Footy Tragic

View Nige’s Blue Boys’ Team
Round 11 Score: 1,969
Current Overall Ranking: 22,694
Trades Left: 9
Remaining Salary Cap: $3,000

Dear Nige’s Blue Boys,

Thank you for submitting your team.

As we are in the middle of the split round & in lock out mode, my recommendations to your team will have to be made next week. Please also note that player prices will change after the completion of Round 12.

I very much like the look of your midfield, with 5 dreamteam stars in Gary Ablett, Leigh Montagna, Marc Murphy, Matty Boyd & Sam Mitchell all averaging over 98 points per game. Furthermore, Daniel Rich is a very handy 6^th midfielder! My concern here is Mark Coughlan, who is very pricey to hold as a reserve ($294,000).

Interim coach Jade Rawlings has made a statement down at Punt Road. He has shown the footy world that he is not afraid of making the tough decisions, as shown when he dumped Joel Bowden, Troy Simmonds, Jordan McMahon, Kayne Pettifer & your man Mark Coughlan. This concerns me greatly from a dreamteam perspective, because there is absolutely no guarantee that Coughlan will be returning any time soon. Unfortunately for Nige’s Blue Boys, Jade Rawlings is not impressed with the fact Coughlan is averaging 84 points per game! Coughlan needs to be offloaded to free up cash.

My recommendation to replace Coughlan is Tom Swift from West Coast. While the 18 year old Swift has now played 3 games & will rise in price from $86,600 to approximately $120,000 at the completion of this round, he is your man. Swift is a 191cm midfielder who was taken by the Eagles at pick 20 in the 2008 National Draft. Swift would have went much higher if not for missing the majority of the 2007 & 2008 seasons with knee injuries. Swift was also touted by Michael Voss as the best 16 year old in the county 3 years ago!

West Coast coach John Worsfold has gone on record saying that he would prefer to play a youngster such as Tom Swift in 2009, rather than a veteran like Chad Fletcher for the long term benefit of the club. On top of this, West Coast would be well advised to not win more than 4 games this year to qualify for a priority draft selection, which will most likely be pick number 2 overall in the 2009 National Draft. This is great news for owners of Tom Swift, because it means he should get plenty of opportunities in 2009.

While it is clear you have loaded up your midfield, we need to strengthen both your backline & forward line. With Jack Ziebell out of action for the next 6 – 10 weeks with a broken leg, I’m going to focus on your forward line.

My recommendation is to bring in Stevie Johnson. The reasons are simple, SJ is averaging 106 points per game & not only is he a great scorer of dreamteam points, he is a genuinely good player!

* PROPSED ACTION (next week)

OUT: Mark Coughlan & Jack Ziebell

IN: Tom Swift & Steve Johnson

* Please note that I have not included player prices here because prices will change at the completion of the split round. However, you can afford to make these changes, unless Stevie Johnson has an absolute blinder this week against Fremantle.

Also, keep an eye on Liam Jurrah from Melbourne who is a chance to debut this Friday night against Essendon. Jurrah has booted 11 goals for the Casey Scorpions in the last 3 weeks & is a very handy forward line option at only $126,600.

Good luck!

View The Redbacks’ Team
Round 10 Score: 1,941
Current Overall Ranking: 3,690
Trades Left: 6
Remaining Salary Cap: $92,000

Follow The Redbacks’ progress for the remainder of the year in the Live Scores category.

Dear Footy Tragics,

It’s the half way mark of the season & this week I am changing things up.

I’m analysing my dreamteam & I’ll discuss what has worked & what hasn’t.

It’s fair to say that after finishing 19^th overall & making the final 4 of the eliminator in 2008, I was very confident leading into the 2009 season. It was 6:30pm on Thursday 26 March 2009, when I took my seat at the MCG in preparation for the big Round 1 clash, Richmond vs Carlton. I had made the final adjustments to my dreamteam 30 minutes prior at a high speed internet café near the G. Needless to say, I was very confident that 2009 would be MY YEAR! During the summer months, I’d done hours of research, I’d followed the pre – season practice matches diligently & I’d pictured myself driving around in a brand new Toyota come October. Well, it’s now Wednesday 10 June 2009 & it’s time to reflect on what went wrong.

