AFL SATURDAY $50,000+ CHEAT SHEET
Round 18 sits in wait. Teams are genuinely assessing their flag chances. Brownlow medal betting is heating up. Collingwood fans still think they have a chance in 2018. And Carlton are again putting forward their case as to why they deserve a priority pick. It’s the AFL. And the narrative is fairly constant. Sub out Collingwood for Essendon if you want. Change Carlton to Brisbane. You get a similar result.
The new antagonist in the story this year is the Demons. They take on a familiar foe in Geelong this Saturday. The underdog, the Roos, come up against good old Collingwood. While the knight in shining armour, Sydney, take on the jester of the league, Gold Coast. In another part of the world, Essendon and Adelaide try to keep their finals chances alive by slaying the Fremantle and Brisbane dragons.
The story remains the same but the sub-plots define our interest. And, what’s even better, Draftstars adds another element of excitement with our super Saturday competition. This week there’s a $50,000+ prize pool up for grabs while the winner will pocket almost $5k.
Here is a team you may consider for the AFL $50,000+ Saturday competition
Forward
Tom Lynch (ADEL) ($11,390)
After a lean return to AFL two weeks ago, Lynch really hit his straps in a victory against Geelong last week. He was back to his linking-up best, gathering 22 disposals and booting four important goals. This stat line translated into 94 DS points. Expect Lynch to continue this vein of form as he regains confidence and works his way back to his peak.
Darcy Parish ($9,780)
Parish plays his 50th game this weekend, in just his third season. While not setting the AFL alight, Parish has been a solid contributor for the Bombers. Last week, returning after a two-month break, he played one of his best games of the season as he picked up 26 disposals and kicked a goal. With some run in his legs, Parish will up the ante again this week.
Midfield
Patrick Dangerfield ($14,640)
Full disclosure; Patrick Dangerfield is my favourite player. But with good reason. He is explosive, kicks goals, hits the ball hard and has a Brownlow medal in his back pocket. He also bleeds for his club, who now face a battle to make the finals. If Dangerfield has any say in it, Geelong will be there as September rolls around. Consequently, don’t be surprised to see Dangerfield dominate the competition for the rest of the season.
Tim Kelly ($12,490)
Amid one of the better debut seasons in history, Kelly has been an unexpected boost to the Cats and marvel for the fans. While most players in their first season experience late season blues, Kelly is going from strength to strength, and his last three games have been some of his best. In the corresponding fixture against the Dees in round one, which was also Kelly’s debut, he racked up 27 disposals and snared a goal.
Andrew McGrath ($11,300)
After turning in a poor performance (among a host of poor performances from his team) against Freo in round two, McGrath will be keen to make amends. In his favour, McGrath is in the best three-week period of his season and should maintain this form. A top score of 107 last week came on the back of 25 touches and an all-round game. This week he will be buoyed by that performance and the Dockers won’t be able to limit him.
Luke Davies-Uniacke ($5,850)
Without judging a first year player too harshly, Davies-Uniacke was drafted as the next Dusty, and he has so far been underwhelming. That being said, his game last week offered glimpses into what he could end up becoming. Considering the hard bodied midfield, he was combatting against the Swans, his efforts were eye catching. Despite having a relatively lean scoring return of 69 DS points, he is threatening to break out, and it could well happen this week.
Defence
Aliir Aliir ($9,390)
Aliir Aliir has been somewhat of a media sweetheart for parts of his career. He started his career with a boom and the media covered it heavily, and all during the week, after a match-up against fellow Sudanese born player, Majak Daw, Aliir has been in the headlines. With a flashy Mohawk and enigmatic style of play, he thrives on the attention. Combine his week with the fact he output his best score of the year last week and he becomes an astute choice for your Draftstars side.
Kyle Cheney ($8,340)
Cheney is one of those guys you just have a soft spot for. He’s a journeyman, he’s a battler, and he’s likely to end up on a “mediocre players of the 2010’s” Facebook page in the next five years. But, to be quite honest, he’s pretty handy. He has slotted into an embattled Adelaide back six with aplomb and is averaging 76 DS point over his last two games. At $8,340, Cheney becomes an invaluable selection this week.
Ruck
Max Gawn ($16,430)
Big Max Gawn is the poster boy for the AFL this year. He’s a genuine Brownlow chance and is on just about every AFL related advertisement on TV at the moment. It’s because he’s genuine and seems like a great guy. The kind of guy you’d like to be friends with. But he is also a genuine superstar. Week-to-week, you can rely on Gawn to give you at least 110 DS points. Against a below par Geelong ruck outfit, and with the fire of his after the siren miss in round one burning in his belly, Gawn will dominate this week. Undoubtedly.
Written by Brin Duggan Follow @BrinDuggan
The Line Up
FWD: Tom Lynch ($11,390)
FWD: Darcy Parish ($9,780)
MID: Patrick Dangerfield ($14,640)
MID: Tim Kelly ($12,490)
MID: Andrew McGrath ($11,300)
MID: Luke Davies-Uniacke ($5,850)
DEF: Aliir Aliir ($9,390)
DEF: Kyle Cheney ($8,340)
RUCK: Max Gawn ($16,430)
Salary Remaining: $390
Check out the new Fantasy Insider podcast which discusses some key stories in the AFL this week and previews this Saturday’s $50,000 contest!
AFL SCORING SYSTEM
Kick = 3 points
Mark = 3 points
Handball = 2 points
Goal = 6 points
Behind = 1 point
Tackle = 4 points
Free Kick For = 1 point
Free Kick Against = -3 points
Hitout = 1 point
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