NRL 2026, NRL Fantasy, Lone Scout's Fantasy Q and A, round 20, trade in, buys, sells

Author: Lone Scout NRL Fantasy guru
Timestamp: Thu 16 Jul 2026, 03:09 PM

With Origin done and dusted we are back to 17 scorers this week and with the added bonus of the much-needed injection of eight trades to see us through.

With the new power comes great responsibility however, and there are plenty of dilemmas plaguing our fellow coaches which I try to deal with below. As always, be sure to check my trade in trade out tier list found at the bottom of this article.

NRL Fantasy Podcast - Episode 21

Q: Do I buy Reece Walsh or Tom Trbojevic (Turbo). Or who else should I get for WFB – Huey

A: Both are decent enough to hold, it basically comes down to your preference on consistency verses risk and reward. Tom Trbojevic is an integral part of Manly’s attack and has been scoring a stable figure each week though we also know he has random games he goes crazy good, whereas Walsh tends to have a more fluctuating scoreline. My preference is on Tom Trbojevic for the consistency as well as the Sea Eagles having a stronger chance of reaching the NRL Finals, therefore he will have more to play for.

Q: Is Sasagi a sell and if so who I am in dire need for a centre. – Riley

A: If you have him you might as well hold for now as we know he has the ability to score well in the position as the other strong CTR options in KL Iro, Herbie Farnworth, Jacob Kiraz and Tom Chester have all been scoring low so you might as well save the trade.

Barkin' Bargain Round 20: Payne Haas

Q: Looking at boarding the Payne Haas and Nicho Hynes train this week and have Xavier Willison, Heilum Luki, Latrell Siegwalt and Stefano Utoikamanu on chopping block. Who do you think should make way? – Brendan

A: Latrell Siegwalt is the first choice to move on since he isn’t able to fit on the squad anymore with the return of some of Souths’ injured players, next would be Stefano Utoikamanu as he seems to have dropped off with the change of halves which will impact the Storm for a few more weeks yet. Xavier Willison is third because he now has competition for his role but is still in the run on side, so we will be watching his rotation minutes closely. Finally I would be sticking with Heilum Luki for now especially as Tom Dearden is nearly back and have a good match-up against a Dolphins outfit this week.

Q: I really want to get Payne Haas this week, but not sure who to trade out of Joseph Tapine or Cam McInnes. My other forwards are Terrell May, Alex Twal, Ryan Couchman, Haumole Olakau’atu and Dylan Lucas. Who would you trade out for Haas?  – Corey

A: Until last week I would definitely say Cam McInnes is the one to move on from here as he has been really up and down this year. However with the Jesse Colquhoun injury and the fact the Raiders still have a bye left, the decision gets much tougher. Joseph Tapine only has just the one low game so far, if you think the Raiders can keep winning then I’d hold him. If you are worried they could soon bow out of finals contention then I’d choose Tapine as your main man to sell and hope McInnes keeps getting useful minutes.

Pattie boots a 40/20

Q: Nine trades left and bringing Payne Haas and Owen Pattie in for Kurt Donoghue and Alex Seyfarth. I have Cleary, Martin, D Brown, Galvin and Sharpe in the halves. Hoping Sharpe gets dual next week so was going to move Galvin or Martin to Hynes. Do you think that trade is worth it given how scarce trades are? If so, would you move Lachlan Galvin or Te Maire Martin? – Bill (Ireland)

A: Great first two trades however with so many halves I would wait a week on Nicho Hynes to ensure that one huge score wasn’t just an outlier and he really is going to smash the average of your other halves. Fletcher Sharpe is a decent hold if you lose one of the other halves but I doubt he outscores any of the four you currently own or Hynes plus he has a bye in Round 27.

Home Hardware player of the round: Nicho Hynes

Q: I've got Terrell May, Hamish Stewart, Ryan Couchman, Toby Couchman, Brandon Smith, Xavier Willison, Jack Williams Isaiah Iongi and Jamayne Isaako and I brought Cody Hopwood in last week. Who should I trade out to bring Haas in? – Alex, Anthony

A: Brandon Smith is worth trading out after his extremely low score last week. Jamayne Isaako is next on the list as he requires tries and conversions to be worthwhile and simply isn’t reliable enough for your final side. Next maybe consider Xavier Willison as he will now have to share his minutes and Jack Williams has found another gear we didn’t know he had. Regarding Cody Hopwood, he is set to be back next week so I’d hold on there as you’ve just spent a trade in getting him in and isn’t much money anyway.

Q: G’day sir from the UK! For a few minutes I contemplated holding back on trades, but I think I’ll blow four this week! My question is on bringing in Twal. Took your advice on holding out. Is he worth trading in for E.Clark (I have Haas, May, R.Couchman and Foketi in the mids and Olakau’atu and Lucas on the edge) or keep the Warrior and wait and see? – Steve

A: Try to use less than four if possible. Erin Clark is definitely a hold after an encouraging score last week and Alex Twal’s breakeven is 81 so there is no threat of his price going much higher for now.

Hamish Stewart Try

Q: I have 12 trades coming into this round. My main trade in targets are Haas and Lucas but to get to them I have to sell at least one of my four Dragon forwards. In what order would you rank Toby Couchman, Ryan Couchman, Hamish Stewart and Dylan Egan as potential end of season keepers? – Kate

A: Dylan Egan has the lowest average of these four over the past few weeks so I would definitely make him your trade out. The other three are worth keeping now you’ve survived the Dragons bye in Round 19.