ERROR 1 – Selecting Chris Knights ($369,200) prior to Round 1

I’d always been a fan of Chris Knights since watching his performance in the 2007 Elimination Final against Hawthorn (the one where Buddy won the game with a 50 metre bomb on the boundary with only seconds left at the Docklands). Knights was brilliant that day & I have always kept a close eye on his since. I selected Knights because he ticked 4 important boxes: 1 – He’s a young gun on the rise at 22 years of age; 2 – His pre – season form was very solid; 3 – He was a unique selection (only 2,000 teams had him); 4 – He was well priced at $369,200.

Knights scored 90 in Round 1, before fracturing his eye socket in Round 2 & picking up just 57 points. I traded him out immediately knowing he would miss the next 4 weeks. Knights was a calculated risk who didn’t pay off. He has shown how good he is over the last 5 weeks, with an average of 95 points per game in that period, playing as a dangerous half forward flank. Clearly the injury he picked up in Round 2 didn’t help, but I refuse to use injuries as an excuse. Blaming injuries for your poor performance is a cop out which fails to address the real underlying problem, which is a lack of depth in your squad. Furthermore, overcoming adversity is one of the many challenges we face in dreamteam.

ERROR 2 – Selecting Luke Hodge ($428,800) & Buddy Franklin ($428,000) prior to Round 1

I didn’t have either Hodge or Franklin in my team until 2 weeks before Round 1. While I rate both Hodge & Franklin in the top 5 players in the AFL, both played only 1 practice match in the 2009 pre – season (against West Coast). This was because Hodge & Franklin both required shoulder surgery after brilliant seasons in 2008. It’s fair to say I jumped onboard after the West Coast practice match. Both Hodge & Franklin played very well & scored accordingly. I’m still kicking myself for not being stronger & factoring into my calculations that 1 NAB challenge match is no preparation for 22 grueling home & away matches. I should have waited until now, as both players have dropped in price by more than $100,000.

ERROR 3 – Failing to select either: Jimmy Bartel ($501,800), Gary Ablett ($495,700) or Dane Swan ($455,000) prior to Round 1

The captaincy debate is an ongoing issue which you must get right. Looking back, I must say that I got this wrong. My theory in overlooking Bartel, Ablett & Swan was I would wait for their price to drop & then pick up 2 of the 3 between Rounds 8 – 10. The problem was, because they have all been so good in averaging above 115 points per game, their price has not dropped.

I also thought, I don’t need Bartel, Swan or Ablett because Kane Cornes is the captain of my team. I’ve always been a massive KC fan & my loyalty to him has paid handsome dividends over the years. People often ask me why I choose a tagger as my captain, but his record of the years speaks for itself. I could never bring myself to talk down of KC, but his average of 96 points per game this season has been below my expectations. KC has also dropped in price by $67,200 since Round 1. This decision has cost me an average of 40 points per game (440 for the year), as we all know that our captain scores double points!

HIT 1 – My stars in 2009

It hasn’t all been bad news for me in 2009. Brendon Goddard, Bryce Gibbs, Marc Murphy, Joel Selwood & Aaron Sandilands have all been very solid performers over the first 11 rounds of 2009!

HIT 2 – The kids

I was also spot on with most of my youngsters, with Daniel Rich, Jack Ziebell, Nick Suban, Greg Broughton, Hamish Hartlett, Jack Grimes, Taylor Walker & Steele Sidebottom all being extremely valuable selections (NOTE: I have already traded out Rich & Ziebell). My main strength is undoubtedly my knowledge of the young players coming through the system, so I’d be very disappointed in myself if I didn’t get this right!

