Six down, 18 to go!

We’ve reached a very important point of the fantasy season with cash cows fattening and under-priced premiums emerging. An extended Easter weekend fixture meant that a lot of fantasy coaches copped bullets in Round 6 – ranging from trading in players who started as the sub, to fielding a certain Richmond defender who scored just two points. As a result, a lot of our starting rookies are reaching their max price and everyone wants to move them on before they lose value. However, we may need to get creative as the sub $400K targets come with viable worries this week. I got caught trying to get up to Nick Daicos last week and those of us who are chasing a premium this round need to carefully consider which rookie we’re bringing in as the other part of our trade moves. There’s still a LONG way to go…

Rookie/cash cows are typically defined as players who started the season priced at $400,000 or lower

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Cash Cow King – Round 6

In a week where a lot of our mainstream rookies failed, there were a few standout heroes. Sam Davidson was the top-scoring cash cow with his teammate Luke Cleary also among the best performers thanks to their BIG win over the Saints. Popular starters Elijah Hewett and Murphy Reid were also good for 70+ scores with the latter earning a Rishing Star nomination for his efforts, while Sam Wicks rounded out the top-5 for the weekend. None of these rookies currently reside in my team, but I’m staying loyal and giving the budding Docker my vote this round.

*If you’re having issues submitting your vote try clicking “view results” first and that should resolve the problem 🤞

Making Moves

Let ’em grow

Reliable rookies were hard to come by in Round 6. Our favourite duo Levi Ashcroft ($638K, 63, BE 47) and Riley Bice ($585K, 72, BE 5) continued to establish themselves as the best cash cows in their respective lines, but it’s highly likely you copped a stinker in defence over the weekend. Some lucky coaches trusted Jaxon Prior ($519K, 68, BE 39) on field, and you can’t be unhappy with his 68 points – however, Zach Reid ($507K, 36, BE 31) and Luke Trainor ($513K, 2, BE 58) didn’t help the crew who optes to shift to three DEF rookies on field.

I have optimism that Trainor can bounce back from his “rest” this Anzac Eve against the Demons and the Essendon duo should be good enough to surpass their breakevens in the 30’s. Trading them to secure a better performer in defence is a fine route to go down, with the trio closing in on their max price. Further up the field, Sam Davidson ($608K, 87, BE 34) feasted against St Kilda thanks in large part to a 38-point final quarter. A tougher fortnight on paper against GWS and Port Adelaide has led to a few thousand coaches opting to upgrade the Bulldogs’ winger, but you could give him another run or two if you need to patch holes around the Doctor.

Murphy Reid ($513K, 74, BE 36), Harvey Langford ($449K, 64, BE 13) and Xavier Lindsay ($484K, 63, BE 50) all featured in the same Saturday game and did their job to ensure their cash gen keeps ticking over, while Sam Lalor ($540K, 59, BE 33) performed well enough against the Suns to suggest he has growth left. Scoring a 64 against Adelaide will likely give Conor Stone ($405K, 64, BE 26) another life for his owners, but some will feel hard down by if they moved him on to Caiden Cleary ($395K, 33, BE 11). The popular downgrade target last week failed to lay a single tackle and his score suffered as a result. We’re all hopeful that Dean Cox gives him another chance and if he avoids the vest, I’m backing Cleary in to repay the faith. Brace yourself for a nervous watch when the teams drop on Thursday.

Watch this space

Ok, let’s get to the meat of the sandwich. I lumped a lot of the popular downgrade options this week into this section as there are legitimate concerns regarding some of our cash cow options. Take James Tunstill ($260K, 59, BE 3) for example – we all know the Lions cub can score, posting an average of 96.9 points from 15 VFL games in 2024 and scores of 142 and 110 in two matches this season. And yet, there are valid worries about his place in Brisbane’s senior side and we all saw how a sub vest can ruin a player’s cash gen over the weekend. We’ll get clarity when the teams are announced, with Kai Lohman’s return potentially pushing him back into the fluro and Tunstill isn’t the only rookie trade target with concerns.

