brisbane is that Coleman suffered a minor setback at the end of January. But there’s still a month until the season proper – and remember Opening Round doesn’t count in SuperCoach. So if he gets up, we get a look at the defender before picking him in our sides. That proved crucial last year.

Originally published as SuperCoach: Five defenders to consider for your team in 2025