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.
Todd Goldstein may have taken the mantle of being the most valuable fantasy player in the game, after yet another incredible fantasy performance in North’s win over Melbourne.
Coming up against big man Max Gawn who has been in good form these past few weeks, Goldstein had something of a challenge against a man who may one day be challenging him for the spot of the number one fantasy ruck in the competition.
However, whatever the future may hold for Gawn he was clearly outpaced by Goldstein this time around.
Not only did Goldstein prove a more deft hand with the hit-outs, his endurance allowed him to run rings around a tiring Gawn as the game went on.
In addition to collecting 50 hit-outs – the fifth time this year that Goldstein has brought up a half-century – he also collected 20 disposals, took eight marks and laid seven tackles on his way to a big score of 155.
That score has pushed him up to an incredible season fantasy average of 115.5 points per game, the highest fantasy average of any player in the game in 2015.
Since Goldstein has played every match, that also gives the most total fantasy points of any player for the year with a grand total of 2079.
In both categories he is just narrowly beating out St Kilda’s Jack Steven who boasts a 115.2 points per game average, and a total of 2074 points scored for the year.
Goldstein’s 155 was also his tenth consecutive score of 100 or better in a row, a feat not achieved by any other player so far in 2015.
His season to date is about the best fantasy season played by a ruckman in the recorded history of the game, beating out some great efforts from Dean Cox who hit a peak fantasy average of 107 points per game on two occasions.
Goldstein is writing himself into the history books, both in on-field matters and in the fantasy game, and it’s a great sight to watch.
North’s big win also saw another great game from Shaun Higgins, who put up 30+ disposals for the second week running and also kicked two great goals this week for a total of 112 fantasy points.
He’s now hit a fantasy average of 86 points per game and proven himself a reliable investment for those who took our advice to buy him in AFL Fantasy Classic at the start of the year.
Ben Cunnington also had a brilliant fantasy game with nine clearances and 31 disposals, along with another casual on-the-boundary goal in the final term bringing him to a total of 114 points for the game.
Around the Grounds
Goldstein’s 155 was the top score of the round but he wasn’t alone at the top of the podium as, remarkably, St Kilda’s Leigh Montagna and Collingwood’s Dane Swan both scored the exact same.
While Goldstein’s big score lifted him to the top of the competition for average, Montagna rose to fifth overall and Swan seventh.
Brisbane ruckman Stefan Martin continues to nip at Goldstein’s heels for the title of best fantasy ruckman, he put up a big score of 138 and has an average of 109.
The two are hands down the best combination available for AFL Fantasy Classic at the moment, but don’t come cheap.
Tom Rockliff continued his good late-season form with a fourth score of 110+ from his last five games, the only exception being two weeks ago when he was tagged out of it by North’s own Ben Jacobs.