HIT 3 – Avoiding Andrew Raines

It seems everyone had Andrew Raines prior to Round 1 in 2009, except me!! I’ve been asked why I avoided him many times, so here is my answer:

Andrew Raines showed talent during the 2006 season when he finished runner – up in the AFL rising star. While I understand Raines suffered a serious knee injury last season, he has gone backwards since 2006. I actually did have Andrew Raines in my dreamteam in 2007 & he was dreadful. As the old saying goes: “Once bitten, twice shy”. When looking for dreamteam candidates, we like players who: take marks, kick regularly & tackle at every opportunity. When Raines gets the ball, he runs 15 metres, takes a bounce & then handballs. Raines is the only player I know who consistently picks up 20 possessions, yet score only 50 – 60 points.

CONCLUSION

While I can’t win the car, I can salvage some pride. I’m currently sitting 3,690 overall, which is not much worse than my position at the same time last year. I’m aiming to come home with a rush & finish in the top 200. I’ve learnt some valuable lessons this year, which unfortunately have been learnt the hard way.

One last thing, if you are having a good season in 2009, never let anyone tell you that you are having a “lucky year”. As the great Allan Jeans said “Luck is where preparation meets opportunity”.

Good luck!

View The Feltchers’ Team
Round 10 Score: 2,079
Current Overall Ranking: 6,934
Trades Left: 11
Remaining Salary Cap: $177,200

Dear The Feltchers, 

Thank you for submitting your team. 

As with 88,000 other dreamteams, your major concern this week is the injury to Chad Cornes. Unfortunately, Cornes is out for 4 – 6 weeks due to injuries to his calf & knee. It’s the knee injury which concerns me the most, because it is the same knee that cut his season short in 2008. 

My other concern with your team is the dead wood you are carrying on the bench. Travis Tuck, Mark Coughlan, Andrew Raines & Jared Petrenko are wasting valuable cash by sitting on the sidelines. 

At this stage, I encourage you to retain Travis Tuck. He was named in the best players for Box Hill against Port Melbourne on the weekend & is knocking on the door for a recall into the Hawthorn side. Mark Coughlan was a surprising omission from the Richmond side last week, but after a rare win from the Tigers against Fremantle, I’m not expecting too many changes to last week’s side. Andrew Raines needs to come out of your side also, because he is eating up $190,500 that could be best used elsewhere. As for Jared Petrenko, my advice is to keep him, because he is only priced at $139,800. Petrenko could be a handy emergency down back later in the season if he can force his way back into the Crows lineup. 

PROPOSED ACTION THIS WEEK: 

OUT: Chad Cornes ($347,400) & Mark Coughlan ($276,500); 

IN: Paul Duffield ($375,800) & Beau Muston ($86,600).  

Paul Duffield has slipped under the radar very nicely in 2009. While Duffield is far from a household name in the Eastern states, he is very highly rated by the Dockers. Duffield has been used by Mark Harvey as an attacking half back, pushing forward through the midfield. This style of play is perfect for dreamteam, which is why Duffield is averaging 94 points per game. What’s more, he scored 135 points last week! 

My reason for selecting Beau Muston is obvious & I spoke about him last week in this column. The man is averaging 116 points per game & is priced at $86,600, get onboard! 

IMPORTANT DREAMTEAM NEWS: 

1 – For the 13,000 teams that have kept Liam Anthony since Round 1 (myself included), finally some good news. He played for North Ballarat in the VFL reserves on the weekend & was named in the best players. I’m expecting Anthony to be playing VFL seniors this weekend. 

2 – The good oil coming from Fremantle is that Hayden Ballantyne is a very strong chance to make his debut in Round 11 after booting 5 goals for Peel Thunder in the WAFL last week! Ballantyne is a 21 year old small forward who won the 2008 Sandover Medal after booting 75 goals in the WAFL! 