Q: Hi Lone Scout. I’m struggling a bit in my back five so I was wondering who is more of a sell - Bostock or Chester? - Josh

A: This is a tough dilemma that my own team faced just last week. I went with trading out Jack Bostock but Tom Chester proceeded to score 30 with a try and now could be an urgent sell. Neither player is scoring as well since their halfbacks went down injured as both play immediately outside the main playmakers for their respective clubs. If the Cowboys were playing earlier in the round it would be an easier decision, as you could wait and see if Tom Dearden returns this week – he is currently named in the reserves. As it is last game, you probably have to go on gut feel. I would look at the make-up of the rest of your roster to make the call, if you have more teammates of Bostock then flick him, otherwise go with Chester – both the Cowboys and Dolphins have a bye still to come and there is a chance you get snookered if unforeseen injuries and suspensions hit later on.

Q: I’m struggling to settle on my final centres. I have Iro, Sasagi, Garrick and Kiraz. Bradman Best and Billy Smith have the current highest 3RAvg’s but Smith might get squeezed out of Roosters’ backline. I’m thinking Garrick to Best but do you have other suggestions? Is trading Marshall-King to Pattie to finance trading Tapine to Haas a good move? May, Koloamatangi and Willison are my other Mids. An alternative upgrade is Sharpe to Hynes (with Brown, Martin and Walsh my other halves). As always, many thanks for your advice. –Peter

A: Centre is proving to be the toughest position to fill right now after being surprisingly full of options earlier in the season. Garrick is definitely a sell with the Sea Eagles bye around the corner. Kiraz is not a must hold, but in your case you may need to stick it out in case he bounces back. Best is a high risk, high reward option, he has the ability to go very large when the game script goes his way, but usually he is a tier below the best CTR options. Unless you don’t have Herbie Farnworth, I don’t think you should burn trades on your centres until you get a clearer picture of who will come out on top. As for the other trades, I think Pattie and Haas is the best combo move over the Sharpe to Hynes one. Hynes should finish the second best HLF in the game but many halves are scoring great and trades are too scarce to make it a worthwhile upgrade. That would change of course if Nathan Cleary was unavailable for a significant period of time as then Hynes would become a captaincy option and double the value!

Q: I’m thinking of trading Kiraz for Ponga, Mahoney for Pattie, then I have 150k to trade Willison just short of Olakau’atu also thinking of trading Bula. Thoughts? – Harry

A: Jacob Kiraz for Kalyn Ponga could be a bold and worthwhile trade. I would strongly consider it, just keep in mind Kiraz has the possibility of doubling Ponga’s score any given week (and vice versa – WFB’s are the most volatile position in Fantasy). Owen Pattie is my favourite cheapie right now and an easy downgrade price rise (and upgrade performance wise) on Reed Mahoney. I wouldn’t trade Xavier Willison until you’ve seen the Broncos rotation with both Payne Haas and Pat Carrigan back, Willison has been enormous in their absence and has the potential to keep it going much like Hamish Stewart does at the Dragons even in the presence of the Couchman twins. Jahream Bula is definitely a sell, check my tier list below for some options.

First take: Bulldogs v Wests Tigers

Q: I have 13 trades left and so far have traded Jeremy Marshall-King to Owen Pattie, Jacob Kiraz for Payne Haas, and Isaiah Iongi for Kalyn Ponga. I'm thinking of trading Lachy Galvin for either Adam Doueihi or Dylan Brown. Who would be the best bet? Currently my halves are Nathan Cleary, Galvin, and Te Maire Martin. – Rico

A: I like your three trades this week. All three could easily be held and I wouldn’t recommend selling them to everyone, but for your team it makes perfect sense. As for your fourth option, I think you need to hold Galvin for now and in fact, I’d be trying to add a fourth HLF to your arsenal for the run home as the best halves are scoring as well as any position so those coaches who can play two in their four reserves will probably do best from here on out. If you can upgrade a different position to either Nicho Hynes or Adam Doueihi that would be your smartest option.

First take: Titans v Sea Eagles

Q: Wanting to get Olakau'atu in this week. My trade options are either Ryan Couchman (he seems to be getting reduced minutes now and thus lower scores) or Hamish Stewart, given these are the only options which allow me to afford the trade and my team is otherwise pretty stacked. Which is your pick? Leading towards Stewart. – Daniel

A: I wouldn’t recommend selling either of those players at this point in time. I know you are currently getting a better average out of Haumole but if Olakau’atu regresses to his mean and Ryan Couchman goes back to his normal scoring – you won’t see a significant amount of difference between the two scorers to be worthy of the trade. Considering Manly have the bye in two weeks, it might be prudent to let it play out a bit longer and then make the move with one of your final trades in Round 23.

Lone Scout’s Trade In, Trade Out Tier List – Round 20

With eight extra trades everyone is keen to use at least a couple, maybe more. Therefore check out the tier lists to ensure you are making the best possible choice for your line-ups.

Head to Head Players: Even with the byes all done, those playing head-to-head will still need to note the below focuses on coaches playing the overall competition. Head-to-head will now be about making it to the finals so if you are at the top of your league, try and save trades for your play-offs, unless you are worried cash cow prices will get away from you or you are losing too much money holding onto the fallen guns. Those at risk of not making the finals will need to be bullish on trades and even move mid-round if you aren’t looking like getting the W. As they say, you can’t take them with you! Don’t leave a trade on the table if it means being eliminated early.