Carlton duo Will White ($364K, 72, BE -11) and Matt Carroll ($314K, 52, BE -4) have been brought in by over 6,000 combined coaches and while their negative breakevens are encouraging, it’s worth pointing out that they have played West Coast and North Melbourne in their last two fixtures. That’s not to say they won’t keep scoring in healthy doses against tougher foes, but we should temper expectations from a scoring standpoint. Featuring in the other Good Friday clash, both Saad El-Hawli ($264K, -1, BE 27) and Tom Gross ($344K, 11, BE 23) loomed as viable options at the trade table ahead of Round 6. As we all know, they were both forced to start as the sub and as a result, it’s hard to trust them moving forward.

Both El-Hawli and Gross could be considered “buy” options if we had guarantees that they would be out of the vest but unfortunately, we won’t know that until an hour before bounce-down. One potential option that coaches aren’t talking about is Luke Cleary ($384K, 75, BE 11) with the Dogs DEF coming at an inflated rate. He did get a boost from playing the Saints last round, but he and Melbourne small Charlie Spargo ($332K, 71, BE 15) are some left-of-field options that may entice coaches. West Coast’s Elijah Hewett ($403K, 77, BE 20) reignited his money-making with a 61-point second half and once they get past Hawthorn this weekend, the fixture does open up for the Eagles (vs. Demons @Tigers, vs. Saints). For that reason, we need to keep half an eye on the explosive talent, although Hewett is still hard to trust given his injury history and inconsistency.

Let ’em go

Similar names continue to bob up in this section as the most pressing trade concerns. Finn O’Sullivan ($398K, 22, BE 46) and Isaac Kako ($390K, 39, BE 36) can ideally be moved on, although their job security may force you to direct your trades elsewhere this week – perhaps moving on from rookies who have reached greater heights financially. The first one that springs to mind is Max Hall ($501K, 43, BE 52) after he produced a dud for the second time in three games. Now that he’s ticked over the $500K mark, you can cash Hall in and utilise his price rise for another upgrade, with Christian Moraes ($451K, 30, BE 52) in the same boat. A popular buy just three weeks ago, Moraes has failed to surpass 55 points since his belter vs. Essendon and as a result, his days are numbered for both fantasy coaches and perhaps Ken Hinkley.

Sticking in SA, a pair of Crows continue to frustrate their owners with Daniel Curtin ($456K, 34, BE 61) and Sid Draper ($369K, 13, BE 54) on the chopping block. Draper is a particularly frustrating one, with the supposed star failing to make enough coin to make a trade worthwhile. For that reason, you could keep him on your bench with the hopes that he’ll pop soon – Curtin on the other hand, has to go. Corey Warner ($464K, 27, BE 56) and Connor O’Sullivan ($534K, 47, BE 50) could also be moved on now that they have made their money and maxed out in value, with the duo poised to start losing coin soon. One last thought on young Eagle Hamish Davis ($231K, 43, BE 15), he had some bright moments against Essendon, although I wouldn’t be looking at him as a buy just yet. He’s just as likely to take up residence as the starting sub again in Round 7, so avoid him at this stage.

Sub status

Subbed On – Sam Marshall, Zane Duursma, Tom Gross, Saad El-Hawli, Isaiah Dudley, Luke Trainor. Cooper Hynes, Ted Clohesy

Subbed Off – Tyrell Dewar, Sid Draper, Ethan Read. Tom Hanily

We all know the frustrations associated with popular players being dealt a starting sub vest in Round 6. Sid Draper being subbed off ensured his TOG stayed low and an early Sam Darcy injury didn’t help Cooper Hynes get off the chain. Let’s hope next week when we check in with our subs, none of our trade-in targets are mentioned. I’m not confident, but dare to dream…

Q & A

I’m adding a Q&A section to the weekly articles to help address the biggest issues we have with our rookies/cash cows. If I don’t get to your answer in the article, I promise I’ll answer it on Twitter – and as always, you can drop your follow-up question below.

Is there any JS for Tunstill?

