Three down, 21 to go!

One more best-18 round to go and I don’t know about you, but I am hanging out to field a full 22 players! A stinker from the Large Fry’s & Coke last round has me on the outside of the relevant rankings looking in (again…) although all hope isn’t lost. Our mainstream rookies are not only climbing in value at a rapid rate, but they are producing fieldable scores which gives us a lot of hope for our teams ahead of Gather Round. The guns and rookies strategy seems like the preferred option for coaches right now and it’s important to invest in these budding cash cows before their price tag climbs too high.

Rookies/cash cows are typically defined as players priced at $400,000 or lower to commence the season

Cash Cow King – Round 3

It was no surprise to see Willem Duursma and Jagga Smith finishing among the top rookie scorers. Kicking things off on Thursday night, a pair of Crows helped coaches start the round with a bang as Lachlan McAndrew and Brayden Cook earned their first nom of 2026. My vote is going to the trusty R2 in McAndrew this week and I’m hopeful that he can keep churning out strong scores and remain at the pointy end of this vote count.

Defenders

Let ’em grow

With mainstream rookies missing over the weekend, we were grateful to the defensive cash cows who stood up in their absence. The wet weather out West didn’t slow Sam Grlj ($473K, 68, BE 7) down as he methodically went about his business and posted a 60+ score. Recalled Eagle Josh Lindsay ($357K, 62, BE -5) was also able to hit that checkpoint and surprisingly, he was joined by Lachie Blakiston ($439K, 70, BE 19). The majority of the fantasy community believed that Blakiston would be baptised by Tristan Xerri on Sunday arvo, leading to over 2,000 coaches giving him the flick. Not only did the Bombers ruckman manage to scrape to 70 points, he ended up OUTSCORING Big X!

That helped Blakiston reignite his cash generation and join a budding group of DEF’s who have established themselves as money makers. His new teammate Jacob Farrow ($337K, 66, BE 6) will become a popular target this week at the trade table, with Bo Allan ($354K, 58, BE -2) and James Leake ($288K, BE 63, BE 0) also finishing with respectable numbers in Round 3. I tick off anyone who wants to chase Farrow as a downgrade option, with the Dons debutant set to become another promising cash cow in our back-6.

Let ’em go

I’m quite comfortable leaving all of the aforementioned rookies in our defence for now – even Blakiston. A strong score has pushed his breakeven down into the teens and while we can’t trust him long term, he should still make a few convenient dollars while maintaining the lead ruck role. The near 30% of coaches who own Zeke Uwland ($347K, DNP, BE 29) probably aren’t chuffed to see his face staring back at them on their team sheet, but there is a world where he comes out and produces a ripper score in his first career game at the MCG against Melbourne this upcoming weekend.

Midfielders

Let ’em grow

Man, it was nice to welcome Jagga Smith ($481K, 85, BE -28) back to our on-field mix this week. The Carlton phenom produced another no-fuss performance with 25 touches and the first goal of his career against the Dees and we won’t be moving his magnet away from M6-M8 anytime soon. It looked bleak early, but Willem Duursma ($515K, 86, BE -6) also found his way to a healthy point total in their unexpected triumph. After registering just two handballs in the first quarter, I wasn’t expecting Duurs to count in our best-18, but he turned it on with 82 points in the final three frames while kicking 1.3 in front of goal. A head-turning fortnight has given us no reason to doubt him, although Duursma faces a tougher on-paper task this weekend against the Swans.

In that same Sunday game, the most popular trade target for Round 3 in Jack Watkins ($408K, 73, BE -22) looked like he was in for a monster point total early. Only Jase Burgoyne (39) scored more than Watkins (35) in the first quarter, and those who took the punt would have been very happy with his return. Watkins will be leaned on again in our last early bye round, as will Tom Blamires ($412K, 75, BE -14), who deserves praise for stepping up in a time of need with a score of 75. The bulk of work was done each side of half-time as Blamires maintained his cash gen with 59 combined points in Q2 and 3.

