Will 2017 be the year of the key forward in AFL SuperCoach

WITH a number of popular forwards from 2016 losing their dual-position status for the new season — Dustin Martin and Zach Merrett in particular — is this the year of the power forward?

Pick your 2017 AFL SuperCoach side today.

WITH a number of popular forwards from 2016 losing their dual-position status for the new season — Dustin Martin and Zach Merrett in particular — is this the year of the power forward?

Western Bulldogs’ Jack MacCrae running at training.

Jack Macrae ($511,700, mid) and Luke Dahlhaus ($520,700 mid)

The Bulldog pair are just about the only sure things in the premium forward bracket this year.

Macrae — who has gained dual-position forward status in 2017 — is a ball magnet in every sense of the word, averaging more than 99 in just his second and third seasons in the game.

While his form dipped slightly in his fourth season last year, Macrae was pivotal in the finals series, finishing with 33 disposals and 113 SuperCoach points in the grand final.

Luke Dahlhaus looks upfield during Bulldogs training.

Dahlhaus, one of the only dual-position favourites left in the forward line in 2017, averaged 105 to the halfway mark of 2016, before injury saw him miss more than a month of footy.

But The Phantom expects the clever midfielder-forward to explode out of the blocks. Don’t leave him out.

The Dogs’ premiership-winning midfield is only going to get better — a scary thought for the competition — and these two young stars are leading the charge.

St Kilda’s Nick Riewoldt at training.

Nick Riewoldt (St Kilda) $549,500

In the lead up to 2016, there was a common thought that the 34-year-old’s SuperCoach days were behind him.

How wrong we were. Riewoldt, who starts 2017 as the most expensive forward in the game, showed there is plenty left in the tank, posting 12 SuperCoach tons to, again, push his average above three figures.

There are not many in the game that work harder than Riewoldt and, although he can’t run forever, the rapidly improving Saints midfield should make things easier on him. Riewoldt’s starting price is the only concern here..

Tom Lynch at Gold Coast Suns training.

Tom Lynch (Gold Coast) $507,200

Lynch is, arguably, already the best contested mark in the game and he booted 66 goals in a team who finished 15th. And at only 24, he is yet to reach his peak.

Normally key-forwards aren’t high on SuperCoach shopping lists but there are not many who are this good. Is this the year the recently appointing Suns’ co-captain, who scored more than 80 points in 15 of his 22 games last season, announces himself as SuperCoach force?

Former Richmond star Brett Deledio during training at his new club the GWS Giants.

Brett Deledio (GWS Giants) $516,900

The classy 29-year-old will be a fantastic addition across half-forward for the Giants but will he see enough midfield-minutes to maintain his SuperCoach output?

With GWS spoiled for choice when it comes to midfield rotations, it’s hard to see Deledio spending much time in the middle.

While he has never needed to find a stack of the footy to score well, at this point, there are too many uncertainties surrounding the highly-efficient Deledio to pick him from the start.

Toby Greene at GWS Giants training at Spotless Stadium.

Toby Greene (GWS Giants) $492,000

The Phantom has said it before and will say it again.

The day Toby Greene finds his way back into the midfield full-time, he will put daylight between himself and the next highest-scoring SuperCoach forward.

But again, with the current Giants midfield and after a season which saw him win All-Australian honours as a half-forward, will that day ever come?

Originally published as Will 2017 be the year of the key forward in AFL SuperCoach