SuperCoach: How to get through the bye rounds

THE Phantom has been struck down by a mystery African virus but fellow SuperCoach guru The Eradicator had some crucial advice to get through the bye rounds. Replay his blog here.

Jack Trengove is a perfect downgrade target this weekend. Picture: Wayne Ludbey

Don’t say you haven’t been warned … for weeks.

The byes are here.

It’s one of the most crucial parts of a SuperCoach season and, for those who successfully navigate around the carnage and doughnuts; it’s a great chance to improve your overall rank, your league ladder position and your squad.

For those who don’t know, for each of the next three weeks, six AFL teams will be having a rest. The SuperCoach rules are changed accordingly during these rounds, with the top 18 scorers from your starting 22 counting towards your overall score (note: no bench scores will count, so squad balance is very important).

There’s no point, for example, having all eight defenders play in round 14, as the two on the bench can’t contribute to your score, not even if someone on the field is a late omission.

You will also be robbing yourself of points if you field all 22 in one bye round, while playing only, say, 16-17 in the other rounds. Your lowest four scorers won’t count when you play your 22, potentially vital points when you’re playing short in the other rounds.

Ideally, you’ll have 19-20 active players on the park during each round of the byes. This maximises your scoring output, but requires a fit squad, a good spread of players from each bye round and, most likely, a few trades (you have three per week during the byes).

As the weekend proved, and coaches with Kurt Tippett, Nick Naitanui and Luke Dahlhaus will attest, even the best-laid plans can backfire. The two rucks are certain trades this week, while the “up to a month” Dahlhaus knee injury isn’t far behind.

All three took some price hits over the weekend, so you may need a bit of coin to swap them to other premiums. Fortunately, there are a couple of likely rookies that will allow you to downgrade for the cash you need.

Top of the pile is Demon Jack Trengrove (mid), who looked a very safe pick after his 81 against the Pies on Monday. Hawthorn first-year forward Kade Stewart has been impressive in his first two games and Brisbane’s Jarrad Jansen also has two games under his belt — but his 35 points on the weekend may leave him on shaky ground in team selection. Fellow two-game Lion Rhys Matthieson may get a timely call up, which would please many a SuperCoach.

There’s also Collingwood’s Tom Phillips, who made his debut on Monday. At $117,300 and with Mid/For eligibility, he could solve a lot of bye round problems if he’s named next time the Pies play.

This is something to note for next week as Collingwood have the weekend off in round 13.

By downgrading a couple of maxed-out rookies, you should have the cash to upgrade others, or trade that injured premium for the player of your choice. Remember to pay attention to the changes to your squad and how that will play out over the next three weeks — with an eye on having at least 18 soldiers on field for each week of the byes.

If all goes to plan, you’ll give yourself maximum scoring potential over the three bye weeks and come out the other end with what is very close to a full premium starting 22, with enough trades to keep you going for the latter part of the season.

… but this is SuperCoach, nothing ever goes to plan.

Good luck.

The Eradicator is a veteran SuperCoach ace who runs an annual five-league competition for 90 SuperCoach teams at The Advertiser. He has finished inside the top 1000 on four occasions and is currently ranked 6931 overall. His team is top of The Advertiser’s premier internal league.

THE PHANTOM’S PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Patrick Dangerfield MID (Geel)

Any argument about any team being off without Patrick Dangerfield was answered emphatically on Saturday night, when the former Crow put on a clinic against North Melbourne. Dangerfield amassed a ridiculous 48-touch game which netted 229 SuperCoach points — a score which was music to the ears of the thousands of SuperCoaches who put the VC on the Geelong superstar. Unfortunately The Phantom had the VC on Gary Ablett and the C on Pendlebury, which cost him 100 points. If you didn’t have Dangerfield in your team before the weekend: a) you’ve missed the boat (his price rose $51,000 after Saturday’s game) and b) you are in a small minority (He is in nearly 65 per cent of all teams).

Richmond star Dustin Martin also deserves a mention, after pumping out a massive 167 against Gold Coast. Surprisingly, the massive score was not a PB for Martin. He has passed 150 a handful of times and has a highest score of 168 — in Round 5, 2011, just his second year in the league.

THE DISAPPOINTMENT

Luke Dahlhaus FWD (WB)

The Western Bulldogs star was one of the most popular traded-in players last weekend but a knee injury in the first quarter left thousands of excited coaches gutted. Not only will the pint-sized ball magnet miss up to a month of footy, his price dropped $46,300 on the back of a lowly 29 points. With trades now starting to be at a premium, more than 40,000 coaches face the tough decision — trade Dahlhaus now or hold and take a punt that he makes a quicker-than-expected recovery over the bye period.

Three popular picks from Sydney also stunk it up on the weekend. Kurt Tippett (59 points) can at least blame injury for his poor effort. Luke Parker (59 points) and Lance Franklin (57 points) had no similar excuses. And the less said about Freo’s Lachie Neale (51 points) the better.

MARKET WATCH

GOING UP

Kade Stewart MID (Haw)

The first-year forward followed his 16-touch, 90-point debut with a 13-disposal, two goal, 80-point second game and is set for a big price rise if he holds his spot this week.

Jack Trengove MID (Melb)

After more than two years on the sideline with injury, the former Demon captain looms as the perfect downgrade target this week. He’s on the bubble with a break-even of -47.

GOING DOWN

Josh Kennedy FWD (WC)

Kennedy’s 88 points against the Crows, on the back of a woeful 49 the previous week, saw him drop $23K to $534K and with a break-even of 184, a further drop next week looks inevitable.

THE PHANTOM’S ROUND 12 SCORE: 2431

OVERALL RANKING: 2393

Originally published as SuperCoach: How to get through the bye rounds