Footy Tragic

Friday:

Collingwood vs Essendon:     

The week of AFL Blockbusters started with an easy win to Collingwood. Yet it wasn’t the win that Collingwood fans should be the most excited about, but rather the form of two perennial underachievers - Travis Cloke and Josh Fraser. Both played out of their skin, with Fraser thrashing Ryder in the ruck and Cloke able to take advantage of the lack of attention he received from McPhee, booting four goals. This is now the second week in a row that Cloke has performed well - and I must divulge that I like him as a cheap forward option - but the quality of his opposition must be remembered. Last week, Cloke was pitted against McPharlin, and this week Adam McPhee. Whilst both these opposition are decent players, they enjoy zoning off their man, making it easier for Cloke to be found free and in space. In saying that though, I did like Cloke’s work rate against the Dons - he tried harder to create space than any other game this season. The other star for Collingwood was the rejuvenated Didak, who continued his career-best form. For Essendon it was Prismall who shone in the absence of Watson (although I feel he will still score well when Watson returns). We know Prismall is a great ball-winner from his Geelong days, so I feel he is well priced for his potential.

Get on: Travis Cloke – I recommend him with great trepidation – he has the potential, but the question has been his work rate. This game showed me he is working harder and could be worth looking at.

Get off: Paul Medhurst - I guess he has been playing VFL footy for a reason. Played poorly and his only goal was sharked from Swan. May find his position in jeopardy.

Injury: None 

Saturday:

Melbourne vs West Coast: 

Melbourne were playing for Jim and West Coast were playing for a priority pick. Therefore we were treated to a game lacking much shut-down and some reasonably high scoring. It was second year Demon, Jack Grimes that led the way with a career high 143, gaining much appreciation from coaches that had taken the gamble on him a few weeks ago. Not only did he score well but he took home the 3 Brownlow votes - he played a fantastic game, running off half-back. Brad Green also showed why I recommended you ‘get on’ him last week, again with a great game off half-back (clearly the ball went down there a lot!). For West Coast, Shannon Hurn was one of their better players, playing down back, displaying a booming accurate kick - there is a reason his teammates want the ball in his hands. In saying this, I still don’t think he is a great trade target. Maybe look at him for next year – especially if he’s moved to the midfield.

Get on: Jack Grimes - A bit too late to catch him as a ‘bargain,’ however, he is still very much worth his dollar value as this game displayed. Playing in Melbourne’s defence, the ball is going to go back there a lot of the time!

Get off: Sam Butler - My biggest disappointment of the year. Two years ago he was a young gun averaging around 90 DT points - nowadays he is lucky to make 50.

Injury: Brett Jones - Strained his hamstring - they won’t rush him back because he’s not best 22 anyway. 

Port Adelaide vs Brisbane: 

Unfortunately a very low-scoring DT match, with only five players making it to the magical ‘ton.’  Of those players, no-one particularly impressed, with Chaplin (the highest scorer with 119) getting most of his possessions via games of kick-to-kick - not something to be relied upon week to week. From Port, most of their other best players, Pearce, Ebert and Rodan are regularly inconsistent, so despite good games here, I would still be avoiding them. However, there was one Port player who is looking at, and that is Steve Salopek - he has been strangely out of favour over the past month or so, eventually getting dropped last week. He fought his was back into the side and is now looking much better, coming home with 96 points. He is dirt cheap and definitely worth considering as a trade target. For Brissie, their game was ruined by poor delivery into the forward line, hence the low scores from twin-towers, Bradshaw and Brown. I would mark this game down as an aberration for Brisbane, as they showed little of the form that helped get them to fifth on the ladder.

Get on: Steven Salopek – but before you do, give him one more week to prove himself. He is one of the higher rated players for Port and should bounce back after getting dropped to the twos.

Get off: Josh Carr - Played OK, but didn’t really contribute to the result. Watch him get dropped again next week.

Injury: Daniel Rich - Hurt his shoulder in a marking contest and was rested when the game was lost. He may miss a week, but look at this as a good opportunity to trade out a fantastic cash-cow! 

