Carlton v Brisbane Lions – MARSH3

For three quarters the Blues hung around for their fans at Ikon Park before Brisbane flexed their muscle. A six-goal last quarter saw the Lions cruise to a 45-point win, with Charlie Cameron the star of the show – kicking five goals and posting a game-high 144 fantasy points.

Coaches were tuning in with their eyes on a lot of other players like Jack Martin, Brandon Starcevich, Sam Docherty, Patrick Cripps and Lachie Neale as Round 1 inches closer. A few Draft candidates stuck their hands up with a strong showing as the Marsh Series and the preseason as a whole comes to a close for both sides. A lack of basement rookies up for grabs means coaches are wringing their salary cap for all it’s worth and smart investments will give you an instant leg up on the rest of the competition.

Team as named

B: K.Simpson 6 C.Marchbank 22 L.Jones 14
HB: S.Docherty – C 15 J.Weitering 23 N.Newman 24
C: W.Setterfield 43 P.Cripps 9 J.Newnes 32
HF: J.Silvagni 1 L.Casboult 41 M.Gibbons 40
F: E.Betts 19 M.McGovern 11 Z.Fisher 25
Foll: M.Kreuzer 8 S.Walsh 18 P.Dow 2
I/C: C.Polson 29 L.Plowman 20 T.Williamson 31 E.Curnow 35 T.De Koning 12 M.Murphy 3 J.Martin 21 M.Kennedy 7 M.Pittonet 27 S.Petrevski-Seton 5 D.Cuningham 28 S.Philp 34

Sam Docherty (DEF, $563,000)

Not a lot to discuss here. Doc was his awesome self once again, racking up seven +6’s in 81% game time marshalling traffic in the defensive arc for Carlton. Docherty finished with 22 touches and 10 marks only further cementing his status as a must-have defender to start the season and his 46% ownership should honestly be higher. Don’t overthink it, pick the Blues star and enjoy.

And 49 #AFLFantasy points for his troubles. Take note coaches, Doc is back ? https://t.co/swZFWxwyi7

— SportsbyFry (@sportsbyfry) March 8, 2020

Patrick Cripps (MID, $753,000)

Patrick Cripps was an absolute animal in the early stages of the game, with Carlton’s clearance-king looking every bit like a Brownlow threat. Crippa racked up 62 points in the first quarter and a bit, topping both sides at the half for disposals with 19. He cooled off in the rest of the contest, however, he still tied Lachie Neale for the most clearances (10) and the highest fantasy score for Carlton – 96 points fuelled by 30 touches. A handball-happy game hampered Cripps’ total score but he’s going to be in the mix to be a top-8 MID for the entire season having attended 24/29 centre bounces. If you were on the fence – go for it.

Sam Walsh (MID, $684,000)

He’s bounced in and out of my midfield, this preseason and coaches weren’t left with a clear answer regarding the reigning Rising Star. He managed just three points in the second quarter, but in the other three frames, Walsh gathered 23 possessions and scored 83 points highlighting his breakout potential in year two. He’ll shoulder as much of the midfield load as he can handle for Carlton, with a chance Walsh tops an average of 100 as he continues to evolve into a future superstar. Is that enough to warrant picking him though?

Other notes

Paddy Dow (52, MID/FWD, $397,000) had some early flashes but didn’t do enough to warrant being in 2,355 teams. He was under the eye of coaches and couldn’t capitalise on attending 17/29 centre bounces, failing to manage a clearance for the entire game. Dow was watched intently along with Jack Martin (81, MID/FWD, $619,000) who spend most of his time up forward getting off to a blistering start. If injury strikes the Blues he might be worth taking a chance on but otherwise, I’d avoid Martin.

