NRL SuperCoach musts and busts from 2026 draw: Why Nathan Cleary is a no-go
Nathan Cleary’s SuperCoach stocks have plummeted but a host of quality buys have emerged following the release of the NRL draw for 2026. Full schedule lowdown here
The 2026 NRL draw has been announced and there are huge SuperCoach implications.
In particular, Nathan Cleary’s stocks have plummeted, while top cheapie Heamasi Makasini is now a no-go.
Tom Sangster reveals nine things we learned from next season’s schedule.
1 Fade Nathan Cleary
I was already considering leaving out the best halfback in SuperCoach because of recent injury woes and a shortened pre-season due to the Ashes.
Then the draw dropped and now it’s a no-brainer.
Penrith’s first six games include five blockbusters against top eight opposition.
Their only “easy” game is against local rivals Parramatta, who while finishing 11th last year actually stormed home.
Expect Cleary to drop in value considerably before becoming a cut-price buy in the run-in to Origin when the Panthers take on the Dolphins, Knights, Sea Eagles and Dragons within five weeks.
2 Stack the halves with cheapies
Cleary isn’t the only playmaker set to start slowly. Nicho Hynes has a string of tough games to start the year and an early bye.
Jahrome Hughes has a good schedule (see below), but he is coming back from a shoulder reconstruction. Meanwhile, there are cheapies galore in the halves including Parramatta’s Jonah Pezet, Canberra’s Ethan Sanders and St George Illawarra’s Daniel Atkinson.
It’s a strange team balance but owning only one gun half – or even none – is the way SuperCoach 2026 is heading.
3 Top cheapie spiked
The Tigers have the bye in round one for the second season running, which makes the entire side tough to touch to start the year.
Yes, even the highly-rated Heamasi Makasini, who is tipped by many to sneak into a wing or centre spot. He’s now a round three downgrade at best – and they do have a very soft starting draw other than the bye.
BEST AND WORST STARTING DRAWS FOR SUPERCOACH
4 Sua Fa’alogo is a must (if he wasn’t already)
The Storm dynamo was already firmly on the SuperCoach radar following news he is frontrunner to play fullback in place of Ryan Papenhuyzen (released). But he’s now almost impossible to leave out.
Over the first two months the Storm only play one top four side, yet face five bottom eight sides.
They also don’t have a bye until round 15, the latest of any side, meaning Fa’alogo could even be a long-term hold. With the soft draw, also expect teammates Cameron Munster and Harry Grant to be very popular, even after shortened pre-seasons due to the Ashes.
MORE SUPERCOACH:
2026 position changes locked in
5 Scott Drinkwater, come on down
The Cowboys have the easiest draw in the competition and the biggest SuperCoach beneficiary, as always when it involves attack at the Cowboys, is Drinky. North Queensland’s opening five games include 2025 strugglers the Knights, Tigers, Titans and Dragons.
Their only tough game in that span is against the Storm and that’s in Townsville, where the Cowboys tend to score well regardless of opposition. Fullback is a red-hot position so there are plenty of options, but Drinkwater will be hard to pass up after finishing second, third and sixth for total points in the last three years.
The fact he has no bye until round 15 is another bonus. The great draw also improves the stocks of fellow Cowboy Reed Mahoney, who starts underpriced after falling out of favour at the Bulldogs last year.
6 Herbie Farnworth is our Origin saviour
The Dolphins have the best draw of any side over the Origin period. Englishman Farnworth, who topped the CTW position last year for average, is available for every “big” Origin week, as is every other non-Origin Dolphin.
Likewise, non-Origin Sea Eagles and Rabbitohs are also available for every big bye and will be gold over this period. Conversely, Origin players from the Dolphins, Sea Eagles and Rabbitohs barely play any NRL over the rep period. This dramatically reduces the value of Latrell Mitchell, Cameron Murray, Keaon Koloamatangi and Tom Trbojevic.
7 Holy Moses
There have been two big SuperCoach happenings for Mitchell Moses over the last few days. Firstly, his stocks copped a blow with the release of the draw, which sees the Eels face heavyweights the Storm, Broncos, Panthers and Bulldogs in the first seven weeks.
But then Zac Lomax quit the Eels, which assures Moses the goal kicking duties and around 12 “free” points per game. All up it’s a win for Moses, but he’s far from a must-have given the aforementioned cheapie talent in the halves.
8 Finish the year with Bunnies
The Rabbitohs are the first team to complete their byes – in round 16.
That’s a full two weeks before any other team. Bunnies will therefore be crucial for extra numbers over the back end of the Origin period, and with trades low, likely for the rest of the season.
9 Draft deal-breakers
There’s nothing worse than killing it all year in SuperCoach Draft only for your top players to have byes in the finals series.
In 2026, these teams are the Knights (round 27), Raiders (26), Cowboys (25), Storm (24) and Tigers (23).
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Originally published as NRL SuperCoach musts and busts from 2026 draw: Why Nathan Cleary is a no-go
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