Richmond vs Adelaide: 

This was a good game from fantasy perspective, with most players scoring around their year’s average, therefore leading to few surprises (which is a nice change). Scott Thompson led the way as usual, racking up 127 points (and may I remind you that he is still cheap!), and my man Kurt Tippett leading the goal scoring with 5 big ones! In this game we also got to witness two debutants and two second gamers. On debut was Jayden Post from Richmond and Shaun McKernan from Adelaide. I actually thought both had reasonable games -  Post made a few errors, but most were result of the pace of the game, but I think he was good enough to get another game next week (we must remember, Richmond is dedicated to playing the kids!). I really liked what I saw of McKernan, especially a 60m bomb to the top of the goal square. As a big-man, he won’t get too many massive scores, however, his form was OK, meaning he may get a few more chances. Jarrad Silvester of Richmond and James Sellar from Adelaide played their second games. Silvester was good, despite the fact he has now had to hauls of five goals kicked on him in respective weeks. I think with confidence (which Richmond will aim to build through giving him more games) his skills will build. Sellar was average – again he is a big guy so will score low, but personally I preferred McKernan (and it is unlikely both will be kept in the lineup).

Get on: Scott Thompson - it’s hard to go past Scotty, especially as his price still hovers around $400,000. He guarantees some big scores as the year progresses.

Get off: Richard Douglas - he always seems like a deer in headlights to me, and as usual, did nothing much to influence the game.

Injury: Nathan Foley - Hurt his ankle - tried to play on but gave in during the second quarter. Expect him to miss 1 - 2 weeks. 

Western Bulldogs vs Hawthorn: 

It’s very hard to score many DT points if you can’t even get your hands on the ball. This game was an absolute flogging - there is no other way to describe it. Do not trade any Hawks into your team, because as it seems, they cannot be trusted. In saying that, many coaches would have been happy with Luke Hodge’s game - finally Gilham was back, allowing Hodge to move further into the midfield. Unfortunately, because the Dogs were so dominant, Hodgey could only make his way to 95 points - watch him start to improve over the next few weeks! For the Doggies it was hard to find a poor player. It is fair to say - a lot of dream team coaches have this year failed to see the Doggies scoring potential, with them being the 8^th most popular Dream Team team. But looking at their game against the Hawks, it is easy to find a star on every line – Boyd is having a super season, Higgins is one of the most improved players in the competition, and Ryan Hargrave is sneaking under the radars of most coaches, earning his third ton in a row. Get on a Dog and you won’t be disappointed!

Get on: Ryan Hargrave - he was one of the highest ranking defenders in the second half of last year, and looks to be doing the same this year! This is now his third 100+ score in a row. He is worth the cash and is a great point of difference!

Get off: Lance Franklin - Probably a bit late now, but another pathetic score has made him the worst dream team pick of 2009! He hardly tries to mark anymore, instead just playing for a free kick.

Injury: None. 

Sunday:

Sydney vs North Melbourne: 

A pretty boring match saw Sydney again triumph at the SCG, with a reformed Ryan O’Keefe again leading the way as far as dream team is concerned. However, the two bigger stories from the game came out of the Kangaroo camp - Liam Anthony and Boomer Harvey. The news on Harvey is simply that he is not a good DT option this year - he gets tagged out of games too easily due to the lack of assistance from him teammates. Whilst he had a stellar game last week against the Dogs, this week was a quiet one. This kind of inconsistency drives even the greatest DT coaches insane – therefore, keep away. In better news, Liam Anthony again shone in his second game for the Roos – whilst it wasn’t as prolific as his debut, it was still certainly a good game! Consider getting on board the kid if you are in need of a good midfield emergency (and have the trades). If you have Daniel Rich currently on your bench, this could be the perfect money-making trade to set you up for the rest of the year.

Get on: Liam Anthony - as stated above, he will be a consistent performer and can be trusted come finals time if you become in need of an emergency.

Get off: Ryan Brabazon - has been in the system for a while, but this game was very poor. Paul Roos didn’t look too impressed with him, dragging him on a couple of occasions.

Injury: Jarrad McVeigh - Back on this injury list, this time with a Hamstring pull. Will likely be the usual 2 - 4 weeks. 

