AFL Fantasy is back for another season, and the team at Footy Prophet will again be supplying NMFC.com.au with premium fantasy analysis and tips for the 2015 season.
After a massive loss to Gold Coast last week, North Melbourne has made four changes in preparation for its Saturday night meeting with Geelong.
Lachlan Hansen is missing with a hip injury, while Majak Daw, Trent Dumont and Lindsay Thomas have all been omitted from the team.
Two of North’s players to be recalled to the team are playing their first game at AFL level for the year.
Aaron Mullett is set to make his long-awaited return from shoulder surgery. He missed most of the early part of the year and has been slowly building his game in the VFL ever since.
Eight games in the VFL has seen him build both form and match fitness, and now he is rewarded with a return to the senior team.
Fantasy-wise Mullett showed a lot of promise in his 2013 season when he played every game and averaged 74 fantasy points per game. Keep an eye on him.
Also making a return from long term injury is Taylor Garner, North’s first pick in the 2012 AFL draft.
Garner has only played two games for the club, one as the sub against Adelaide, but his second game against Collingwood, in the last round of 2013, he recorded 16 disposals and four tackles.
Still yet to kick his first goal as an AFL player, he could get that chance on Saturday. Garner’s no guarantee to get an extended run in the side for North, but at $120,000 in AFL Fantasy Classic he’s worth having an eye on.
North’s other two ins for the week are Ben Brown and Ryan Bastinac, both returning after a little time in the VFL.
One thing to keep an eye on this week will be the scintillating form of Todd Goldstein. He’s in great touch at the moment with five consecutive 100+ scores, and has the highest fantasy average of any ruckman so far this year. This week he comes up against the inexperienced duo of Dawson Simpson and Mark Blicavs, so he should again provide a great fantasy score.
Lastly, congrats to North’s Scott Thompson playing his 150th game this week. While he’s never been a fantasy favourite, his hard work and love of niggle have made him good watching for North fans over the last few years.
Around the Grounds
There’s a lot of action on the team sheets this week with a large number of changes being made. Bryce Gibbs, Jimmy Bartel, Pearce Hanley, Lance Franklin and Tom Rockliff are amongst some of the big names to return this week.
On the flip side, Ivan Maric, Jobe Watson and Rory Sloane will all miss through injury or suspension, with Watson out for the rest of the year due to shoulder surgery.
