16 down, 8 to go!
Congrats fam, we’ve made it through the bye rounds! Now that the best-18 rounds are finally behind us, it’s time to start thinking a little differently at the trade table. Cash generation still matters with a third of the season left to play out, and there are a handful of rookies worth targeting. However, points on field are now the priority. This is the time of year when spending an extra $100-200K to land a genuine premium is often the better play than chasing another value pick. There are still plenty of fattened cash cows to cash in, so don’t be afraid to pull the trigger and turn them into players who can help you climb the rankings over the final two months of the 2026 campaign.
Rookies/cash cows are typically defined as players priced at $400,000 or lower to commence the season
Cash Cow King – Round 16
No rookie topped triple-figures in our final bye round, but there were still plenty of helpful contributors. Patrick Retschko got bloody close, scoring 99 points after more than 11,000 coaches opted to trade him out – while mainstays Lachlan McAndrew and Jacob Farrow continued to produce with strong scores in the 90-point range. Zeke Uwland finally showed us a glimpse of what he’s capable of with a season-high 86 points, but all eyes are on Adelaide’s ruckman at this point of the season. As we gear up for the final push, McAndrew has put some breathing room between himself and the rest of the pack, making the award almost his to lose!
No triple-figure rookie scores last week, but a bunch of cash cows still put up helpful point totals during the final bye round.
Who gets your vote as the most important cash cow in Round 16? 🤔 #AFLFantasy
— SportsbyFry (@sportsbyfry) June 30, 2026
Back ‘Em In
With the bye rounds behind us, coaches should be looking to field as few rookies as possible. There are only a handful of cash cows I’d trust on field, with Jacob Farrow ($691K, 90, BE 52) and Hugo Hall-Kahan ($469K, 56, BE 0) shaping as a popular D6/D7 pairing. Coming off back-to-back scores of 90, Farrow looks safe to field while Archie Roberts remains sidelined, and a matchup against St Kilda should lead to another healthy score. Before he hits the field, a Friday night clash with West Coast provides us with the perfect opportunity to loop Hall-Kahan through D7.
We all know the risks that come with looping (see the Hall-Kahan/Sinclair fiasco in Round 15), but this weekend shapes as a great opportunity to give it a crack. If you’re looking for a MID rookie, then the options are few and far between. Farrow and HHK can both slide into M8 thanks to their DPP, but outside of that duo, there aren’t many other rookies I’d be comfortable fielding at this stage of the season. Coaches who still own Lachlan McAndrew ($829K, 92, BE 82) can comfortably keep him at R2 given the uncertainty surrounding the ruck position – unless, of course, Max Gawn isn’t your R1.
Mid-season recruits Marcus Herbert ($312K, 67, BE -11) and Joel Fitzgerald ($326K, BYE, BE -5) have shown plenty since arriving at AFL level, although I’d still rather keep them as bench cover. The same applies to Dyson Sharp ($465K, 69, BE 19) and Jack Dalton ($317K, 73, BE -12), who continue to generate cash but aren’t players I’d rely on for on-field production. Jasper Alger ($396K, 48, BE 22) is the only forward rookie trending in the right direction, although he didn’t show enough against Collingwood to convince me he can be trusted.
Stick With ‘Em
There will still be a lot of coaches who are forced to start Sam Cumming ($541K, 83, BE 26) and/or Patrick Retschko ($600K, 99, BE 49) in their midfield as we return to 22 on-field scorers. Some would argue the Richmond pair were unlucky not to earn a mention in the Back ‘Em In tier, and yet, casting our eyes forward doesn’t make for pretty reading. They face a tougher opponent in the resurgent Blues this weekend and we can’t hide behind best-18 anymore. By all means, you can keep them for cash generation purposes, but I feel like playing them at M7 or M8 is fraught with danger. Leo Lombard ($534K, 72, BE 46) is another cash cow with an inflated price tag who will come off our fields now that fantasy normalcy is returning. The majority of his owners have already cashed Lombard in, but he shapes up as a rare green dot at F7/F8 and there’s a case to be made for holding him.
The rest of the rooks in this tier haven’t made enough money to justify trading them yet. Bye round targets such as Jack Ison ($399K, 61, BE 31), Jai Murray ($446K, 40, BE 17) and Xavier Bamert ($343K, 40, BE 6) will now provide their owners with handy bench cover and they aren’t pressing trade issues at this stage. If the axe falls on Thursday night and they’re omitted, then by all means cash them in. Otherwise, I’d be happy to keep them sitting on the bench for another week. Defensive options Kye Annard ($327K, 39, BE 9) and Josh Goater ($265K, 64, BE -2) fall into this same category, with the latter emerging as the most popular rookie target ahead of Round 17.