St.Kilda vs Geelong: 

What was dubbed at ‘The match of the year,’ certainly was the best game of the year! It ticked all the boxes that we as viewers want to see - hardness, good pack marks, ferocity at the contest, good skills, etc - but it also gave us what us dream team coaches want to see - tackles, tackles, tackles, as well as all those listed above! The only downside was the Stevie J didn’t play! Whilst being the best game for the round visually, it was also the best for DT points - for Geelong, the top four scoring players were four of the most popular Geelong players in the competition, pleasing many thousands of DT coaches. In the Saints camp, Hayes was the DT star, but on the ground it was Sam Gilbert and Michael Gardiner. Both played their best games for the season and will be fighting over the three brownlow votes at the end of the year. It was also great to see Sam Fisher let loose in the first half, before being shut down in the second half - fortunately, he still made it to 98 points! For Geelong, Chappy was the star, playing all over the ground, repeatedly pulling down marks and even kicking one amazingly lucky goal!

Get on: Sam Gilbert - he is amazing to watch, repeatedly pulling in contested marks and sidestepping his opponents. With Sam Fisher in the side, it is rare that his run will be shut down by the opposition.

Get off: Tom Hawkins - was absolutely smashed by Blake, and due to this being a ‘high-pressure’ match, Bomber Thompson is likely to cull some of those who didn’t perform on the big stage.

Injury: None. 

Carlton vs Fremantle: 

A great match for DT purposes, with several stars getting back to their best! These stars were predominantly from the Carlton camp, with Gibbs and Judd the stars of the day - this is great to see due to the fact that they have each been off their games a bit the past few weeks! The other big Carlton story was that of Andrew Carrazzo – in years gone by he has been a dream team star, until this year when he has been given the job as a tagger. In this game he was let off the tagging duties, allowing him to coast across the ground picking up a season-high 33 disposals – and not only that, but he disposed of the ball well, suggesting that he may have earned his spot as an attacking winger back now that Stevens has been relegated to the twos. For Freo, rookie Greg Broughton continues to dominate the possession count, again making his way to an easy ton. Also impressive in this game was the second game of forward option Hayden Ballantyne who scored 3 goals and 85 points, suggesting he is much better that the 27 he served us next week. He is on the bubble at $86,600, so for those in need of a cheap forward, lock him in as your man this week!

Get on: Bryce Gibbs - Has been quiet the past month so can now be gained for under $400,000. Despite the price drop, he is still one of the highest scoring mids in the comp. Get on him before his price balloons back out.

Get off: Daniel Gilmore - He looked like a DT gun in 2007, but since then has done nothing. Will be back in the twos next week.

Injury: None

Expert: Dan
Team: Hank Scorpio EDT
Round 14 Score: 2,185
Overall Ranking: 4,014
Trades Remaining: 3
Remaining Salary Cap: $66,300
Team Changes This Week:
In: Aaron Davey, Robert Murphy
Out: Daniel Giansiracusa, Steele Sidebottom 

Expert: Toby
Team: Fiora’s Hardnuts
Round 14 Score: 2,271
Overall Ranking: 266
Trades Remaining: 3
Remaining Salary Cap: $79,800
Team Changes This Week:
In: Alan Didak, Jarrod Silvester 
Out: Josh Drummond, Steele Sidebottom

Expert: Ben
Team: The Redbacks
Round 14 Score: 2,016
Overall Ranking: 3,471
Trades Remaining: 4
Remaining Salary Cap: $132,500
Team Changes This Week:
In: Liam Jurrah, Colin Sylvia
Out: Daniel Giansiracusa, Steele Sidebottom

We’ve been talking about Robert Murphy (or is that Bob these days?) for a couple of weeks on our weekly video, as we anticipated his price drop. His season so far has been slowed by injury. He had a limited pre-season after some knee surgery and when he came back into the Bulldogs line up he was eased in slowly. This made for a couple of low scores to drive his price down (47 and 58).

His third game was the return to his point scoring form, with a 107 against Adelaide. His previous two scores meant that he plummeted over $30K anyway. The next week he was set for a monster score when he succumbed to a hamstring injury on 36 points before quarter time. There goes another $30K off his price.

First game back from injury and he was eased into a defensive role against Port in a game where the ball barely saw the Doggies back line, meaning he didn’t see too much of the ball himself – another $25K off his price. With two low scores already in his rolling average, the 100 he scored last week against North marked a return to form and still saw him leak a further $20K off his price, making him under $300K.

In total he has dropped $101,800 off his starting price and for the first time this season he actually has an achievable break even score, meaning he’s likely to start going up in price again.

Murphy has been a solid DT forward for a number of years now. 2005 was when he really burst onto the scene, averaging 82.5 for the year. He was looking in good touch in 2006 until a knee injury ended his season in Round 9. 2007 was also injury interrupted – generally the first year after a knee can be a bit slow for players, but 2008 provided his best output, averaging 89.2.

