Round 8 NRL Fantasy teams analysis

There are not one, not two, but four bargain-basement cheapies promoted to starting teams this round with plenty of choice on offer for NRL Fantasy coaches looking for a value trade.

Here are the key team changes and the NRL Fantasy form guide for each club heading into round eight.

• Casualty Ward & Late Mail
• NRL Fantasy winners & losers: Round 7

Round 8 team news

Rabbitohs v Broncos, Thursday 7.50pm at ANZ Stadium

Rabbitohs: Wayne Bennett has named the same 17 that beat Penrith last week. Damien Cook is coming off a score of 47 – underwhelming for those who captained him – and if he's not in your side and you're playing for overall points it could be worth waiting until after Origin with the NSW hooker guaranteed to miss round 12 and 17, and likely to miss round 13's home clash against Newcastle two days after the Origin series opener. Cameron Murray and Adam Reynolds are in great scoring touch.

Broncos: A new potential cash cow has arrived with 18-year-old Tom Dearden replacing Kodi Nikorima at halfback. The safest move is to wait and see how he goes this week before making any trade, although he could become a long-term prospect with speculation Kodi Nikorima could leave for the Warriors. Payne Haas earned another $81k last week and $221k so far this season, but his rise from 2018 bench player to 2019 starter could make him a front-row keeper considering his 58-point average so far. Jack Bird's 54 last week means he's still rising in value, and is scoring like a keeper in the centres (although not on the level of dual-position "centres" Briton Nikora or John Bateman).

Cowboys v Titans, Friday 6pm at 1300Smiles Stadium

Cowboys: Jordan Kahu returns to the fullback role in place of Te Maire Martin (migraines) and Tom Opacic starts at centre. Michael Morgan has just about hit his peak price and isn't a keeper unless he can lift his mid-40s average up past 50. Jordan McLean has been a borderline keeper with an average of 49.

Titans: Those who took the risk on cash cow option Jai Whitbread may be regretting it after he was named in No.18 in a Titans side that welcomes back Jarrod Wallace and Keegan Hipgrave, with Phillip Sami replacing Dale Copley (quad) on the wing and AJ Brimson the new bench utility. Mitch Rein is coming off a season-high 68 and has been a rock solid contributor with at least 45 tackles every week. Jai Arrow (53) and Bryce Cartwright (49, and another $40k price rise) are proving to be solid buys.

Sharks v Storm, Friday 7.55pm at PointsBet Stadium

Sharks: Briton Nikora returns from suspension while Kyle Flanagan replaces the injured Shaun Johnson (hamstring, 4 weeks) in the halves and is a cash cow option. Ronaldo Mulitalo has been replaced on the wing by Sione Katoa and Scott Sorensen drops out of the 17. Andrew Fifita was easily the standout Shark from last week's loss to Brisbane, with 71 points taking his Fantasy average up to 63 – the best in the league. Kurt Capewell is a possible sell with his break even now up at 40 after scoring just 19 against the Broncos.

Storm: Melbourne have named the same 17 as last week, although with Nelson Asofa-Solomona starting at prop ahead of Christian Welch. Cameron Smith is a prime trade target for those who can find the cash after back-to-back 70+ scores, while Cameron Munster scored 76 last week and has the best average of all halves available this week following Daly Cherry-Evans's injury.

Raiders v Panthers, Saturday 3pm at McDonalds Park, Wagga Wagga

Raiders: Bailey Simonsson replaces the injured Jordan Rapana (ribs, 2-3 weeks) on the wing while Hudson Young and Corey Horsburgh replace Emre Guler and Jack Murchie on the interchange. John Bateman spent a large chunk of last week's game in the centres due to a reshuffle following Jordan Rapana's injury and still managed to be his team's top scorer with 56. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad would have finished with his first sub-30 score of the year if not for a late try.

Panthers: Unchanged. Nathan Cleary's price looks good at under $700k, although if he repeats last week's 40-point effort he'll get a little cheaper again. Viliame Kikau bounced back from last week's 25 (in 78 minutes) with a barnstorming 75 against the Rabbitohs, including a monster try to keep Penrith in the contest in the dying minutes.

