The answers to this week's big NRL Fantasy questions, from NRL.com's resident Fantasy guru the Lone Scout.
Hey Scout, in regards to the whole Seggy and Brailey situation at the Sharks: when should the people who have Brailey cash him out, whether to Seggy or to upgrade to a gun or money he has made and go with a cheapie? From Jam Jam Hatch
Jayden Brailey still has a negative break even so will get another price rise if he gets any game time this week, and he's set to start once again. James Segeyaro may not even play this week. Brailey is a definite hold for me, and will be while he's still making money – even if that's when he's coming off the bench. He's a definite hold.
When you do trade Brailey you'd ideally go straight to a keeper (Cameron McInnes, Andrew McCullough or Cameron Smith if you haven't got him already) but trading in Segeyaro himself is also a decent move considering his low $253,000 price tag. That price could actually drop if he plays a few games off the bench, but if he gets big minutes in the long run he should jump in price enough to ride up to a keeper.
Should we wait a week to see what the Sharks do with Segeyaro before we buy him, or do we take the risk now because his price is so low? From Jonny White
Definitely wait a week, at least.
Suli came crashing back to earth on the weekend, and the Tigers are a shambles at the moment… reckon it's time to flick him for another cheapie or stay the course?
From Dom Griffin
Stay the course. Moses Suli has earned $69,000 in price rises and is still going, with a break even of 15. Sure he only scored 10 on the weekend, but that's going to happen for a winger in a team that gets beaten by 40. He scored 28 in Round 2 and a whopping 52 in Round 1 so is more than capable of hitting at least the mid-20s a few more time and pushing his price up towards $250,000.
Could Jacks or Yates still make $100k each in the upcoming weeks? Or should I consider buying some gun players that I don't have already – eg. Buhrer, Papalii, Bodene Thompson... From Peter Li
Ryley Jacks and Luke Yates both have a fair bit of cash to make. Jacks is the safer option as Melbourne's starting five-eighth for the next half a dozen weeks with Cameron Munster out with a broken jaw, while Yates has had his minutes inflated so far this season due to a few mid-game injuries to Knights players. I reckon Jacks is probably still worth buying, Yates is a riskier bet.
If you want to bring in a value keeper in the forwards, I can recommend Elliott Whitehead this week or next.
Is it worth bringing in Jacks for Field? From Stefan West
Yep.
When is the right time to bring in Elliott Whitehead or PODene Thompson?? From Mitchell Palmer
Whitehead and Bodene Thompson were both keepers last season, with Thompson not being picked in many Fantasy teams despite scoring 55 points a week (becoming the ultimate 'point of difference' Fantasy buy). Both have dropped in price after playing out of position at the start of this season – Whitehead at centre, Thompson off the bench – and will probably be at their cheapest next week or the week after. They both have break evens in the 60s, with Whitehead already great value at just $375,000.
Am I crazy or genius? With Whitehead on everyone's lips for obvious reasons what's to say he's not Mitch Aubusson 2.0? From Richard Nicol
Interesting point. The obvious difference I see is Whitehead's job security – he's never likely to get dropped back to the bench (he didn't miss a minute last season) while Aubusson could potentially become a bench player when Sio Siua Taukeiaho returns for the Roosters mid-season. Canberra also have English import Jordan Turner in their squad who could fill in at centre if another injury strikes Jarrod Croker or Joey Leilua this year. It's certainly something to consider, but Whitehead's still not quite an Aubusson-style risk in my eyes. (To be fair, Aubusson himself is looking a lot less risky this season as well.)
Is Capewell worth it? Job security good or bad with Beale? From Matthew Kirsner
With a price tag of $178,000 and a break even of -2, I can see why Kurt Capewell looks like a promising cash cow. Although he's been playing in the centres for Cronulla he's available in the second row in Fantasy, and there aren't too many cash cow forwards these days. Still, as you say there are questions about his job security – Capewell wasn't in Cronulla's Round 1 team when Gerard Beale was available, and he could easily be bumped out of the side when Beale returns (with Jack Bird likely to return to centre). He could also be replaced with a specialist winger if Valentine Holmes moves to fullback. Capewell's still a gamble that could pay off, but he is a gamble.
Hey LS what do I do with Hayne, Idris, Elgey and Hampton? Trade or keep? From Nathan Sheaff
For now, if you can cope without scorers in their positions: keep, keep, keep, trade. Hayne, Idris and Elgey should make money eventually.
In the long run: trade, trade, trade, trade.
Who is better...McCullough or McInnes? From Joe Duggan
McInnes. He has better scores, plus he's a little more likely to play the full 80 minutes all year. McCullough could lose minutes if Kodi Nikorima grabs a Broncos bench spot, while for McInnes to lose minutes it would probably take Jai Field getting the halfback spot and Josh McCrone playing off the bench.
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