3 – The number 2 pick from the 2008 National Draft Nick Naitanui is also a strong chance to debut this week for West Coast after a very solid performance for Swan Districts in the WAFL last weekend. 

Let’s hope all three players are unleashed into the big time so they can start scoring us all valuable dreamteam points! 

Good luck!

View Wise Guys’ Team
Round 9 Score: 1,536
Current Overall Ranking: 80,535
Trades Left: 9
Remaining Salary Cap: $42,000

Dear Wise Guys 

Thank you for submitting your team. 

The only thing worse in dreamteam than the dreaded “donut” is “multiple donuts”! Unfortunately, this week you had 3! 

My main aim this week will be helping to plug the gaps in your side & help you avoid the dreaded “donut” this week. 

The expected returns from injury of Lewis Roberts – Thomson & Dale Thomas should help your cause. In addition, Roger Hayden’s fractured fibula may also allow Greg Broughton to slot back into the Fremantle line up, which would be a massive boost to your side! 

While Shaun Higgins remains in doubt with a nagging groin injury, you have cover for him in Mitch Robinson. It’s also worth noting that Liam Anthony is an outside chance to return to VFL footy this week! 

I would describe your ruck line up as “unusual”. The preferred method when selecting rucks is to load up with two gun ruckman & then save cash with your 3^rd & 4^th rucks. Justin Koschitzke is surplus to your needs & should be downgraded to free up much needed cash in other areas. 

It’s much the same story with Scott Lucas. While the Queen Elizabeth Oval in Bendigo is a beautiful country ground, unfortunately, Lucas doesn’t score dreamteam points for kicking goals down there. 

PROPOSED ACTION THIS WEEK: 

OUT: Scott Lucas $264,900 & Justin Koschitzke $268,900 

IN: Leon Davis $447,700 & Mike Pyke $75,300 

My reason for recommending Leon Davis is simple. “Neon Leon” leads all comers in the forward line with an average of 110 points per game. Furthermore, he’ll slot in very nicely alongside Steve Johnson & Nick Riewoldt! 

PROPOSED ACTION FOR THE FOLLOWING WEEK: 

Check the official team selection prior to Round 11. If both Kyle Cheney & Jared Petrenko are still on the sidelines, dump one of them & upgrade to a premium defender, using your cash gained from the trade I have proposed below. 

I’m very concerned about Shaun Higgins, along with over 112,000 other dreamteams who have him in their side (NOTE: you should have chosen Higgins as a forward, rather than a midfielder). Whenever a player has a nagging groin injury, the best bet is to offload them. Fortunately, you have an ideal replacement for Higgins in Beau Muston from Hawthorn at the bargain price of $86,600. 

It was a privilege to be at the MCG on Sunday to watch Beau Muston finally make his debut in his 4^th season at the Hawks. Many seasoned recruiters expected Muston to be drafted in the top 6 picks of the 2005 National Draft, before he did his knee prior to the draft. Hawthorn swooped on Muston with pick 22, which was considered by many to be a steal, despite Muston’s suspect knee. Muston took to AFL footy like a duck to water on Sunday, collecting 127 points along the way. It was refreshing to see a boy from Shepparton United, who has kept the faith & never doubted his ability to rise above his injuries, being the feel good story of the year thus far. Let’s all hope Muston remains injury free, for the benefit of himself, Hawthorn & dreamteamers! 

Good luck!

View The Spidermen’s Team
Round 8 Score: 1,926
Current Overall Ranking: 3,447
Trades Left: 12
Remaining Salary Cap: $3,700

Dear The Spidermen 

Thank you for submitting your team. 

You have done a good job selecting your squad of 30, which is reflected in your overall ranking of 3,447. However, your weakness is your backline which is where I will turn my attention. 

