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

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)

Fry

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