Goater made his long-awaited return after more than two years on the sidelines, and there are almost 7,000 fantasy coaches snapping him up as a D7/D8 heartbeat. I don’t expect monster scores from the Roos youngster, but as long as he can stay healthy, he should be able to play a role as your defensive emergency. A few hundred coaches are also opting to pay up for Taylor Byrne ($386K, 85, BE 9) despite his increased price tag. With a Richmond matchup on the cards, I can see the appeal in targeting Byrne – especially if you’ve loaded up in the FWD line. However, I’d prefer to put that money towards improving my best 22 rather than paying overs for bench cover.
Cash ‘Em Out
A lot of our favourites from the rookie class of 2026 feature in this tier, but it’s time to be ruthless. None of these cash cows are vying for the top of their positional lines, and as a result it’s time to part ways with them. Jai Serong ($740K, 39, BE 98) is the newest name added to this list, following his 39-point effort last Thursday. His breakeven has climbed to the point where it’s time to ditch him before he starts bleeding cash. I’ve been saying the same about West Coast rooks Milan Murdock ($658K, 53, BE 91) and Josh Lindsay ($679K, DNP, BE 79) for a few rounds now, but their teammate Willem Duursma ($758K, 45, BE 92) has also made his way onto the list of trade out candidates.
Most of the Duurs owners would have jumped off when he missed Round 14 with a calf complaint, however if you held him, it’s time to part ways. I thought he and Jagga Smith ($718K, 79, BE 79) were strong candidates to be our final on-field rookie and while their scoring is still respectable, their cash generation has plateaued. Upgrading them to a fallen premium won’t cost you massively, so make that a priority if you’re still trusting the Rising Star contenders. The same logic applies in the forward line for Brayden Cook ($663K, 24, BE 89) and Sullivan Robey ($601K, 65, BE 73). Most of us have traded them, but they need to be moved on by the coaches who haven’t acted yet. Cook is the clear priority to trade, after he lost $30K in value following a 24-point effort in the latest Showdown.
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.
Billy Cootee, Swans – 150 points, 38 disposals, 7 marks, 7 tackles, 2 goals
Angus Anderson, Magpies – 132 points, 31 disposals, 9 tackles, 2.1 in front of goal
Oliver Francou, Eagles – 123 points, 31 disposals, 11 tackles
Luke Beeckan, Lions – 121 points, 26 disposals, 9 marks, 1 goal
Toby Murray, Crows – 116 points, 20 disposals, 10 hitouts, 7 marks, 4.1 in front of goal
Finlay Macrae, Eagles – 110 points, 30 disposals, 7 tackles
Jack Ough, Giants – 107 points, 27 disposals, 5 marks, 7 tackles
Flynn Riley, Blues – 102 points, 15 disposals, 39 hitouts, 5 marks, 6 tackles
Dylan Patterson, Suns – 102 points, 18 disposals, 12 tackles, 1.1 in front of goal
James Leake, Giants – 90 points, 25 disposals
Bodie Ryan, Hawks – 86 points, 19 disposals (18 kicks!), 7 marks
Sid Draper, Crows – 84 points, 25 disposals, 1 goal
Mitch Podhajski, Magpies – 79 points, 11 disposals, 4 marks, 4.5 in front of goal
Cody Curtin, Lions – 72 points, 9 disposals, 5 marks, 4.2 in front of goal
Jaxon Artemis, Bombers – 50 points, 12 disposals, 5 marks
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.
Can you rank the FWD rookies please? Got no FWD DPPs in the MID and need to offload Daniels…
— Soul Man 💙 (@jdbrown74) June 30, 2026
I’ll be straight with you mate, it’s a tough spot to be in. There aren’t any FWD rookies that I love at the moment, however there are a few options if you’re looking for an F7. Talor Byrne kick-started another phase of his cash gen with an encouraging score in Round 16, but it’s a lot to spend for your bench at this time of year. Campbell Lake could be a shout if he is named again following St Kilda’s bye, while I’m still a believer in Mitch Podhajski too. He responded strongly to being dropped with 4.5 from 11 disposals in the VFL on the weekend and will hopefully find his way back into the senior team ASAP. Gun to my head, I’d go Pods first (obviously if he earns a recall), then Byrne (Tigers matchup should see another strong score) or Lake (if you want to save $$$).
