This week's NRL Fantasy buys and sells for every club plus all the team list news heading into the sixth round of the Telstra Premiership season.
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Broncos v Dragons
Broncos: No changes this week. Anthony Milford's dream start to the NRL Fantasy season came to an end last week with 30 points (including a try assist), but that's to be expected when he is contained in attack. Corey Parker is set to drop below the $500,000 mark soon but is hitting consistent 50s, while James Roberts clicking into gear with 54 and is a good buy in the centres with a break even of 15.
Dragons: St George Illawarra are unchanged despite copping a hiding at the hands of the Cowboys last week. Jack de Belin was a popular buy last week and even though he scored "only" 48 all those points came from tackles and run metres, meaning he has a lot of upshot when he comes up with a few tackle breaks or offloads.
Rabbitohs v Roosters
Rabbitohs: Bryson Goodwin is back but Kirisome Auva'a holds his spot in the centres, with Goodwin moving to the wing and Michael Oldfield dropping back to 19th man. Paul Carter has been named 18th man after missing out last week. He's a hold in my book with a break even of 19 assuming you have decent cover for him. Cody Walker continues to produce good scores in the halves, while Greg Inglis came up with three try saves in his 47 last week.
Roosters: Abraham Papalii has been added to an otherwise unchanged side as 18th man. Jayden Nikorima has been named at five-eighth again but for the past two weeks has dropped back to the bench on game day with Aidan Guerra starting in the halves. If that happens again, as looks likely, he's a trade. Jake Friend is averaging 60 points a game while Sio Siua Taukeiaho is playing big minutes at lock and averaging 50. Jackson Hastings has a few more price rises in him.
Eels v Raiders
Eels: Nathan Peats is back, in good news for Fantasy coaches looking to sell Craig Garvey and/or plan for the bye rounds. His return bumps Isaac De Gois to the bench and Kaysa Pritchard out of the side. Manu Ma'u is averaging 53 after four games and like Peats is shaping as a very handy pickup for the bye rounds if you're aiming to climb the overall points ladder. Semi Radradra has failed to find the try line in four of his five games; his top score this year is 86 and his next best is 24. He could be a juicy buy in a few weeks once Parramatta start hitting their straps in attack.
Raiders: Sia Soliola will miss six to eight weeks with a broken arm, with Luke Bateman replacing him on the bench. Shaun Fensom is $58,000 cheaper than he was at the start of the season and has averaged 55 in his past five games so is ripe for the picking in the next few weeks. Elliott Whitehead had a quiet game by his recent standards on the weekend (with a lot of Canberra's attack heading down the opposite side of the field) but is a hold. Jarrod Croker got everyone's attention with a two-try 70 last week and is as solid an option as anyone in the centres.
Warriors v Sea Eagles
Warriors: Manu Vatuvei is out with a hamstring injury with Jonathan Wright starting him on the wing while Thomas Leuluai joins the bench. Konrad Hurrell remains a bench player and is a Fantasy no-go for now. Simon Mannering's scoring has taken a hit since he's moved from lock to the edge as cover for the injured Bodene Thompson. Shaun Johnson and Roger Tuivasa-Sheck are just about back to their best.
Sea Eagles: Jake Trbojevic is back at lock, while Josh Starling has been promoted to starting prop with Brenton Lawrence shifting back to the bench. Tom Symonds also returns in place of Feleti Mateo, while Blake Leary and Luke Burgess are 18th and 19th men. Matt Parcell has a break even of 1 and is on his way towards $200,000 in price rises, while Tom Trbojevic is a Josh Mansour-style winger who can post good Fantasy scores with or without tries.
Panthers v Cowboys
Panthers: No changes to the 17 this week but Elijah Taylor and Jeremy Latimore return to the extended bench. Bryce Cartwright rewarded those who kept the faith with a terrific 73 last week and his owners will be hoping for some consistent 45-point scores to go along with the occasional big games. Josh Mansour grabbed a try, 203 run metres and half a dozen tackle breaks last week and the only thing going against his Fantasy prospects right now is the possibility of a NSW call-up.
Cowboys: Unchanged. Javid Bowen grabbed a try on debut and an excellent 45 Fantasy points but could be out of the side in the next couple of weeks with Kane Linnett due to return from a shoulder injury. Ethan Lowe showed he doesn't need to score tries to score well with 56 last week.
Sharks v Titans
Sharks: No changes to the 17, although Paul Gallen has been named to start after returning from injury from the bench last week. Andrew Fifita is a keeper with or without Gallen in the side after posting a season-high 64 last week, while Ben Barba has jumped $100K in value and is just about a keeper at the back.
Titans: Rookie half Cameron Cullen comes into the side at five-eighth, while David Shillington returns at prop and Will Zillman has been named 19th man but is likely to replace John Olive in the backline. Ryan James has improved his discipline this year and with an average of 67 across his past three games is looking like a good point-of-difference option in the forwards.
Knights v Wests Tigers
Knights: Tariq Sims is back from suspension and replaces rookie Jacob Saifiti in the second row, with Saifiti to come off the bench. His brother Daniel is 18th man, with Mickey Paea 19th. Jacob Saifiti is a hold for now as he's still got cash rises in him, although expect to see his scores drop. Sam Mataora has been a successful surprise pack with 47 points a game up front and should go past $150K in price rises next week.
Wests Tigers: James Tedesco is now the most expensive player in the NRL Fantasy – if you've got him, congratulations, if you don't it's probably worth waiting until he has a few quiet games and becomes more affordable – especially as he's increasingly likely to get picked for Origin and miss an extra couple of games during the bye period. Curtis Sironen returns on the bench in place of Manaia Cherrington, and with no bench hooker Robbie Farah is set to play the 80. Tim Simona will front the judiciary on Wednesday night.
Storm v Bulldogs
Storm: Marika Koroibete is back from suspension on the wing, with Tohu Harris again named at centre, Christian Welch joining the bench and Nelson Asofa-Solomona and Richie Kennar in jerseys 18 and 19. Cameron Smith is edging his season average towards 60 and remains the safest captaincy option in the game, while Cooper Cronk needed a couple of tries to score 60 last week and isn't in the top tier of Fantasy halves.
Bulldogs: Rookie Kerrod Holland replaces the injured Chase Stanley in the centres and should stay there for the next couple of weeks, but after that might not get a run until Josh Morris leaves on Origin duty. Craig Garvey's rapid rise in value ($150,000 in three weeks) has come to an end with Michael Lichaa replacing him on Monday night – he's a sell but has certainly done his job for those who bought him. Like Anthony Milford, Moses Mbye had a quiet week in attack and saw his score drop to a mediocre 24 – he's been a great mid-range cash cow but with a break even of 60 it might be worth switching to a more reliable playmaker option at some stage (although his season average remains an excellent 55).
