All the key NRL Fantasy, injury and suspension news to come out of the Round 9 Telstra Premiership team lists.
Rabbitohs v Wests Tigers
Rabbitohs: Hymel Hunt is a sell after being ruled out for up to five months with a pec injury, with Souths naming Kirisome Auva'a in the centres along with Bryson Goodwin, with Dane Nielsen to line up on the wing this week. Paul Carter is out for a week with a suspension. Adam Reynolds has also been named despite initial injury doubts, with Cameron McInnes again set to come off the bench with Kyle Turner back in the starting side and George Burgess to return via the bench.
Wests Tigers: Tim Simona returns from suspension to bump rookie Nathan Milone out of the side. James Tedesco has had a couple of quiet weeks (by his standards) and is dropping in price, which is good news for Fantasy coaches who don't have him in their teams yet. Chris Lawrence looms as a solid pick-up in the centres after scoring 54 on Saturday.
Eels v Bulldogs
Eels: No changes for Parra this week. Semi Radradra – now set to become a Kangaroos international – has bottomed out in price after last week's 56 but will need to keep scoring tries to maintain big scores. Frustratingly borderline keepers like Nathan Peats and Manu Ma'u continue to perform just under expectations, which is making things a little tricky for those who want to snap them up for the bye rounds (or have them already).
Bulldogs: The Bulldogs have added Lloyd Perrett and Raymond Faitala-Mariner to an extended bench but are otherwise unchanged. James Graham continues to bump out good scores and maintain an average well over 50.
Panthers v Raiders
Panthers: James Segeyaro is back, with Anthony Griffin saved a possible selection headache with Te Maire Martin's shoulder injury meaning Peter Wallace returns to halfback. Unfortunately the young playmaker has been ruled out for the remainder of the season and is a sell. Dean Whare also returns in place of Waqa Blake in the centres while Sam McKendry is back from suspension.
Raiders: Frank-Paul Nuuausala is added as 18th man in an otherwise unchanged Canberra outfit that absolutely smashed the Tigers last week. Jarrod Croker and Joey Leilua are always a good chance of posting decent Fantasy scores when the Raiders win big, and with a talented attacking side and arguably the easiest draw in the competition that's likely to happen pretty regularly. Jordan Rapana is a possible keeper at WFB while Elliott Whitehead just seems to get better and better in the back row.
Roosters v Knights
Roosters: The cavalry returns at last. Suddenly the Roosters look like a top-eight team again on paper with Mitch Pearce at halfback, Boyd Cordner in the second row and Jared Waerea-Hargreaves coming off the bench. Ryan Matterson holds a spot on the interchange after impressing at five-eighth in his debut on Anzac Day. The bad news, for some? Mitchell Aubusson has been named in the centres – although against a struggling Knights side he could grab a few attacking stats out there this week.
Knights: Youngster Will Pearsall looks set to get first shot at replacing Jarrod Mullen at five-eighth but beware Newcastle have named a whopping seven-man bench, with Brock Lamb wearing No.18 and a chance of being a late inclusion in the halves. Pat Mata'uitia replaces injured brother Peter at centre, while Pauli Pauli is back from suspension.
Sea Eagles v Cowboys
Sea Eagles: Either Manly have a truly amazing physio in their ranks or Trent Barrett is being a bit cheeky with this week's team list, which includes injured duo Brett Stewart (hamstring) and Tom Trbojevic (ankle). Stewart is expected to miss two weeks; Trbojevic a month and a half. Matt Parcell has been named 18th man but could easily start in a team that is sure to look very different come kick-off on Saturday night.
Cowboys: No changes once more for the Cowboys. Fantasy coaches know exactly what they're getting with the super consistent premiers this season.
Warriors v Dragons
Warriors: Tui Lolohea and Simon Mannering are both out after picking up injuries on Monday, but they shouldn't miss too much game time especially considering the NRL goes on hold for rep round next week. Both are worth holding at this stage. Shaun Lane gets his Warriors debut off the bench while David Fusitu'a starts at fullback while Jonathan Wright and Charlie Gubb get starting spots this week.
Dragons: Euan Aitken returns from a hamstring injury and is no doubt eager to repay his NRL Fantasy coaches after an injury-affected -5 a couple of weeks back. The Dragons' best buys remain Jack de Belin and Josh Dugan – who is good enough for a Kangaroos centre spot and good enough for a spot in your team's centres as well (although he will miss four games during the Origin period).
Titans v Storm
Titans: Ashley Taylor remains sidelined with what turns out to be suspected nerve damage around his ribs, meaning rookie Cameron Cullen gets another shot in the halves. Beware, he doesn't have good job security. After another big game of base stats, it's probably time for sceptics like me to admit Ryan James is a keeper this season.
Storm: Felesi Kaufusi returns on the bench for the Storm, who have a few excellent Fantasy options this season in the form of Cameron Smith, Jesse Bromwich, Cameron Munster and Tohu Harris.
Sharks v Broncos
Sharks: No changes for the Sharks, who will be bumped at the chance of claiming a big scalp in this one. Andrew Fifita and Paul Gallen have been terrific of late, although it's always a bit of a risk picking Gallen in your Fantasy side ahead of the State of Origin series.
Broncos: Andrew McCullough is set to miss six weeks through injury, opening up a chance for new starting hooker Kodi Nikorima to make some cash – although it remains to be seen how the game time will be split between him and bench dummy half Travis Waddell. Ben Hunt has soared past Anthony Milford's price in recent weeks but both look like quality keepers in the halves this season.