Remember the Name
In no particular order, here are some of the other rookie-priced players to consider throughout the season.
DEFENDERS
Dylan Patterson (Suns, $334K)
Oskar Taylor (Giants, $294K)
Jaxon Artemis (Bombers, $230K)
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)
Tyan Prindable (Magpies, $230K)
Luke Beecken (Lions, $230K)
Ollie Greeves (Hawks, $230K)
Ben Camporeale (Blues, $230K)
Oliver Francou (Eagles, $230K)
RUCKMEN
Aidan Schubert (Hawks, $262K)
Kayle Gerreyn (Bombers, $230K)
Harrison Coe (Magpies, $230K)
Caleb May (Bulldogs, $230K)
FORWARDS
Sid Draper (Crows, $307K)
Jesse Dattoli (Swans, $273K)
Finlay Macrae (Eagles, $293K)
Mitchell Marsh (Crows, $266K)
Jay Polkinghorne (Cats, $230K)
Recent Comments
on R18 Fantasy review, Holmes to who? Milera, Rankine top targets – Ep. 885: “Cameron has a good run and Petracca is the devil. Him to Rankine, it’ll feel SO good” Jul 21, 19:57
on R18 Fantasy review, Holmes to who? Milera, Rankine top targets – Ep. 885: “Cameron to Gawn or Trac to Rankine/Warner?” Jul 21, 19:55
on R18 Fantasy review, Holmes to who? Milera, Rankine top targets – Ep. 885: “Joe Richards injured. Out 4 weeks” Jul 21, 17:53
on R18 Fantasy review, Holmes to who? Milera, Rankine top targets – Ep. 885: “Only 5 weeks left, time to have some fun. Goodbye Spudtracca! Joe Richards, welcome aboard!!” Jul 20, 18:59
Podcasts
Calvin's Captains
Calvin’s Captains – Rd. 19
Cash Cows
Fry’s Cash Cows – Rd. 16
Team Sheets
AFL Teams 2026: Round 16 (Mid-season Bye 5)
Trade Talk
Roy’s Rollin’ 22 – R17
Cash Cows
Fry’s Cash Cows – Rd. 17
Hey Fry – great read mate. Please rank trade out priorities: Banks, D Cameron, McKercher, Serong.
Daniels goes to Marshall.
Don’t worry about trade ins.
Thanks mate.
Cheers Rippo,
I’d give Banks another life and the other three are equally as frustrating as each other. If one trade is locked in for Daniels to Marhsall, I’d be tempted to cull Cameron first to grab the best FWD or MID you can (by throwing Marshall into the RUC). Serong should be ‘ok’ against the Doggies and McKercher is at an awful pricepoint to try and upgrade.
Hey Fry, thanks for the amazing rookie info. as usual.
Needed 15k made from Gallop and Farrow last week so I could get them to 230k rook and NAS this week. Combined they made 67k, which was great. As I should of learnt from fantasy this year though, never plan ahead haha. The Daniels injury completely ruined my plans.
Now I am left with 2 options:
1. If Podha is named, go ahead with the above, play Podha and trade Daniels next week.
Or
2. Trade Daniels to RoMar leaving me with 150k which is just not enough to get Farrow to Wilkee. So I will keep Farrow and trade either:
Petracca to De Goey or
Amon to any defender that is not NAS (just short again).
Option 1, gets me NAS but Podha on field could be peril. Option 2, miss NAS and field Farrow (much more reliable than Podha). Thoughts?
My pleasure Luke!
Considering it’s not the bye rounds anymore, I wouldn’t want to be fielding Pods – who may not even get picked! If I was in your shoes, I’d go Daniels to Marshall and Trac to De Goey. Farrow should score well vs. St Kilda and have another pirce spike while Amon has a nice run of fixtures as well.
With Amon out, looking to loop HHK tonight and if he goes well Amon stays (as Mitchell seemed to suggest it is just a rest), if not Trac stays and Amon will go to Wilkee or C. Daniel.
Hey fry, I’ve been looking at these options as I’ve got the Daniels injury to trade out. I’m currently option 1 for more points and Noble’s role lately is really bad.