Let ’em go

St Kilda’s bye comes at a convenient time for the Jack Carroll ($479K, 53, BE 30) owners, as almost 10,000 coaches have opted to trade him out ahead of Round 4. Carroll has been fine as a starting pick, although his only pop score of 78 came in a round where no fantasy coaches could actually benefit. Whether you choose to move him up or down, it’s a wise tactic to offload while the Saints have their feet up. Dyson Sharp ($316K, DNP, BE 31) is the other MID rookie I’m comfortable moving on from after he missed last weekend’s hitout.

Should he return to Essendon’s lineup, incoming FWD status adds to his appeal, but I wouldn’t want Sharp on field after the bye rounds anyway. It’s worth waiting on Harry Scheonberg ($328K, 49, BE 18) to see if he is able to maintain a place in West Coast’s best team, while some coaches are taking the punt on Josh Lai ($251K, 53, BE 2) at the trade table this week. Personally, I think Lai was good without being great and he is poised to be another Jack Carroll with scores in the 40-50 point range. He may still make a few dollars and assist those who roll the dice, but my advice is to shop elsewhere.

Rucks

Let ’em grow

Take your goddamn pick! I can’t remember a year where so many cheap ruckmen were playing consistently to the start of a fantasy season. Obviously, the rookie ruck goat in Lachlan McAndrew ($483K, 92, BE -20) continues to be a great investment for those who started the season with him. He top-scored for all cash cows last round, thanks to 17 disposals and 40 hitouts against Geelong, and the R2 believers will be chuffed with his three-round average of 80+. Behind McAndrew, there are still other respectable options with Magpies debutant Oscar Steene ($250K, 52, BE 2) one of the most popular trade targets this round.

Those who have plugged L-Mac into R2 may be moving magnets to get both of these discounted ruckmen in their lineups, and the DPP status that Steene owns may see coaches place him at F7-F8 as an insurance policy for McAndrew. The scoring output from discounted duo Cooper Duff-Tytler ($392K, 38, BE 25) and Mitch Edwards ($256K, 29, BE 13) wasn’t ideal on the weekend, although they continue to get opportunities and make a few extra dollars along the way. We may even see the recall of Zane Zakostelsky ($298K, DNP, BE -3) for Round 4 with Harris Andrews still suspended for a week and Darcy Gardner’s AC injury forcing him to the sidelines.

Forwards

Let ’em grow

It was an ugly round for our forward cash cows. The ever-reliable Deven Robertson ($469K, 41, BE 0) stalled against Port Adelaide with a score that probably didn’t count in your best-18, and to further rub salt in the wounds, he’s been handed a one-week ban for a dangerous tackle on Zak Butters. We will welcome Leo Lombard ($378K, DNP, BE 8) back on field, but Phoenix Gothard ($446K, 59, BE -2) is another warm body who will miss due to GWS’ bye. The Giants FWD has made a convenient $216K so far this season and he is set to continue his price rise once the early bye rounds are in the rear-view mirror. Brayden Cook ($483K, 83, BE 3) was the lone bright spot in our forward lines, thanks in large part to a ripper 42-point third quarter.

Let ’em go

Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me three times and you’re dead to me Lachie Dovaston ($348K, 36, BE 22). I’ve pumped him up for weeks now and Dovaston has rewarded me with yukky scores of 56, 36 and 36. The North small forward hasn’t been able to provide us with a fieldable score yet and as a result, a ton of coaches have decided to punt him. Hopefully he isn’t sitting next to Chris Scerri ($280K, 24, BE 10), Ty Gallop ($305K, 22, BE 31) or Talor Byrne ($237K, 37, BE 12) at F7-F8, with the trio all set to be underwhelming cash cows as well. I have some optimism for Scerri if he can hold his place, but I’d be waiting for a Sullivan Robey debut if you want a bench piece in the forward line.

Reserves Report

Here is a list of the most noteworthy fantasy scores we saw from potential cash cows in the reserves around the country over the weekend

Angus Hastie, Saints – 135 points, 30 disposals, 9 marks, 5 tackles
Sullivan Robey, Bombers – 107 points, 23 disposals, 6 marks, 4 goals
Jack Ough, Giants – 106 points, 22 disposals, 12 tackles
Liam Reidy, Blues – 100 points, 20 disposals, 16 hitouts, 5 marks,  1 goal
Reece Torrent, Lions – 95 points, 21 disposals, 7 marks, 1 goal
Tom Edwards, Bombers – 94 points, 16 disposals, 6 marks, 5.0 in front of goal
Patrick Retschko, Tigers – 88 points, 25 disposals, 5 marks
Angus Anderson, Magpies – 84 points, 20 disposals, 1 goal
Oliver Greeves, Hawks – 83 points, 18 disposals, 5 marks, 5 tackles
Sam Swadling, Magpies – 80 points, 25 disposals
Sid Draper, Crows – 59 points, 17 disposals, 5 tackles

Q & A

The weekly Q&A section aims to address the biggest rookie/cash cow issues that we are facing. 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 questions below.

