19 down, five to go!

We can almost see the light at the end of the tunnel. In what has been a testing season for a lot of the fantasy faithful, there is just one round of footy remaining before finals action gets underway in most leagues. While successful coaches are still focused on chasing a hat (or a Hilux), bragging rights against your mates may be the last thing left for you to play for in 2025 – and that’s certainly still worth fighting for! A lot of the rookies and cash cows have moved to the back burner in terms of importance over the last month or so, but for anyone still trying to generate a few dollars for those last few, crucial upgrades it’s not to late to make a charge towards a fantasy flag!

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 19

No rookie managed to crack triple-figures on the weekend, but Daniel Curtin maintained his late-season charge! He recorded the best cash cow point total of Round 19, with a 93-point effort against Gold Coast – narrowly besting the frontrunner for this award, Levi Ashcroft. Some coaches who needed a boost from their bench benefited from Kai Lohmann’s 78 points and a pair of O’Sullivan’s in the form of Finn and Connor earned a nomination for their efforts on the weekend. Patrick Voss (93) deserves a shoutout for kicking a career-high six snags on Sunday, but he was overlooked due to his low ownership.

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

Who's gets your vote as the most important cash cow in Round 19?

• Levi Ashcroft (87)
• Kai Lohmann (78)
• Finn O' Sullivan (82)
• Connor O'Sullivan (74)
• Dan Curtin (93)

View Results

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Round 19 Power Rankings

After 19 weeks of action, these are the top 10 cash cow performers in season 2025!

Power Ranking 2025 #AFLFantasy Cash Cows Round 19 💰🐮

1. Daniel Curtin ↔️
2. Max Hall ↔️
3. Levi Ashcroft ⬆️ 2
4. Tom McCarthy ⬇️ 1
5. Clay Hall ⬇️ 1
6. Kai Lohmann ⬆️ 1
7. Harvey Langford (NR)
8. Archer May ↔️
9. Lachlan Blakiston (NR)
10. Ashton Moir (NR) pic.twitter.com/YB3kdaJRdh

— SportsbyFry (@sportsbyfry) July 22, 2025

Making Moves

As we gear up for the home stretch of the 2025 fantasy season, I’ve simplified the rookie piece to look at each positional group. While most of the fantasy community have moved their cash cows off the field, there are still some of us fielding a few rooks. Hopefully, this will act as an easy guide to help coaches get the best 22 scorers on-field each round!

DEFENCE

His cash generation is starting to slow, but owners can’t be too mad with what Tom McCarthy ($613K, 70, BE 41) dished up on the weekend. Playing in Connor Rozee’s place for a lot of coaches, T-Mac overcame a slow start to chalk up another 70 points and with Port Adelaide’s skipper still in doubt for this week, the budding Eagle could be called upon again. Set to feature in his first Derby in Round 20, I wouldn’t be shocked if West Coast tried to get the ball in his hands a bit more this week – which could lead to another fruitful fantasy outing.

Without as much injury carnage staring us in the face this week, it’s time to cash in the likes of Alix Tauru ($431K, 37, BE 40) and Angus Clarke ($490K, 54, BE 52) while they still have a few dollars on their head. Turning them into a basement rookie is a fine tactic, but for those who feel better investing in a green dot, players such as Ben Jepson ($242K, 38, BE 15) and Rhett Bazzo ($273K, 40, BE 9) could be targeted if they hold their spot in their respective teams. I would rather net the extra dollars instead of trading for an Angus Hastie ($343K, 27, BE 27) or Wil Dawson ($349K, 29, BE 25) type, although the coaches that invested in Hastie or Dawson could leave them residing at D7/D8.

MIDFIELD

Naturally, the week we needed a boost from our benches in the midfield, both Harry Rowston ($451K, 16, BE 53) and Zak Johnson ($483K, 22, BE 75) were named as the starting subs on Thursday night. They struggled to record a relevant score as a result and are poised to move backwards from a cash generation standpoint. Moving off from them in a traditional “one up, one down” trade scenario is wise, however some coaches may still have bigger issues to address. If you are shuffling bench pieces, then 13% of the competition may also be looking to offload Mani Liddy ($441K, 16, BE 40) after his miserable point total. Liddy registered just four touches in 53% game time against the Hawks and much like Rowston and Johnson, he’s destined to start sliding backwards in value. The performances were more encouraging from his Power teammates Hugh Jackson ($354K, 45, BE 27) and Will Lorenz ($275K, 56, BE 12), while St Kilda youngster Hugh Boxshall ($371K, 57, BE 27) put up a decent fight against the Cats on Sunday.