My primary concern is Nick Malceski who is averaging 65 points per game in 2009 from 7 matches. Not surprisingly, Paul Roos finally ran out of patience & swung the axe in Round 8. While Malceski had a brilliant season in 2007, he has not been the same player since rupturing his ACL in the 2008 pre – season. The question still remains as to whether the revolutionary knee surgery performed on Maxwell in an effort to get him back on the park sooner, was the right call. Malceski is clearly lacking confidence & spark, which resulted in him being dropped from the Swans team last week. 

I have my reservations about 4 other players in your backline. They are Cheney, Raines, Suban & Broughton. You could get away with having 2 of these 4 playing each week, but when it stretches to 3 as it did for you in Round 8, alarm bells start ringing. 

Luckily for you there is an ideal replacement waiting in the wings who has already played 2 very solid games, with an average of 102 points per game. His name is Jack Grimes & he is your solution. Please refer to our Player Of The Week category for a detailed description on Grimes.

PROPOSED ACTION THIS WEEK: 

OUT: Nick Malceski – $274,300

IN: Jack Grimes – $186,400 

The Malceski to Grimes switch will not only boost your weekly points tally, you will also free up an additional $87,900. This will leave you in a strong position to upgrade a cash cow who has reached his peak in the next 2 – 3 weeks. 

Good luck!

View Antwerp Specials’ Team
Current Overall Ranking: 34,256
Trades Left: 9
Remaining Salary Cap: $111,500

Dear Antwerp Specials 

Thank you for submitting your team. 

My main concern is your lack of trades remaining. With 15 rounds remaining, you only have 9 trades left! I like to use golfing parlance to determine how many trades you should keep up your sleeve throughout the year. In an ideal world, you should aim to stay “on par” i.e. retain 1 trade for every week remaining in the season. With the recent spate of injuries to key dreamteam players over the last 4 weeks, I could accept 2 over the card, but definitely not 6 over the card! 

My advice now will be structured towards helping you nurse your current squad through to Round 22, with 1 trade up your sleeve for the Grand Final. That gives you 8 trades to use over the next 14 weeks. I have broken this down into 3 phases for you. 

Phase 1 – From Rounds 8 – 14, aim to use a maximum of 3 trades. If this means playing with 21 for a couple of weeks, swallow your pride & cop it on the chin. However, never go in with 20 players or less because you are virtually conceding defeat when you are down by 2 or more soldiers. If one of your premium players picks up a 2 – 3 week injury during this period, keep him. 

Phase 2 – From Rounds 15 – 18, aim to use a maximum of 2 trades. This is where things will get tough because some of your cheap youngsters will be dropped from their respective sides. On top of this, there is always the ever-present threat of injuries. During this phase, keep any premium players who pick up a 1 – 2 week injury. 

Phase 3 – Rounds 19 – 22 – Finals time! Assuming you follow my advice above, you should now be back on “par”, with 4 trades up your sleeve. Aim to use 1 trade per week from here on. 

Now, it’s time to look at your current squad of 30 players. The only players in your squad who are unlikely to play AFL football in 2009 are Ayce Cordy & Scott Gumbleton. However, this doesn’t mean you should automatically trade them. With Cordy, my advice is to leave him because the 4^th ruck spot is pretty much useless. 

With Gumbleton, hold fire until a suitable replacement bobs up. The most likely replacement would be either Steele Sidebottom from Collingwood or Chris Yarran from Carlton. Both of these boys were very impressive in their Round 7 debuts. Have another look at them in Round 8, before inserting one of them into your side prior to Round 9. Please refer to my Submit Your Team article 2 weeks ago, for a more comprehensive analysis of both Sidebottom & Yarran. Looking back, I’m quite chuffed with myself for pumping both of these boys up 1 ½ weeks before they debuted! Needless to say, neither Sidebottom nor Yarran let me down, as they were both very impressive! 

As for Ryan Houlihan, I expect him to be back into the Carlton side sooner rather than later. Gavin Urquhart & Shaun Higgins are due to return this week also. 

PROPOSED ACTION THIS WEEK: 

NO trades. Time to take a deep breath & hold fire! 