If all is alright with his body, then there’s no reason not expect something around the 90 mark in the run home. However, there is always an associated risk with players who have had limited pre-seasons, even by this stage of the year. Most of the time they’re pushing uphill all year. I take solace in the fact that the Bulldogs have a fantastic injury record this year and that they really know what they’re doing to get their players right (with that said, you might be looking to trade Gia out to get someone like Murphy this week).

A couple of very popular forwards went down on the weekend. As mentioned above Gia copped an injury on the weekend and he’ll be out for six, while Pav has the much more awkward time frame of 2-3. Pav is a line call whether to trade or not, but with Gia out for so long it’s a bit easier to move him on. If you’re trading out one of these two price tags, then you’ll save a lot of money by getting Murphy and he is a good chance to provide the same output as that injured pair. That money can be used elsewhere for another upgrade (because I’m sure everyone has HEAPS of trades left by now…right?)

View Tamuharaplapor’s Team
Round 13 Score: 1,962
Current Overall Ranking: 3,493
Trades Left: 4
Remaining Salary Cap: $108,600

Dear Tamuharaplapor,

Thank you for submitting your team.

With 9 rounds remaining and still 5 more weeks until the all important finals, now is a very good time to hold fire with your valuable trades. Ask yourself if you are aiming for a private league win or overall ranking glory. If you are not within the top 2,000 teams overall at this point in time, it’s fair to say that you should definitely be aiming to win your private league. This article is directed towards those aiming for private league glory.

To give yourself a realistic chance of winning your private league, you really need to finish in the top 4. If you finish between 5 – 8, there is simply no margin for error as every final is knock out for the loser. If you are comfortably sitting within the top 4 right now, with a gap to 5^th, you definitely should be saving your trades for later in the season.

Finishing 4^th is exactly the same as finishing 1^st, because there is no home ground advantage in dreamteam. The 4^th placed team doesn’t have to travel to Perth, Adelaide or Brisbane in Week 1 of the finals. All you need to do is win in Week 1 and you move straight into Week 3. The added bonus here is that you get a week’s break in Week 2; therefore you won’t need to trade in that week. Therefore, my recommendation is to have your team cherry ripe for Week 1 of the finals (Round 19).

Team Tamuharaplapor, as you have only 4 trades remaining, I highly recommend you think very carefully before making any more trades. You’ll most likely need these remaining trades to cover for injuries. You’ll need to use 1 of your 4 trades to take out Jack Ziebell because he won’t play again this year due to his broken leg. Consider either Liam Jurrah from Melbourne ($126,600) or Hayden Ballantyne from Fremantle ($86,600) to replace Ziebell. Jurrah looks a real find for the Demons. I love the way he is so clean with his hands, regardless of the pressure he is under. Jurrah is definitely a “one – touch player”. He also brings a real excitement factor to Melbourne games, which was certainly not the case before Jurrah and Watts came into the team. I’ve spoken a lot about Ballantyne this season and it was great to see him finally debut in Round 13 against Collingwood!

On another matter, I don’t understand why Jurrah is priced at $126,600, given he was taken a pick 1 in the 2009 pre – season draft. I can understand first round draftees from the National Draft being priced at a premium, but not the pre – season draft. I get extremely frustrated with such anomalies in the dreamteam pricing system, because it undermines the entire competition. I encourage readers to write into dreamteam about this, because it is a clear flaw in the system. I also think that the prizes are mediocre at best given that we have over 280,000 competitors, but that’s a story for another day.

NOTE 1: Keep an eye out for Matthew Broadbent of Port Adelaide who is an outside chance to debut this week. Broadbent is 189cms and 84kgs, and has been playing SANFL seniors for the last 2 years. Broadbent is a very likely dreamteam prospect and can be picked up as a defender for only $86,600.

NOTE 2: If you are not doing anything today, I strongly encourage you to get down to the Docklands stadium to witness the conclusion of the Under 18 National Championships. There are 4 games on, starting from 9:30am and entry is FREE! These games will also be telecast on Fox Sports 1. What better way to get a head start on your dreamteam competitors, by conducting some research for 2010! The vast majority of draftees compete at the Under 18 National Championships and all teams will be in action tomorrow.

Good luck!