Option 1
Daniels to Marshall
Noble to WNM
Looping between Hall-Kahan and Goater at D6
Option 2
Daniels to Lake on field
Sharp to WNM
no options to loop F6 as have Bandfield and T.Murray on bench unless there named
Option 3
Daniels to Marshall
Hall-Kahan to Fletcher
Missing WNM this week
You’re thought’s
Hey Jack,
I don’t hate the idea of being aggressive and going Option 1 mate – especially because the other two aren’t home runs by any means.
Hey Fry, how would you rate these trades?
T Murray to a basement ruck and Dyson Sharp to NWM in my midfield, leaving me with no rookies on field. Planning to either trade Trac up to Warner or down to Marshall and try upgrade elsewhere or just save some cash.
Great read
Hey Bread,
Great thinking there mate. Murray can go and while Sharp may make a few dollars, trading his to Nas is an elite upgrade.
Hey Fry, ruminating on who I flick for Nas this week.
I’ve got Banks, Cumming and Retschko who could all be fielded or flicked, and Leake is a D8 red dot. Can afford to chuck Leake (leaves me $33k), which pushes Banks to D7 (with HHK at D8), otherwise it’s flicking one of the three Tigers, banking the cash and fielding the other two.
Banks AND HHK feels like a lot of cash on the bench! Fitzgerald, Herbert and Ison are M9, M10 and Utility.
Hey Andrew,
To be honest, Leake as a red dot might end up being helpful in the next few rounds. Cumming has the lowest BE of the group, so that makes me tempted to trade Banks and Retschko. Don’t have a huge amount of confidence in any of them, but Cumming should still see enough MID minutes to increase in price.
Thanks Fry, great notes. I’m tossing up between Jagga & Trac at F6 this week, and frankly I trust Jags more against RIC, so he goes to Romar next week, and Trac is out this week.
My pleasure brian Smith.
To be honest mate, I think you’ve answered your own question there. The logic is sound and while it feels dirty, it’s not crazy to think that Jagga will outscore Petracca this week.
does Banks count as a rookie? Only non premo in my team. Not sure whether to play him farrow or Hall Kahan this week at D6, no way of looping. Thoughts on who to play? Leaning towards Farrow
In theory he does. I’ve got Farrow ahead of HHK, who is ahead of Banks this week in terms of on field production.
Great read as always Fry.
I’m stuck on my 2nd trade this week and would appreciate your advice.
1st trade is McKercher to Durham leaving $68k and the following team:
Def: Ash, Whitf, Holmes, Jaicos, Wilmot, Laird, Hall-kahan, Annand
Mid: Naicos, Bont, Butters, Callaghan, Dawson, Merrett, Walsh, LDU, Cumming, Fitzgerald, Swadling
Ruc: Grundy, Jackson, Edwards
Fwd: Sheezel, Pickett, Sparrow, Petracca, Durham, Bailey, Banfield, Curtin
I don’t have cover in the fwd line so running the gauntlet there, if Pod comes back in I could grab him, but that doesn’t gain me much $ for next week.
I need to get NAS and BSmith back in but can’t reach either this week.
I could cut Cumming to Goater and that gives me about $350k for next week which I don’t think will be enough to get LDU to Smith and Wilmot or Laird to NAS.
Plus Cumming is pretty solid cover and has more to make.
I thought about Trac to Romar.
Any other ideas?
Cheers Woosh!
Well thought out and I think you landed on your answer right at the end. Cumming can stay as cover and there isn’t a pressing need to grab Pods at F7. Therefore, I’d trade Trac to Marshall and look at chasing Nas or Baz (Cumming out) in the next round or two.
Do I trade a premium like Callahan, noble to get to nas? Or do I do a rookie fix up then trade ldu to nas next week.
Tough one. I’d prefer to axe LDU out of that group, so do the rookie fix up this week and then pull the trigger in Round 18.
Hey fry, do you reckon Artemis will get a gig or should I go for someone like Goater instead
I think he’s still got a few weeks before he’s in the Dons’ team so Goater is the answer right now.
Hi Fry
Awesome article as usual – keep up the good work.
Thinking
Retschko to Francou (utility) and
Jai Serong to NWM
then next week
downgrade Robey to 230k bench player and
Brent Daniels to Chad Warner / Rankine / someone else
Your thoughts
Cheers
Thanks Adrian, appreicate it mate!
I reckon those are great moves for this week, even if Serong does have a good score against the Dogs. It makes sense to do that and try and grab Nas ahead of the Bombers matchup, rather than wait and target a FWD from Daniels.