In conclusion, let’s aim to get back to “even par” by Round 19, or at the very worst, “2 over”. Although you found the water & notched up a few “double bogeys” on the front nine, do not despair. The season is only 7 rounds old. You have 4 weeks to steady the ship, before charging home on the back nine. 
 

Good luck!

View Team Princess’ Team
Round 6 Score: 1,997
Current Overall Ranking: 4,063
Trades Left: 13
Remaining Salary Cap: $33,100

Dear Team Princess 

Thank you for submitting your team. 

I’m going to focus my attention on two dreamteam favourites, both of whom picked up injuries in Round 6. It’s worth noting here, that I steered clear of both players when selecting my team, for reasons I’ll discuss below. 

• Matthew Richardson – we all love the Richo man. The guy is an absolute star, who has carried the Tigers over the last 15 years. One thing you always get with Richardson is 100% effort. Due to Richardson’s ability to take 12 – 18 marks per game, he is more than capable of picking up high dreamteam scores. However, Richardson was always a risky pick in 2009, given his age. While Richo had a magnificent dreamteam season in 2008, it is rare for key forwards to still be dominating post age 30. Think Lloyd, Lucas, Tredrea, Rocca, Hall etc. The wash up from Richardson’s torn left hamstring is 8 – 12 weeks on the sidelines.

• Gary Ablett – Little Gazza is without doubt, the number 1 player in the game right now. However, I always thought Ablett was a risky dreamteam selection at a starting price of just under $500,000. The risk with Ablett is that because Geelong have been so dominant in the Home & Away season from 2007 until now, if Ablett has a slight niggle, he doesn’t play. Let me expand on this further, as we look at footy from a coach’s perspective.

Footy is all about winning premierships, which are awarded to the best team in September. Geelong discovered this the hard way in 2008. While the Cats were the best team from late March to August, Hawthorn was the best team in September. As a result, Hawthorn won the premiership. While all teams would love to win all 22 home & away matches, there is no need. All you need to do is finish in the top 2 after Round 22, which guarantees you a home Week 1 final. History tells us that 17 wins is enough to guarantee a top 2 finish. What this means is, if little Gazza picks up an injury, Geelong will err on the side of caution. Why take a risk with a superstar such as Ablett when you are sitting 6 – 0. Geelong has said Ablett will miss 2 – 3 weeks with a strained left adductor. I’d be very surprised if he returns after 2 weeks, given that Geelong play a Friday night game in week 3. The Cats will most likely give Ablett the full 3 weeks & then unleash him in Round 10 against Carlton on a Saturday night. 

Now, back to Team Princess. 

I’m concerned with your low level of remaining trades (13). Given that you have Jaxson Barham sitting on the sidelines, my advice to you is to hold Ablett, with the expectation of him missing 3 weeks. Ideally I’d like to offload him, but if you do so, you will only have 11 trades left with 15 weeks remaining. 

      PROPOSED ACTION: 

      OUT: Matthew Richardson ($375,000)

      IN: Matthew Pavlich ($372,100) 

No explanation needed for picking up Pavlich. He is a genuine superstar & a proven dreamteam performer over many years. 

Good luck!

View Superbad!’s Team
Round 5 Score: 1,936
Current Overall Ranking: 1,317
Trades Left: 17
Remaining Salary Cap: $900

Dear Superbad 

Thank you for submitting your team. 

I’m going to start by focusing on your forward line. This is a real weakness in an otherwise strong team with only Chapman, Higgins, Franklin, Nathan Brown & Lovett as keepers. Your weakness has really been put under the microscope with Hayden Skipworth sustaining a hamstring injury, which will most likely keep him out for another 2 – 3 weeks. 

The problem with the forward line is finding a cheap option that will do more than play 5 or 6 games for the season & average 40. Jack Ziebell has started the season well, but you have missed the boat on him as his price has now risen by over $100,000 to $228,300. 