We have a few options this week, Job security and scoring potential on Lindsay, Farrow, Lai, Watkins, Steene, CCJ (no xerri for 3)

— Zigga Jagga (@liampaulson_) March 30, 2026

We do have an abundance of downgrade options at the moment and a traditional “one up, one down” move this round makes a lot of sense. Taking all of these factors into account, here’s how I’d rank them:

Josh Lindsay (I fkn love this guy)
Jack Watkins
Jacob Farrow
Oscar Steene
Josh Lai
Callum Coleman-Jones

Duursma ? I feel like he’s got plenty upside still in $$ generation & points #thoughts

— darren 🐊 (@47Dmac) March 31, 2026

A lot of coaches are trying to decide whether it is worth paying up for Duursma or targeting one of the cheaper guys mentioned above. While Duurs has impressed over the last fortnight, I’d be more inclined to save the dollars though with $500K+ a lot to pay for a rookie in a valuable midfield slot. While his last two outings have been impressive, there’s every chance he comes out and drops a score that starts with a 5 in a matchup against Sydney this week. Save the coin and go for Watkins or Farrow (in that order).

One player to leave on bench this week out of Watkins, blamires, grilj, Xavier Lindsay?

— Gedav (@Gedav147022) March 31, 2026

Rookie roulette has burned a lot of us through the first few rounds of the fantasy season and it’s poised to reer it’s ugly head again in Round 4. Without any loop possibilities, I would field Watkins and Lindsay, then flip a coin between Grlj and Blamires haha. In all seriousness though, Blamires gets the nod for me over Grlj.

Who’s the better rookie to bring in? Lai or Steene?

— Anthony Ellul (@anthonyellul) March 31, 2026

I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw Steene string a few games together for Collingwood’s senior side now. As a backup RUC, there will be scoring lulls, however he impressed on Friday night and I think his DPP makes him a better target than Lai right now.

Remember the Name

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

DEFENDERS

Charlie Edwards (Crows, $230K)
Wade Derksen (Blues, $230K)
Dylan Patterson (Suns, $334K)
Oskar Taylor (Giants, $294K)
Lachlan Carmichael (Bulldogs, $270K)
Cooper Simpson (Dockers, $340K)
Matt Whitlock (Kangaroos, $230K)
Harrison Ramm (Power, $268K)

MIDFIELDERS

Harry DeMattia (Magpies, $230K)
Josh Smillie (Tigers, $230K)
Luke Urquart (Kangaroos, $230K)
Adam Sweid (Dockers, $254K)
Harry Kyle (Swans, $298K)
Tyan Prindable (Magpies, $230K)
Luke Beecken (Lions, $230K)
Sam Cumming (Tigers, $326K)
Jack Dalton (Hawks, $230K)
Ollie Greeves (Hawks, $230K)
Patrick Retschko (Tigers, $230K)
Ben Camporeale (Blues, $230K)
Sam Swadling (Magpies, $230K)

RUCKMEN

Aidan Schubert (Hawks, $262K)
Kayle Gerreyn (Bombers, $230K)
Max Heath (Demons, $376K)
Callum Coleman-Jones (Kangaroos, $230K)

FORWARDS

Sid Draper (Crows, $307K)
Sullivan Robey (Bombers, $318K)
Jesse Dattoli (Swans, $273K)
Finlay Macrae (Eagles, $293K)
Mitchell Marsh (Crows, $266K)
Charlie Banfield (Saints, $230K)
Harvey Harrison (Magpies, $300K)
Jay Polkinghorne (Cats, $230K)

Fry

Australian coffee/burrito enthusiast and the frustrated owner of 16 fantasy teams. Writer for SportsbyFry and DT Talk 🤙