Weekend Forecast – Round 14

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Here we are! Final week of the bye rounds, and easily the toughest out of the 3 bye round weeks. Lucky, we have been gifted an extra trade to get a best 18 on the park this week. I, on the other hand, didn’t get any favours at the selection table last night so I might not even be able to field 18 but such is life hey.

 

Anyway, lets get into the Weekend Forecast for round 14.

 

Geelong vs Western Bulldogs @ GMHBA Stadium

Weather Forecast

Around 9°C, occasional showers expected (57% chance of rain)

Team Lineups

Geelong

IN

Cameron Guthrie

OUT

Shaun Higgins (Managed), Quinton Narkle (Medi-Sub)

Western Bulldogs

IN

 

OUT

Rhylee West (Medi-Sub)

 

Players to Watch

Patrick Dangerfield/Mitch Duncan

Both great players, but I wouldn’t be favouring a move for bringing either in this week for 2 reasons. Firstly, they both have massive breakevens after their poor scores last week (Dangerfield 157 and Duncan 166). So you can wait a couple of weeks for their prices to drop below 680k and 800k respectively. And secondly, the Bulldogs are really tough for midfielders to score against but keep an eye on them as most of us will be targeting them in a couple of weeks.

Jack Macrae

I am interested to see if Libba cops the O’Connor tag, or they send him to Macrae or Bont. If not Macrae, regardless of how tough Geelong are to score against, will be a great VC option in the first game of the round.

Gold Coast vs Port Adelaide @ Metricon Stadium

Weather Forecast

Around 21°C, sunny

Team Lineups

Gold Coast

IN

Sam Collins, Sam Day

OUT

Josh Corbett (Medi-Sub), Caleb Graham (Omitted), Malcolm Rosas (Omitted)

Port Adelaide

IN

Jarrod Lienert, Scott Lycett

OUT

Riley Bonner (Omitted), Todd Marshall (Injured), Boyd Woodcock (Omitted)

 

Players to Watch

Matt Rowell

In his first game back since round 1, Matty Rowell looked quite rusty. Because of this, his score of 48 was poor by his standards. But he was managed a bit throughout the game to ease himself back in (lined up on half forward flank to start the game and only played 73% game time). Because of this, he is now under 500k so if we see a sign in the next few weeks, then at under 500k, he is an absolute bargain.

Jack Bowes

He started the year off so well, but in his first game back only scored a 60 but the Suns were really poor against Fremantle last week. I will be keeping a close eye on him this week as besides last week, he has not gone below 80 all year and has been one of the breakout fantasy defenders this year, and with a breakeven of 133, will be close, if not under 600k next week.

Dan Houston

A popular trade in target this week, and understandably so. Back to back scores of 97 and 98 have made him a great target, along with the fact he is priced at 571k due to the shoulder injury he had trouble with a few weeks ago. I think he is past that now and a brilliant option to bring in.

North Melbourne vs Brisbane @ Blundstone Arena

Weather Forecast

Around 12°C, cloudy

Team Lineups

North Melbourne

IN

Luke McDonald

OUT

Taylor Garner (Injured), Lachie Young (Omitted)

Brisbane

IN

James Madden

OUT

Ryan Lester (Injured), Dayne Zorko (Suspension)

 

Players to Watch

Aaron Hall/Jack Ziebell

Similar to last week, North get another defender back, this time it is Luke McDonald. A few people a worried about this because of McDonald’s form last year, but I don’t have too much concern. I think both Aaron Hall and Jack Ziebell have played really well so far that North want the ball in their hands, and McDonald wasn’t great earlier in the year, but I also think McDonald will play on a wing as well. It is still something to watch however, but I don’t think it will affect too much.

Lachie Neale

A few people are bringing him in this week which I definitely think is an option, as he should score well this week. But I, like many others, will hope he scores well this week, and then pounce in round 16 as he has Geelong next week in a tough matchup. But if we see something, all aboard!

James Madden

Coming in for the injured Ryan Lester, I think James Madden is one of the better cash cow targets this week. With Lester being out for at least 3-4 weeks, I think Madden could stay in the team for more than just this week so if you need a cash cow, I think he is a great option.

GWS vs Carlton @ Giants Stadium

Weather Forecast

Around 11°C, cloudy with rain expected (88% chance of rain)

Team Lineups

GWS

IN

Kieren Briggs, Phil Davis, Harry Perryman

OUT

Lachie Ash (Omitted), Shane Mumford (Injured), Xavier O’Halloran (Omitted), Jake Stein (Omitted)

Carlton

IN

Lachie Fogarty, Matthew Kennedy, Luke Parks

OUT

Matthew Cottrell (Omitted), Marc Murphy (Omitted), Jack Newnes (Medi-Sub), Will Setterfield (Injured)

 

Players to Watch

Nick Haynes

With his first ton for the year last week, a lot of coaches have pounced on Haynes his is under 500k. Not only that, but Phil Davis is back which I think could free up Haynes even more, and Lachie Ash was dropped, so this could mean Haynes could be huge this week. Another great option to bring in.

