NRL $4,000+ Saturday Line-Up
Saturday promises to produce three tightly contested games, with the pick of the bunch being the clash between top eight hopefuls Canberra and the Bulldogs. The plethora of superstars available across the board will make for some massive Draftstars scoring and a fascinating contest.
Here is a team you may consider for the NRL $4,000+ Saturday competition
Front Row Forward
Ryan James ($14,500)
James is the first of an all-Titans front-row for this contest thanks to some excellent recent form that has seen him produce some big Draftstars scores. This has mainly come from some huge tackling numbers, including a monster 50 tackle effort last week against the Sharks, but there is no doubt that James can have an impact in attack too. Last season he proved to be a try-scoring weapon and ended up with some massive Draftstars scores in games in which he found the line. Against the Knights, there is every chance that James finds an opening from a late rotation and manages to bludgeon his way to a try.
Jarrod Wallace ($11,650)
Wallace has truly had a breakout season after the Titans released the playing time shackles that were holding him back at the Broncos. The emerging prop has gone from a bit-part bench player to averaging 63 minutes per game thanks to a newfound work ethic. This is reflected in his stats, where he is averaging nearly 37 tackles and 145 running metres per game. He won’t slow down any time soon and against a Newcastle pack that has struggled to contain rampaging props, he should be in for a massive score.
Hooker
Josh Hodgson ($12,300)
There are some decent value options in this contest such as Danny Levi and Jayden Brailey, but Hodgson is tough to ignore now that he’s back to playing full games. After finishing in the top ten of the Dally M voting last season, Hodgson has had a tough start to this year and has seen significant stretches on the bench. Against the Bulldogs, Hodgson will have to make a bunch of tackles and will be relied upon to provide some zip out of dummy-half to exploit the Bulldogs’ struggles at hooker. He averaged 50.8 Draftstars points last season and is averaging 49.74 points in games he plays the full 80 so far this season. If you have the cash, he should be the best scoring hooker in this contest.
Second Row Forward
Josh Papalii ($14,200)
Papalii is the form back-rower of the NRL at the moment and was rewarded for his efforts with a place in the Australian team for the Anzac test. He is willing to make standard runs and hit ups early in the set of six for his team, whilst later in the set he will find a way to use his magical footwork and speed off the mark to become a scoring threat. His motor is impressive – he is averaging 153.8 metres and 26 tackles per game – and against the sluggish Greg Eastwood, there is every chance that the agile Papalii manages to break open the Dogs line for a try in this match.
Josh Jackson ($12,150)
Jackson has been good again for the Bulldogs this season, with the versatile back-rower showing an improvement as a threatening ball-runner on the edge this year. Jackson has expressed his frustration in wake of the decision to ban the Bulldogs from playing in the City-Country game, which is set to be played in his home town of Mudgee. Ideally Jackson will be able to channel this anger into a massive performance against the Raiders and a big score for Draftstars owners.
Centre
Michael Chee-Kam ($5,900)
Without any standout options, Chee-Kam looms as a cheap option that can approximate the scoring of the more expensive guys. After starting on the bench and being used as a backup second-rower when Jamal Idris returned, Chee-Kam was thrown back into the starting lineup last week in the centres. This means that he will play the full 80 minutes which will give him every chance to build a decent score. Out of the cheaper options, he’s also the least likely to burn you given his ability to make tackles, gain metres and break tackles.
Half
Ash Taylor ($9,100)
There are no standout premium options in the halves this Saturday, nor are there any value options to save you cash. This leaves an array of middling options that are hard to distinguish, but Taylor should be able to fill out his attacking stats against the Knights. Last week he even managed to put in an improved defensive effort, making 23 tackles and missing just three after a horrendous game against Canberra in which he missed eleven tackles. If he can replicate this whilst putting in his usual array of assists, tackle breaks and kicking metres, he’ll be the pick of the bunch.
Wing/Fullback
James Tedesco ($13,150)
Teddy has cemented himself as a superstar of the competition this season as he’s further improved his already damaging game. Once he improves his composure under the high ball and his ability to recover his positioning from accurate kicks, he will be the best fullback in the league. However, none of this matters for Draftstars scoring, so more importantly he currently leads the league in tackle breaks whilst also posting elite numbers in metres and line break assists for a custodian.
Jarryd Hayne ($6,900)
Hayne is simply too cheap to ignore in this contest and when you get a player of his calibre at that price, he almost becomes a must-have. He wasn’t playing a traditional fullback role last week; he was roaming everywhere and the Titans’ attack was basically funnelled through him. Considering they won, it would be wise for them to do this again which will lead to some excellent attacking stats. Don’t be surprised if Hayne manages to score against the Knights, who allow the second most points of anyone in the competition.
The Line Up
FR-F: Ryan James ($14,500)
FR-F: Jarrod Wallace ($11,650)
HOOK: Josh Hodgson ($12,300)
2R-F: Josh Papalii ($14,200)
2R-F: Josh Jackson ($12,150)
C: Michael Chee-Kam ($5,900)
HALF: Ashley Taylor ($9,100)
W/FB: James Tedesco ($13,150)
W/FB: Jarryd Hayne ($6,900)
Salary Remaining: $150
NRL SCORING SYSTEM
Try Scored = 8 points
Goal = 2 points
Field Goal = 5 points
Try Assist = 5 points
Line Break = 4 points
Line Break Assist = 2 points
Tackle = 1 point
Tackle Break = 3 points
Missed Tackles = -2 points
Offload = 2 points
Run Metres Gained = 0.1 points
Kick Metres Gained = 0.05 points
Error = -2 points
NRL