— Ryan⚓️🏏 (@Jonesry2222) April 22, 2025

Question of the week, Ryan. I lean towards no with Brisbane clearly still in full premiership mode and the likes of Kai Lohmann and Brandon Starcevich set to return this weekend. He could get another on-field chance against St Kilda in Round 7, but since arriving at the club, Tunstill has played 10 AFL games – starting as the sub 3 times, subbed off once and ending one game as an unused sub. Fagan may give him a longer leash and prove me wrong but I think as he continues to hone his craft Tunstill will remain a fringe player.

Start Bench Trade this week: Z.Reid, Trainor, Prior

— Brany (@Brany21) April 22, 2025

Start Trainor, bench Prior, trade Reid – Trainor should bounce back against the Dees and Prior has the higher fantasy floor in my eyes, so I’d prefer to keep him over Reid.

Who’s 3-5 rookies Likely to get a game within the next couple weeks.

— Celly (@_Luicelisano_) April 22, 2025

I’ll be honest Celly, I have no idea and anyone who tells you they do is lying. While names like Hugh Boxshall, Jedd Busslinger and Bo Allan continue to bob up as potential, future cash cows there are no guarantees that any of them will play this week, next week or even before the mid-season byes end. Stay tuned to the weekly injury report and the reserves reports to get a gauge on who could filter through, but even that isn’t an exact science. It’s probably not the answer you wanted, but it’s the truth.

Is Davidson fieldable against gws in Manuka and port in Ballarat?

— Gedav (@Gedav147022) April 22, 2025

It’s a tricky question, but I’m going to say no. Davo has two good scores at Marvel where he has averaged 9 marks, but if he isn’t hauling in those +6’s it’s hard for him to score (58.7 AVG in his other four matches). He returns to Marvel in three weeks, but by that time, I imagine most coaches will have moved him on.

Should I do bit of a bench rookie fix up like Moraes to long and FOS down or go up to more fattened and field able rookies like trainor down and Davidson up to trac

— Johnny Pham (@Johnny_phm_) April 22, 2025

I declared last week that I wasn’t a Ned Long fan and he proved me wrong with a great game against Brisbane. However, over the remainder of the season, Petracca will easily outscore him – so I lean towards shuffling Trainor and Davidson out to land the Dees gun.

If boxshall plays this week, do we just trade in considering the lack of options?

— Johnny 🤙 (@llcooljohnny91) April 22, 2025

I never like to trade into a rookie before watching them at AFL level first. “If” Hugh Boxshall is named, he is just as likely to be the sub or score 40ish points as he is to go whack with a 70+, so while it’s tempting my advice is to wait. Just because there is a lack of options, doesn’t mean we should chase risky rooks.

Remember the Name

In no particular order, here are some of the other rookie-priced players to consider throughout the season.

DEFENDERS

Josh Gibucs (Tigers, $230K)
Luke Beecken (Lions, $230K)
Jedd Busslinger (Bulldogs, $230K)
Bo Allan (Eagles, $295K)
Alix Tauru (Saints, $313K)
James Barrat (Saints, $247K)
Ben Jepson (Suns, $230K)

MIDFIELDERS

Hugh Boxshall (Saints, $230K)
Luke Urquart (Kangaroos, $230K)
Sam Marshall (Lions, $268K)
Josh Smillie (Tigers, $322K)
Caleb Mitchell (Swans, $230K)
Zak Johnson (Bombers, $230K)
Ben Camporeale (Blues, $230K)

RUCKMEN

Max Heath (Saints, $230K)
Taylor Goad (Kangaroos, $230K)
Tom Campbell (Demons, $316K)
Kayle Gerreyn (Bombers, $232K)
Lachlan McAndrew (Crows, $302K)
Nic Madden (Giants, $230K)

FORWARDS

Cooper Simpson (Dockers, $230K)
Cody Angove (Giants, $230K)
Ashton Moir (Blues, $230K)
Will Hayes (Magpies, $230K)
Ty Gallop (Lions, $230K)

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