SuperCoach AFL 2025 trade guide: Top targets for round 11

INJURIES have hit SuperCoaches hard. See the best replacements for Jack Macrae and Jason Horne-Francis, and the rookie you need to buy in this week’s trade guide.

Injuries have struck – and struck hard – at the worst possible time in SuperCoach.

With teams in full upgrade mode a week out from the mid-season byes, two of the most popular forwards in fantasy have been sidelined.

Saint Jack Macrae is the second-most owned player in the game, featuring in more than 71 per cent of teams. Meanwhile, 70,000 coaches (37 per cent) also have to replace Jason Horne-Francis. The Power forward will miss four weeks with a hamstring injury while a timeline on Macrae’s return from a punctured lung is unclear.

And GWS midfield gun Finn Callaghan is out, too.

But crisis creates opportunity. See the best forward and midfield trade options below plus this week’s best rookies.

WHO CAN REPLACE JHF?

Shai Bolton and Fremantle have a friendly bye in round 13.

You can make almost $70,000 by trading Horne-Francis to the ex-Tiger, who showed his full skill set on the way to 150 points against the Giants on Saturday. He can be hot and cold, but this year there has been more of the heated Bolton, including four 100-plus scores in his past five games. The problem is the cold can be icy – five points from a full game in round 8. But that would drop out of your best 22 anyway, right?

Chad Warner has a five-round average of 110.

We’ve been talking Chad up for a few weeks and it’s still not too late to get on board. A low score of 93 in his past four games, 126 against the Blues, a great midfield role and a friendly fixture ahead – including a round 14 bye – for midfielders make him a big tick.

Isaac Heeney had 38 disposals against Carlton.

But not as big as this guy. Heeney was a SuperCoach superstar in 2024 but has taken a little while to get going this season. However, when he’s on, few players can match his scoring power. We are lucky he kicked a wayward 2.5 last round, increasing in value by just $2100 after shedding more than $100k from his round 1 price. He’s cheaper than Warner, has that same great run ahead, and at just 6 per cent ownership could be a huge point of difference for your squad.

Luke Jackson scored 143 against the Giants.

The forgotten man when we are talking about a stacked SuperCoach forward line in 2025, Jackson has the second-best average of all forwards this season (112.3) and ranks No.2 for five-round average (119.6) – behind Bailey Smith in both counts. Playing without Sean Darcy gives him freedom to rack up points all over the ground, but even when Darcy has played this year it has been in a diminished role, and with his injury history the safe bet is on him missing some more games before the season is out.

Mattaes Phillipou is on the bubble this week.

For coaches who need to bank some cash – perhaps to turn Riley Bice or Levi Ashcroft into a premium this week – Phillipou is a bargain option. He’s on the bubble after playing two games following his return from injury. He hasn’t set the world on fire, posting 78 and 53 points, and has a Break Even of 53 against the Suns, so you could wait another week. But his job security is assured and after attending 22 per cent of CBAs against the Eagles, expect a big spike in that area very soon.

Note: Two other bargains who can help us replace rookies over the next few weeks are Keidean Coleman ($269k DEF), who scored 72 in his return game and will be on the bubble next week, and Callum Mills ($357k DEF), who made his return in the VFL at the weekend.

Dante Visentini is a perfect mid-season cash cow.

You can’t get him in a direct trade for Horne-Francis but deserves a mention here as a big mid-year cash play. After being handed the No.1 ruck role at Port Adelaide, he has scored 98 and 84 and is projected to make $43k after his next game. The trick is where we bring him in as a RUC only. There won’t be many teams with a free R2 slot, so that leaves the Flex or paying up for an expensive bench ruck. If he can make a quick $150k, it could be worth it.

ROOKIES

Cooper Simpson kicked a goal while playing half-back against GWS.

This week’s no-brainer rookie pick, Simpson is the most traded in player as of Monday night. A small forward who has been moved to defence, Simpson has scored 53 and 71 in his two matches since breaking into the Fremantle line-up. His Break Even is -53 and the Dockers have a great bye for SuperCoach. Don’t overthink it.

Thomas Sims was selected with pick 28 in last year's draft.

The Tigers tall has caught they eye in his two matches, kicking a goal in each and giving Toby Nankervis a chop-out in the ruck. Sims attended 16 ruck contests against North Melbourne and won six hitouts. He’s cheaper than Simpson and has RUC-FWD dual-position status, which could come in handy.

Angus Sheldrick had a huge first half.

Would have been at the top of the trade-in list if trades were allowed at halftime on Friday night, when he was one of Sydney’s top scorers. Faded badly in the second half but still put up a very respectable 82 points as he was given a rare full game. He has increased in price by only $30k since round 1 so he’s still a viable option, but is the elevated price worth it for a player who is clearly still building an AFL tank? If Dean Cox trusts him at more centre bounces (12 v Carlton), he’s someone you can at least play on your field.

Jed Bews' spot in the Geelong team is not guaranteed.

After a very promising 95 points in his first game for the season in round 9, he managed 45 at the weekend and Tom Stewart is due back this week. Don’t go there.

Archer Day-Wicks had 62 per cent time on ground against the Bulldogs.

First-year Bomber has played two full games and scored 33 and 37 SuperCoach points. Only an option if you’re really struggling for cash – which plenty of SuperCoaches are. Essendon plays on Friday night so we’ll know early if he’s in the starting 22 this week, but strictly bench only for SuperCoach.

Originally published as SuperCoach AFL 2025 trade guide: Top targets for round 11