Will Setterfield (95, MID, $498,000) did his best to cement a spot in their best 22, chalking up 23 touches and a goal. He could be a good Draft target depending on the size of your league along with Ed Curnow (92, MID, $667,000) who shadowed Lachie Neale for most of the night another target. Curnow gathered 20 touches and if he plays the ‘run-with’ role for Carlton in 2020 then he should be good for a high number of tackles and an average of 95+

Carlton @AFLFantasy Grades 2:
Cripps ?, ?
Murphy ✅?
Walsh ?
E Curnow ?, ?
Kreuzer #️⃣1️⃣?, ?
Martin ?, ?
Docherty ?, ?, ?
Simpson ?
Newman ?, ?
Newnes ?, ?
Setterfield ?, ?
Dow ?
Gibbons ?, ?
Fisher ?
Plowman ?
Marchbank ☠️❓

— Tbetta (@Tbetta9) March 8, 2020

Team as named

B: M.Adams 24 H.Andrews 31 D.Gardiner 27
HB: D.Rich 10 G.Birchall 14 N.Answerth 43
C: M.Robinson 5 J.Lyons 17 Z.Bailey 33
HF: D.Zorko – C 15 E.Hipwood 30 L.McCarthy 11
F: C.Rayner 16 D.McStay 25 C.Cameron 23
Foll: S.Martin 12 H.McCluggage 6 L.Neale 9
I/C: D.Robertson 2 C.Ah Chee 4 J.Berry 7 E.Smith 8 C.Cox 20 S.Skinner 21 M.Hinge 22 C.McFadyen 26 A.Witherden 29 B.Starcevich 37 J.Payne 40 O.McInerney 46

Dayne Zorko (MID, $775,000)

If you’re brave enough there could be some great weekends with Dayne Zorko in your side. He went OFF in the third quarter, scoring a game-high 42 points in that 31-minute period including a goal from inside the square. The fact that Zorko sprinted to get the easy handball and that +9 is the stuff fantasy coaches love to see and if he’s healthy in 2020, there could be some wicked games from Brisbane’s dynamo. Expect some dreary numbers along the way, but it might be worth the risk if he’s on song more often than not.

Jarrod Berry (MID, $591,000)

There are a few Brisbane players who could take another step this season, with just 0.3% of teams rolling the dice on the fourth-year Lion Jarrod Berry right now. He shone brightly despite attending 0 centre bounces – finishing the game with a 30-point flurry in the final quarter including two goals as the Lions skipped away from the Blues. He’s probably more appealing in Draft rather than Classic teams, but he could be a big riser if he benefits from some Lions blowout wins.

Charlie Cameron (FWD, $499,000)

Like I mentioned at the leadoff, Charlie Cameron got the 3 votes tonight, helping himself to five goals and a game-best eight tackles. The 144 points he helped himself too was a career-high for Cameron, topping his previous best of 125 in a Round 8 loss to the Bulldogs in 2018. Don’t go expecting 21 touches to go along with his high tackle and goal number each time out, but Cameron is definitely worth taking a chance on in Draft and he could grow by $100k+. Not for me, but shoutout for the unreal box score Charlie.

Other notes

Let’s get down to the serious names. We all know you came here for news on rookies with a glaring lack of cheap options causing panic amongst the Fantasy community. Brandon Starcevich (39, DEF/MID, $189,000) and Deven Robertson (52, MID, $228,000) are both line ball calls to start the season, with the young pair showing glimpses of potential. Coaches will have their fingers crossed for Starcevich especially with 31.6% of sides currently owning the Brisbane youngster. If he and Robertson can contribute to the Lions’ cause they might emerge as relevant cash cows which at this stage – we’d happily take. Watch this space.

Lachie Neale (91, MID, $777,000) battled his way to a solid score after being shadowed by Ed Curnow for most of the day. Neale spent a chunk fo time forward in the third frame and was held to just seven touches and 34 points up until half-time. He had more points in the last quarter than his entire first half, dropping 39 points with 11 touches to end the game.

Grant Birchall (70, DEF, $428,000) is doing well while he’s on the park, playing 64% of the game for his 70 points. Like a lot of Lions, he blew up in the last period, scoring 38 points with seven trademark kicks and a goal. I don’t think he’s worth the dice roll, with Birch missing part of the game due to a hand injury he suffered in the second, but he returned and played out the game.

Brisbane @AFLFantasy Grades 2:
Neale ?‍♂️, ?
Zorko ?
McCluggage ?
Robinson ?
Lyons ?
Berry ?, ?, ?
Martin ??
McInerney ??
Cameron ?, ?
Bailey ?
Birchall ?, ?, ⏱
Ah Chee ?, ?
Witherden ?, ?
Starcevich ?, 2️⃣2️⃣❓
Rayner ❌?
Robertson ?, ⏱, 2️⃣2️⃣❓

— Tbetta (@Tbetta9) March 8, 2020

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