daniel writes:

i was wondering where i can submit my team for it to be reviewed…it would be greatly appreciated to get some feedback from someone who really knows what they are talking about….

Team: Danz DEEstroyers
Coach: Daniel
Competition: Dream Team
As at round: 5
Ranking: 592
Money Left: $14,800

Backs: Jordan McMahon, Jess Sinclair, Grant Birchall, Darren Milburn, Joel Bowden, Jed Adcock, Justin Koschitzke, Xavier Ellis, David Trotter

Centres: Scott West, Cameron Bruce, Kane Cornes, Sam Mitchell, David Rodan, Joel Selwood, Bryce Gibbs, Richard Hadley

Rucks: Aaron Sandilands, Dean Cox, Ben Hudson, Patrick Ryder

Forwards: Chad Cornes, Matthew Lloyd, Dale Thomas, Angus Monfries, Damon White, Lance Franklin, Alwyn Davey, Tom Hawkins, Aaron Edwards

I like this team! A ranking of 592 is just reward for a team this good. Unlike most teams I’ve seen, Daniel has gone with two premium rucks, which is guaranteed to get a high score from me. Patrick Ryder on the bench is also a good get, I don’t think many people would have picked him as a fantasy sleeper this year. No doubt a lot of that high ranking has been due to solid captain choices, and with West and Kornes in your side you never have to suffer a dud captain’s score.

The only query I’d have on this team is that it’s too top-heavy in the centres, with four premiums and only two rookies, while the forwards are filled with less than impressive mid-tiers. Lloyd has underperformed badly this year and that was predictable given the extent of his injury last year, though in Dan’s defence not many would have predicted that Kevin Sheedy would use Lloyd up the field in a different role. Monfries is too inconsistent to merit a long-term spot. White just doesn’t get enough of the ball to be a decent fantasy player… I’m guessing Dan was taking the chance that he’d step up this season in the early-season absence of Warren Tredrea but that didn’t quite work out.

The big advantage to Dan’s strategy is that there are two golden trade targets coming up in the next couple of weeks. Dan is in an excellent position to buy the aforementioned Tredrea and Nick Riewoldt, probably getting rid of White and Monfries in the process. After that, all he needs is to upgrade Lloyd to a true premium like Matthew Pavlich and he can leave everything but his rookies alone.

-1 for Lloyd and -0.5 for Monfries and White, giving a score of 8/10… which looks rather harsh in retrospect. A solid team that a lot of coaches could learn from. Good luck Dan!