Although we all like instant results, good things come to those who wait. I’m going to take a step back & highlight two quality forward line options that have yet to make their AFL debut. Both of these boys are priced under the $131,000 mark: 

1 – Chris Yarran – Carlton ($130,600) – The Blues were delighted that Yarran was still available at pick 6 in last years National Draft. Yarran is a medium – sized forward with freakish talent. He starred with Swan Districts in the WAFL last season & was also super impressive in the National Under 18 Championships final against Vic Metro. After an injury interrupted pre – season, Yarran has now hit form in the VFL. Playing for the Northern Bullants, he slotted 3 goals & was named in the best players against Port Melbourne last weekend. Brett Ratten won’t be able to resist the temptation to unleash Yarran for much longer. 

2 – Steele Sidebottom – Collingwood ($110,600) – Sidebottom is a medium – sized midfielder / forward, taken at pick 10 in last years National Draft. The boy they call “Rusty” stands at 180cms & weighs 80kgs. He has a strong body for an 18 year old & he can seriously play. One other thing, the kid kicked 10 goals for the Murray Bushrangers in last years TAC Cup Grand Final! For those of us lucky enough to see the game, there is only one way I can describe his performance in that game, he was simply ‘in the zone’. What’s more, Rusty is showing very solid form at VFL level for Collingwood.  

Message to Mick Malthouse, ‘What more does this kid have to do to get a game???’ 

Don’t think, DO! The setting is perfect for “Rusty” to debut on the big stage, this Friday night against North Melbourne at the Docklands (the venue where Sidebottom turned the TAC Cup Grand Final into his own personal showtime!). 

My recommendation with your forward line is to wait until the teams are announced this Thursday night. Skipworth is the man to take out given he is injured, with his replacement being one of the two boys I have mentioned above. The waters become somewhat muddy, if neither Yarran nor Sidebottom is named this week. Should this be the case, my advice would be to hold fire for at least one more week. Tempting, as it may be to bring in a stopgap measure to insert as your 7^th forward, I very much doubt any forward priced around this mark will out perform Yarran or Sidebottom over the 22 rounds. 

Following this trade, you should look to add a premium forward into your team, by freeing up cash from another position (most likely your midfield). Strengthening your forward line is a two step process. Be strong, patience is a virtue! 

Your midfield is much easier. There is a player who has played 2 games already & he looks super impressive. His name is Hamish “Hammer” Hartlett. Port Adelaide only had eyes for Hartlett in last year’s National draft & swooped on him with pick 4. At 184cms & 77kgs, Hartlett is a genuine midfielder. It’s also worth noting that Port Adelaide preferred “Hammer” to Daniel Rich in last year’s draft. Mitch Robinson is the man to make way.  

Proposed action this week: 

OUT: Mitch Robinson ($154,400)

IN: Hamish Hartlett ($138,600) 

Good luck!

View The Assassins’ team here

Dear The Assassins. 

Thank you for submitting your team. 

This week, I’m taking a slightly different approach. I’m going to start off by identifying a very common problem I have found in 2009. 

A question without notice to all footy tragics out there: 

“How many of you allocated yourself a positional budget before Round 1″? 

Budget you ask? By this I mean, How much money did you allocate to your defence? How much to your midfield? How much to your rucks & How much to your forwards? 

You MUST have a budget & strategically allocate funds to each position. When it comes to dreamteam, failing to plan is most definitely planning to fail. How do you decide how much to spend in each position? The answer is: First find your weaknesses & then cover the gaps by throwing more cash into that position. You’ve had 6 months to develop your strategy & formulate a game plan. With the private leagues now underway, it’s crunch time! 

When I sat down pre – season to select my dreamteam, it became blatantly obvious where my holes were, my 6^th, 7^th, 8^th & 9^th backs. My solution? Take some cash away from my midfield budget & allocate those funds to my backline. 

