Crucial Fantasy calls to make: Round 7
This week we look over some of the top POD options in Fantasy, discuss what a positional switch means for a traditional gun and identify a possible cash cow.
Crucial Fantasy calls for Round 7
Bet on Munster having a huge round
Cameron Munster is a good Fantasy player in the halves, but at fullback, where he has been named to play this week, he is a great Fantasy player.
Last year his short stint at the back resulted in consecutive scores of 93 and 81, with the Queensland star finding another gear with the extra space afforded to him in that position, while it gives him the chance to rack up much higher base stats from metres gained too.
In Round 7 the Storm face a Sea Eagles side who over the last two weeks have had no answer for opposing fullbacks, allowing Lachlan Miller to break 13 tackles and run for 282 metres on his way to 71 points in Round 5, before Dylan Edwards scored four tries on them last week and hit a whopping 98 Fantasy points.
If you have Munster or are bringing him in this week, he's worth seriously considering as captain, and on in general he's a solid trade-in option at $832k, with his price set to skyrocket in coming weeks.
A vintage Munster performance
Cash cow Couchman
After a breakout Fantasy performance which ended in 48 points last week, Dragons rookie Toby Couchman has already made $85k in cash through four games, and there should be plenty more to come.
He is starting to play a bigger role for the Dragons, with last week's 51-minute stint coming after he played 41 the week prior, and is tracking the right way to become a regular member of Anthony Griffin's team, which has very little experienced depth in the pack right now.
If he can average 35 over the next three weeks, Couchman will jump $100k in value by Round 9, making him a worthwhile prospect this week if you are looking for a money maker.
Start identifying PODs you want
After six rounds many Fantasy player share the same way of thinking on several players, and obvious cash cows like CTR Paul Alamoti or guns like HLF Nathan Cleary end up being in nearly half of all teams.
It often means head-to-head match-ups are decided by just a few unique players, who often aren't the kind of prospects you want deciding your fate each week.
It's a good idea to consider a player's selection percentage (which you can filter by in the player pool and stats centre) before picking him up, with a couple of excellent prospects still sitting there with minimal ownership across the game. If you're looking for a POD (point of difference) this week, here are a few to consider:
- Greg Marzhew (WFB, $669k): Owned by just 1.8 percent of teams right now, the Newcastle powerhouse boasts a 65 point per game average and on his day is a player who can score in the 80s. His job security isn't great, with Hymel Hunt and Enari Tuala waiting in the wings should Adam O'Brien choose to make a change, but Marzhew is a high-ceiling option who can make a difference each week.
Marzhew is scoring tries for fun
- Hudson Young (EDG, $638k): Ricky Stuart's at times volatile approach to selecting his forward pack at the Raiders may have led to some owners being gun shy on Young this season, but so far he's played 80 minutes in five of six games, and after a couple of poor scores to start the year has a last three game average of 53. An offloader who breaks a few tackles most weeks, the only real downside to Young is the stack of points he loses to missed tackle demerits (averaging 8.6 points lost per game).
- Lachlan Fitzgibbon (EDG, $672k): Less than 1 percent of teams have picked up the Newcastle back-rower so far, but given he's boasting a 51.5 point average this year it's hard to understand why. He averages 38.5 points per game from tackles alone and has a good combination with Jackson Hastings on the left edge, which has already seen him score two tries and make four line breaks this year.
Fantasy draft free agent of the week
If Corey Waddell is available in your league he could be worth snapping up, following confirmation of Viliame Kikau's ruptured pec which could keep him out of action for two months. Waddell now shapes as the leading contender to take the starting back-row spot at the Bulldogs, and had 48 Fantasy points in his 80-minute performance there in Round 6.
