Hold or sell: Round 5 Fantasy cash cows

Just a month into the season some of Fantasy's most popular cash cows are looking like they might have already peaked in price.

In almost every case these players haven't lived up to expectations in a Fantasy sense so far, but that doesn't automatically mean they are a sell. 

This week we're breaking down some of the most popular players from this category to help you decide who is a sell and who should be held in order to extract maximum value from. 

Hold or sell: Round 5 cash cows

Jaeman Salmon (EDG/MID, $361k)

A 21 in Round 4 was Salmon's worst score of the season and means he now has a break even of 20, which is only 9.5 points lower than his season average. On the face of it that's bad news for the more than 75,000 teams who have the Canterbury-Bankstown lock, but in this case the stat sheet doesn't tell the full story. 

The two scores Salmon has under 30 this year have come when he's had to move out to the centres due to injuries in the backline, with his other scores being a 31 and 37. In saying that, his issue last week was a whopping 16 points lost to demerits, more than a positional switch. 

He's probably going to be a sell within the next three weeks, but I'd be holding him for now and hoping for a run of games in the pack – and with better discipline – which would give him a few more price rises and get him close to that $100k mark in value gained. Hold. 

Ben Trbojevic (EDG/CTR, $354k)

Fantasy coaches rushed to get their hands on Trbojevic when he won the race to start in the second row at Manly, and most of those who didn't have him initially ended up buying him after an impressive first-up score of 53.

But it's all been downhill since then for the game's most selected player. In the three games since Round 1 he hasn't scored over 30 and now has a break even of 27, which his season average of 30 suggests might not even be achievable this week. 

Upcoming clashes against the defensively sound Panthers and Warriors mean it could be another couple of lean weeks for Trbojevic and unless he starts scoring tries then he's not going to make significant money from here. Sell.

Sam Hughes (MID, $278k)

Things were heading in a bad direction for the Bulldogs big man prior to being named to start in Round 5, with his minutes reducing every week so far in 2024, culminating in his 14-minute cameo last week which was exactly half the time he played in the club's season opener.

His inclusion in the run-on side, as the Bulldogs navigate a glut of injuries in the pack, has now given him some hope of remaining a viable cash cow, but with a break even of 26 he's little chance of making significant money and might still end up losing some after Round 5. 

Cross your fingers for a breakout performance against the Roosters which might give him a couple more weeks of manageable break evens, but don't have him in your 17 unless you have to. Hold. 

Joe Chan (EDG, $295k)

While close to 11,000 coaches had opted to move off Chan at the time of writing, the Storm forward still remains in over 20 percent of all teams, with most opting to hold him over the past fortnight as he missed Round 3 with a hand infection and then sat out Round 4 with a bye. 

But now that he hasn't been named for Round 5 he's shaping as a sell, with no guarantee that he will get back into the starting side ahead of Shawn Blore when he is available again. Given he didn't show signs of being an outstanding money maker anyway, with a per game average of 30.5, it might be best to move on now and free up that cash. 

He's only worth $295k, so you can probably only move him if you plan on doing a double trade or bringing in another better cash cow prospect listed at around the same price, like Blaize Talagi (CTR, $301k), but if you're in position to do so then pull the trigger. Sell.