Jai Newcombe – Deck of DT 2025

Click here for 2025 Fantasy Classic prices.

Why should I pick him?

Is anyone else getting a weird sense of deja vu? I feel like I’ve been here before… There was plenty of promise for Jai heading into the 2024 season, having averaged 88 in his first full year and 93 in 2023, including a massive 159 in Round 22. He was a popular starting pick, and I’ll admit I was one of them. Let’s just say it didn’t go well. At all. So why am I here trying to convince you to start him? No, it’s not sabotage.

Newcombe came home like a steam train in 2024, even more so than he did to end 2023. He averaged 97 in his last 5 and 100 in his last 3, but what was perhaps most impressive was how he dominated the elimination final. Watching that game felt like his true arrival as an elite midfielder of the competition, racking up 35 disposals, 9 marks and scoring 136. Even better for us, it doesn’t count towards his price tag this year.

Including finals Newcombe averaged 106 in his final 6 games, racking up 30+ disposals in 5 of those appearances. After bottoming out at 58% CBAs in Round 18 where he found himself stranded forward, he attended over 74% in his last 7 appearances and was over 80% in both finals. His tank had previously been questioned, but it seems he had grown into a full time inside midfielder by seasons end. Despite occasionally resting forward, the Hawks did run a tight 5 man CBA rotation and I think he can improve on the 73% he averaged in 2024.

By all reports he is as fit as he has ever been coming into this season, even slimming down in an attempt to gain some extra pace. Of course it’s all buzz words in pre-season, but it sounds like he’s raring to go. The fact he has also never missed a game since his debut season is a massive tick, especially in draft. Durability is the often the best ability.

It’s also easy to forget that he’s only 23 years old, I don’t know why but it feels like he has been around forever. Coming into his prime, it’s an easy argument to make that Newcombe can establish himself as a 100+ uber premium mid in 2025.

Why shouldn’t I pick him?

So, about that disastrous start last year… In the first 5 games of 2024 Newcombe averaged a pathetic 69.4, plummeted in price and went down as one of the biggest burns of the season for those that started him. I won’t blame anyone for refusing to start him again, I have been known as a bit of a masochist when it comes to picking my fantasy team so that’s not enough to rule him out for me.

Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice and well… You get the idea. Some have argued he was a mid-season pick up for a reason, myself included, and it feels pretty insane to go back to the well again for a guy who burnt us so badly, scoring just 2 tons in the first 20 rounds. 2025 could easily follow a similar pattern.

Hawthorn’s well renowned ‘hokball’ also tends to see them share it around, playing a quick brand of footy which resulted in them averaging the 11th most fantasy points in 2024. Dylan Moore was their best fantasy producer, averaging 92. It doesn’t exactly scream fantasy friendly.

Hawthorn also has the Round 4 bye, which although it’s much easier to navigate than R3, still means he is guaranteed to miss at least one game where he will be covered for by a rookie. If you’re going to start a guy priced at 86 who is certain to miss a game in the first month, it’s pretty hard to pick him unless you think he’s going to average 100+. That does sound a little too aggressive.

Deck of DT Rating.

QUEEN

Without the bye I would confidently start Newcombe in 2025, despite the fact he burnt me last year. He’s currently flipping places with Ed Richards in my side, and we’ll definitely be watching him closely in Round 0 as a big score there flips the script entirely. If you’re not starting Ashcroft that’s also an easy swap to make in Round 4. He is by no means a lock, but Newcombe has flashed a ceiling that could see him turn into one of the top fantasy midfielders this season, coming in at an affordable price. I also love him as a mid round draft pick with huge upside. Don’t sleep on him.

I know the weekend wash-up has always just been a review, and my rankings in the bio don’t exactly scream fantasy genius, but the podcast is back for a bit of a pre-season laugh! Come check us out as we navigate the fantasy pre-season with a more light-hearted view of all things fantasy that might accidentally nail a few calls along the way! Thanks legends.

Check out our podcast on Apple, Youtube or Spotify!

Matt