Footy Prophet will be NMFC.com.au's AFL Fantasy gurus for 2014. You can follow the team on Twitter and Facebook.
This week, North faces an under-fire beleaguered Richmond at Etihad Stadium in a rare Sunday night clash. Coming off their strong victory against the Eagles in Perth, the Kangaroos will be looking to consolidate their place in the eight.
There’s an extended bench in action until Friday Night, with Brad McKenzie, Ben Jacobs and Sam Wright coming in and no omissions slated as yet. It’s hard to see any of these guys breaking into a winning side, but you never know.
Of these three, Jacobs is the most fantasy relevant. He has shown a ball-winning ability in the VFL, with his latest foray netting 42 disposals and four goals. At just $172,016, Jacobs would be a sure-fire money maker, but he'll have to work hard if he’s to break into North’s settled team.
There are some absolute fantasy bargains lining up for North fans this week, so get out your cheque book and start signing. First off the rank is Andrew Swallow, who will be one beneficiary of Richmond’s injury woes (the Tigers have four outs this week, all injuries).
North’s captain is at a rock bottom price of $439,402, but he won’t be this cheap for long. Swallow notches up 150 games this Sunday, so he has added incentive to shine. If you haven’t brought him in yet, do it fast.
Another Kangaroos' champ who will only get more expensive is Nick Dal Santo. While he’s nearly $50,000 dearer than Swallow at $483,646, he too is ready to increase in value.
Dal Santo was instrumental in taking West Coast apart last week. He collected 15 kicks, 19 handballs and six marks in a dominant display off half-back. He averages a touch over 95 against the Tigers, so odds are his price will rise this week.
Next is Leigh Adams, who has been a relatively consistent forward option this year.
Adams lost money despite his 108 points last week and now sits at $400,265, a bargain price for what he can produce. His last score against Richmond was 124 points.
Finally, Ryan Bastinac relished the opportunity to be let loose from sub duties last week. He helped himself to 27 disposals, six marks and five tackles and now sits at just $344,696.
If you take out his sub games, Bastinac averages 82 for the year, which isn’t too bad.
Of our picks this week, the Roos' number 3 would be the most risky option, particularly if he goes back to donning the green vest. However, Brad Scott may have been impressed enough by his performance in Perth to grant him full games from now on.
Around the Ground
Sticking with the theme of bargains, Essendon’s Paul Chapman is shaping up as one of the best forward options available this year. He scored 105 points against the Tigers last week and only went up $4,332 for his troubles.
Chapman is now the equal-highest averaging forward on 103 points (with Sydney’s Luke Parker), but he’s cheap at $489,207.
While it’s fully expected the veteran will miss games, when he plays he scores well. Chapman has a soft match-up against Greater Western Sydney this weekend, another incentive to trade him in.
At the other end of the ground, Crow Matthew Jaensch is a tasty option for your back-line. He collected 29 disposals and 112 points against the Gold Coast last week, and is far-and-away the cheapest defender averaging over 90 points at $426,660.
Finally, prices are always a bit inflated in the midfield, but there are still a couple of red-spot-specials about. Adelaide’s Rory Sloane had a consistent start to the year, before a few mediocre games ate into his price. He now sits at $503,163, which is much cheaper than other players who share his 104 average.
Likewise, Brisbane’s Jack Redden is better than his 100 average and $487,640 price tag suggest. Redden’s 120 against Carlton last week (including 28 disposals, nine marks and four tackles) shows exactly what he’s capable of.