Sea Eagles v Bulldogs, Saturday 5.30pm at Lottoland

Sea Eagles: After an outstanding start to the season in which he became the most valuable player in NRL Fantasy, Daly Cherry-Evans (ankle) is out for at least a month and is now a must-sell. Kane Elgey starts at halfback, Addin Fonua-Blake returns from suspension, Jorge Taufua (calf) is replaced by debutant Abbas Miski, and Toafofoa Sipley shifts to the bench with Morgan Boyle dropping out. Corey Waddell scored 68 last week, partially due to an increased role for the injury-hit Sea Eagles, but his price is rising rapidly and he's still good value at $393k. The only concern is whether his minutes dip with Fonua-Blake back in the side. Last week I suggested staying patient with Marty Taupau, who had yet to hit a truly big score in 2019 and who didn't need big minutes to do it. Lo and behold, he went and pumped out 71 points in 42 minutes against the Raiders.

Bulldogs: Fa'amanu Brown replaces Chris Smith on the bench, with Kieran Foran and Dylan Napa both a chance of returning after being named in the reserves. Corey Harawira-Naera is coming off the first 100-point game of the year but beware he was only averaging 38 points a week before that. Aiden Tolman is playing huge minutes for a prop and has become a reliable 50-point scorer. Jayden Okunbor revived his price rises with a good score of 43 against the Cowboys – despite a couple of big errors.

Roosters v Wests Tigers, Saturday 7.35pm at the Sydney Cricket Ground

Roosters: Jake Friend (biceps) is replaced at hooker by Victor Radley while Luke Keary returns and Isaac Liu starts at lock with Lachlan Lam dropping out. James Tedesco is ripe for the picking after last week's 62 while it could also be the time to strike for Angus Crichton if you think last week's 59 is a sign of things to come.

Wests Tigers: Benji Marshall returns in place of the injured Josh Reynolds, while Luke Garner returns from concussion via the bench in place of Paul Momirovski. Garner's reign as a cash cow could just about be up, although his 30-point break even is still achievable from the interchange. Last week's win over the Titans was great news for the Tigers backs (Marsters 79, Jennings 57, Fonua 57, Brooks 53) but not great for workhorse Alex Twal (42). Robbie Farah's round six concussion is going to see his price plummet in the next couple of weeks with his break even close to 90 this round.

Warriors v Knights, Sunday 4pm (2pm AEST) at Mt Smart Stadium

Warriors: Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, David Fusitu'a and Blake Green are back while rookie Patrick Herbert keeps his spot in the centres after looking very solid on debut (although Solomone Kata is in the reserves). Tohu Harris moves back to the forward pack, Adam Blair and Gerard Beale shift to the bench and Blake Ayshford, Hayze Perham and the injured Jazz Tevaga (calf) are out. It's too late to get Lachlan Burr but Herbert looked very strong on debut in the centres last round for 32 points.

Knights: No changes. At $591k, Mitchell Pearce is $154k cheaper than he was at the start of the season but he's been a keeper in the past and was very good in Sunday's win over Parramatta for 66 points. Kalyn Ponga has scored more than 50 points in each of his last four games, while David Klemmer still hasn't scored less than 50 once in 2019.

Eels v Dragons, Sunday 4.05pm at Bankwest Stadium

Eels: Daniel Alvaro is named to return, Peni Terepo shifts to the interchange and Ray Stone drops out. Reed Mahoney is a cash cow who's scoring like a keeper these days, averaging 57 in the past month. Maika Sivo's bought himself more price rises after scoring 47 and 58 with a couple of tries in the past fortnight.

Dragons: Good news for Fantasy coaches with cheapie Zac Lomax getting a start at centre and Mikaele Ravalawa returning to the starting side on the wing, with Euan Aitken bumped to the bench. Lomax has played a handful of games but remains effectively a base-price cash cow due to a few stints on the bench, and his dual-position status could come in handy as a cash-out/back-up option for your squad. Blake Lawrie is named to start with Jacob Host returning to the interchange. Lawrie isn't a sell just yet with his price still on the rise while Cameron McInnes is one of six players in the NRL with a Fantasy average above 60 this season.