Harley Bennell – Deck of DT 2015

Name: Harley Bennell
Club: Gold Coast
Position:  Forward/Midfielder
AFL Fantasy: $484,000
Bye Round: 12
2014 Average: 85.4
2014 Games Played: 15
Predicted Average: 89

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Why should I pick him?

Could Harley Bennell be the break-out player of 2015? Could he be the sneaky pick in your forward line, like Robbie Gray who boosted his average by 24 points last year? Or will he continue to show us glimpses of his brilliance and continue to hover at the same average of 85 like he has for the last three seasons?

Bennell is a former #2 draft pick (2010) who found the ball more than 20 times in 67% of his game this year, averaging 25+ disposals in his last 5 games of the season.

He can find the pill and he can go big on his day! He scored pig like scores of 122 and 155 this year and very rarely gets even looked at with tags with the likes of Ablett and Prestia running on the park as well.

He enters his 5^th season of AFL and will explode at some point. Another former #3 draft pick, Dustin Martin took 4 years before he launched his average from this mediocre 85 mark to a huge 97. All players take time and 2015 maybe the year when Bennell goes BANG!

Why shouldn’t I pick him?

I chose Bennell to cover with excitement, thinking that he maybe he will be the jet pick we are all looking for this year. But as I dug deeper and deeper, the less impressed I got.

In 2014, he averaged less than two tackles a game and as we know in Fantasy land, these are easy points in your willing to get rough and tough, and to get your hands dirty. Plus, he shares the round 12 bye with other ‘must have’ forwards such as Swanny, Buddy and Goddard.

In his 15 games this year, he only cracked the 90 mark on 5 occasions. His thumping score of 155 against Geelong did require a season high 11 marks and 6 goals and only hurt his average heading into this year. Without this game, Bennell would be more tempting being priced at an average of just 79.4.

Deck of DT Rating.

QUEEN – The question… is a matter of when? When will Bennell go bang and will it be in 2015? At this point, he isn’t a player on my radar. With so many dual position options handed to us this year, it will be incredibly difficult to find a spot for this future star in your starting line up.

But with that said, don’t cross him out entirely. The Suns do have a nice draw this year and when you see him starting to light up and showing the potential he has, get on.

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