There is no point in having a midfield of Bartel, Ablett, Swan, Corey, Kane Cornes & Scott Thompson if you are deficient in other areas. Always remember, your team is only as strong as your weakest link. The formula for dreamteam success is simple; you need 100% effort, from 100% of your team, 100% of the time. 

My tactic pre – season was to have 4 gun midfielders & 4 midfield cash cows. I’ve seen far too many teams with 5 or 6 gun midfielders, with only 2 or 3 cash cows. While most teams have Rich & Beams, far too many teams missed golden eggs in Otten, Dangerfield, Zaharakis, Robinson & now Barham. Why so many teams picked Paul Hasleby before one of those gems is beyond me. Not only did Hasleby cost you an extra $130,000 (minimum) prior to Round 1, he is averaging less than some of these rookies.  

As a result of loaded midfields, the amount of teams I’ve seen with a backline of Cheney, Petrenko, Raines & Broughton has been staggering. While I’m more than comfortable with Petrenko & Broughton (I have them both in my side), I can’t say the same about Cheney & Raines. 

There is only one reason why over 50,000 teams have jumped on the Kyle Cheney bandwagon – desperation. Hands up those footy tragics out there who were crying out for a backline option priced under $90,000 who was selected in Round 1. As I see over 50,000 hands go up, I think to myself, you’ve all been burnt. Cheney has been dropped back to the VFL after 3 average games. While Cheney did average 63 points, I can’t see him playing many more games this year with McDonald, Wonaeamirri, Buckley & Bell all expected to return to the Melbourne side over the next few weeks. As for Raines, I made my thoughts clear on him in last weeks article. 

Now, back to The Assassins. 

Proposed action this week: 

OUT: Paul Hasleby ($293,800) & Kyle Cheney ($131,700)

IN: Jaxson Barham ($86,600) & Andrew Mackie ($350,800) 

Use $11,900 from your available funds to complete this trade. 

The effect of these trades will be two fold. Firstly, you have bought in a cash cow in Barham at the expense of an over rated Hasleby. Not only this, you’ll lose nothing by bringing in either Beams or Barham as your 6^th midfielder. Secondly, you have shored up your shaky defence by slotting in a very reliable dreamteam player in Andrew Mackie. 

Good luck!

View The Ruckus’ Team
Round 3 Score: 2,063
Current Overall Ranking: 3,254
Trades Left: 18
Remaining Salary Cap: $153,900

Dear The Ruckus

Thank you for submitting your team.

I’m going to start off by axing a very popular 2009 dreamteam player in Andrew Raines. I just can’t understand what all the fuss is about with Raines. The guy can’t mark above his head & he refuses to kick the football. Why over 46,000 teams still have him in their side despite the fact he sustained a knee injury in Round 1 is beyond me. It is worth noting here that Raines missed almost the entire 2008 season with a knee injury. Raines may return in Round 5, but I very much doubt he will repay the faith shown in him by so many teams when he does return. At best, I expect Raines to average approximately 60 points per game. At a price of $188,100, I can’t see his price sky rocketing in value. To put it bluntly, I prefer others.

The other change I have recommended is a forced change given Trent Hentschel is out until at least Round 7. As you currently have $153,900 sitting in the bank, my recommendation is to dump Raines for a defender priced around the $87,000 mark & load up on the next best available forward.

Paul Medhurst is your man. Medhurst was one of the dreamteam success stories of 2008. After a stellar year, last season, Medhurst missed a large part of the Magpies 2009 pre – season due to injury. Despite very little preparation, Medhurst has still averaged 79 from the first 3 rounds & fallen to a very attractive price of $371,100. While this is hardly a match winning score, I see plenty of upside for Paul Medhurst in 2009. I expect him to average around 90 this season, which is very solid for a 4th or 5th forward.

PROPOSED ACTION THIS WEEK:

OUT – Andrew Raines ($188,100), Trent Hentschel ($122,700);

IN – Alex Rance ($86,600), Paul Medhurst ($371,100).

This will leave you with $7,000 in the bank.

Good luck!