RUCK

It was a tale of two rucks on Thursday night, as Essendon’s tall timber had a pair of very different outings. Lachlan Blakiston ($329K, 70, BE -10) has found himself residing in defence in recent times and after registering 100% game time, the mid-season recruit set new career-highs for disposals (15), marks (6) and fantasy points (70). Given the lengthy injury issues that the Bomers face, this defensive role could stick for Blakiston to close the 2025 fantasy season – although, I wouldn’t be expecting too many 50+ outings. The scoring wasn’t as fruitful for Vigo Visentini ($294K, 36, BE 7) last round, with Essendon’s RUC eventually subbed out at three-quarter time.

There was a small portion of the fantasy community that tried to loop Vigo onto the ground in Xerri’s absence, only to see the Dons prospect struggle his way to just 10 disposals and eight hitouts. Fan favourite R3 selection Max Heath ($285K, 48, BE 3) held his spot in St Kilda’s outfit and put forth another mediocre score, but his pesky presence is more noteworthy for Rowan Marshall owners. Should he continue to hang around, it may spell doom for Marshall’s ability to hit a ceiling score, so the presence and production from Heath (who attended 41 ruck contests compared to Marshall’s 58) is worth monitoring.

FORWARD

There is still an air of uncertainty over the best FWD combination to own as the season inches closer to the end. Last round, there were over 2,000 coaches who bought into Daniel Curtin ($779K, 93, BE 55) and it’s possible he was your top scoring forward in a round where a lot of the big names went missing! Some may have taken Kai Lohmann’s ($553K, 78, BE 32) score on Friday night as well, with the Brisbane sharp shooter continuing his second-half surge with a 70+ AVG in his last four matches. Even Max Hall ($689K, 72, BE 45) could have assisted those who were cash-strapped with another decent outing. Outside of that trio, it’s hard to get excited about a lot of our cash cows in the forward line. The likes of Jobe Shanahan ($397K, 44, BE 17), Cooper Harvey ($429K, 23, BE 29) and Taj Hotton ($352K, 48, BE 17) emerged as potential buys in the last 2-3 weeks and yet, all three of them failed to surpass 50 points on the weekend. Bombers duo Archer May ($454K, 41, BE 28) and Oskar Smartt ($261K, 46, BE 8) struggled mightily as well, with no assurances they’ll be able to turn their fortunes around to close the fantasy campaign. While we’re unsure of which top line options we want for the final five rounds, it’s clear there aren’t any rookies who can help ease the pain.

Sub status

Subbed On – Zak Johnson, Harry Rowston, Sam Marshall, Zak Banch, Xavier Lindsay, Corey Durdin

Subbed Off – Vigo Visentini, Mani Liddy, Riley Bice, Luke Trainor, Karl Worner

It’s possible that every player on your bench in Round 19 either copped a vest or they were a red dot. Mainstream MID’s and a forgotten pair of defenders all donned some form of fluro, with potential heartbeats like Sam Marshall and debutant Zak Banch ruined thanks to the green vest. There is momentum building to scrap this stupid rule for 2026, so let’s hope I only have to report on the subs for another few weeks!

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.

who are good picks towards the bottom end to get as much cash as possible

— max (@MaxLydon) July 22, 2025

In a nutshell, most of them. At this late stage of the season, every fantasy coach is maximising points on the field and somewhat neglecting cash generation – which is understandable. It’s worth noting that players from Melbourne and St Kilda may be the best shout for looping as their games occur later in the final few rounds. If you are eyeing off players who may earn a late debut before the 2025 campaign closes, then the only players who spring to mind are: Luke Beecken (DEF, $230K), Lucca Grego (MID, $230K), Ben Camporeale (MID, $230K) and Geordie Payne (MID/FWD, $230K)

Thoughts on picking up Lorenz from port?

— Damon (@DamonDpquick) July 22, 2025

Probably the best potential green dot of players priced under $300K. There are concerns over his job security and sub potential, but following his efforts on the weekend, I expect him to get another crack against the Crows. Port Adelaide should lean towards youth to close the season as well, which means Lorenz should get another few chances.

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)
James Barrat (Saints, $247K)
Charlie Edwards (Crows, $230K)
Jed Adams (Demons, $230K)

MIDFIELDERS

Luke Urquart (Kangaroos, $230K)
Josh Smillie (Tigers, $322K)
Lucca Grego (Eagles, $230K)
Cody Anderson (Hawks, $230K)
Ben Camporeale (Blues, $230K)

RUCKMEN

Taylor Goad (Kangaroos, $230K)
Tom Campbell (Demons, $316K)
Kayle Gerreyn (Bombers, $232K)
Lachlan McAndrew (Crows, $302K)
Coen Livingstone (Eagles, $230K)

FORWARDS

Geordie Payne (Kangaroos, $230K)
Jordan Croft (Bulldogs, $230K)
Oliver Hannaford (Giants, $289K)

Fry

An Australian coffee/burrito enthusiast who is the frustrated owner of 16 fantasy teams. Writer for SportsbyFry and DT Talk ?