Josh Kelly

A lot of people would have been ecstatic last week with Kelly’s efforts, I on the other hand wasn’t as fortunate as I chose Whitfield over him. But, a great option to bring in this week with Carlton, and then Hawthorn next week. Also, a cheeky VC option if you want to go against Macrae.

Lachie Whitfield

I am looking for a big bounce back from Whitfield this week. Has has a good recent history against Carlton (including a 190 in 2019) so should be good. And I wouldn’t hesitate in bringing him in either as you are going to want Whitfield in your team at some point.

Matt Flynn

With Mumford injured, Flynn owners will be happy to see their man with the no.1 ruck mantle against GWS. Could be his final game for a lot of coaches so lets hope we go out with a good score.

Zac Williams

Revenge game! But could he cop the De Boer tag with De Boer playing forward? We will see, but still an option to bring in at under 530k.

Hawthorn vs Essendon @ UTAS Stadium

Weather Forecast

Around 13°C, mostly sunny

Team Lineups (Full squads announced at 5pm AEST)

Hawthorn

IN

Lachlan Bramble (Debut), Tyler Brockman, James Cousins, Emerson Jeka, Conor Nash

OUT

Harry Morrison (Injured), James Worpel (Suspension)

Essendon

IN

Ned Cahill, Tom Cutler, Sam Draper, Sam Durham (Debut), Zach Reid, Devon Smith, Peter Wright, Brandon Zerk-Thatcher

OUT

Patrick Ambrose (Omitted), Aaron Francis (Managed), Andrew McGrath (Injured), Alec Waterman (Injured), David Zaharakis (Injured)

 

Players to Watch

Lachlan Bramble

Already confirmed by Hawthorn that he will make his debut, the 170k midfielder will make his debut against the Bombers at Pig Park. The mature ager is definitely an option, but I am concerned he might only be a one weeker with Worpel back next week but if he is on your bench post round 14, then is still a good downgrade option.

Jai Newcombe

Many coaches brought Newcombe in last week, with many others following suit this week. With a score of 87 last week which included 14 tackles (most ever recorded on debut), you cannot go wrong. A breakeven of -15 also seals the deal, but if we see another good score this week, can be an option to play on field in your still need him to.

Darcy Parish

Could be massive this week. Not only does he play at Pig Park, but Hawthorn are also the easiest team for midfielders to score against. For those coaches with less than 18 this week, definitely would consider as he could make up those points as he might get above 150.

Zach Merrett

Similar to Parish, could be massive this week against the Hawks and will be a very popular fall back option as captain in the final game of the round.

Kyle Langford

With McGrath being out, Langford could be massive this week. Even when Shiel comes back, I don’t think it will affect him. He was still scoring 100’s with McGrath in the team, and I think Shiel will just be a direct replacement. Until Shiel comes back, I expect Langford to play in the guts.

Nick Hind

Interested to see if he stays back in defence. Ambrose being out makes it more likely.

Jordan Ridley

Hoping to see something from Ridley this week because he is still an underpriced option in defence, but I want to see something first before I jump on.

My Trades

Farrar -> Madden

Byrnes -> Haynes

Harmes -> Houston

Heeney -> J Kelly

At this stage, this is how my trades look. Farrar out as he isn’t playing for Madden who I think out of the rookies will play the longest and make the most money. Byrnes will be upgraded to Haynes, which also doesn’t cost me much, Harmes swapped to Houston and Heeney upgraded to Kelly. I have also considered getting Parish instead of Kelly because I have 187k in the bank with getting Kelly. The only other trade I have considered was going Gaff up to Parish. This is mainly because I will likely only have 17 playing this week (unless Brockman gets named in the final squad, then I have exactly 18) and I think Parish could be massive this week and Gaff has been poor now for 4 weeks straight but I will probably go with Harmes to Houston but if you think about it, would I rather have Gaff and Houston or Parish and Harmes. Interesting. Anyway, I will figure that one out.

 

Anyway, thanks again everyone for reading the Weekend Forecast. If you have any questions regarding trades, or anything else, leave your questions in the comments section below or hit me up at my Twitter or Instagram (links provided below).

Good luck for the round 14 and the final week of byes!

Instagram: @baileyirrgang

Twitter: @baileyirrgang