Matthew de Boer is one of the most feared taggers in football, with a string of scalps on his belt from shutting down the best midfielders in the game. So why was he playing a generic outside mid role last week? It's not as if Port Adelaide didn't have dominant mids he could target, as the Power went +16 in clearances for the game and the Giants lost the game in the engine room. This week the obvious play is to send him to Lachie Neale, who is susceptible to a close-checking role as seen by Ben Keays a few weeks ago. Fantasy coaches watch on with great interest.
Matthew de Boer is one of the most feared taggers in football, with a string of scalps on his belt from shutting down the best midfielders in the game. So why was he playing a generic outside mid role last week? It's not as if Port Adelaide didn't have dominant mids he could target, as the Power went +16 in clearances for the game and the Giants lost the game in the engine room. This week the obvious play is to send him to Lachie Neale, who is susceptible to a close-checking role as seen by Ben Keays a few weeks ago. Fantasy coaches watch on with great interest.
MDB is a field lock
Former Docker Matthew de Boer might not have been much of an accumulator in 2019 but he made up for it with his five tackles per game. The nuisance tagger kept a string of big-name inside midfielders to 15 touches or less, with a pinnacle game against Patrick Cripps during which the Giant dominated, finding the footy on 27 occasions himself. de Boer's leadership is highly-valued, so he'll always be thereabouts at the selection table. For fantasy coaches, there's little to write home about; he is a team-first player who might post the odd impressive score but is more prone to underwhelming games, and is yet to play more than 15 matches in a season for GWS.
Matthew de Boer was the name on the tips of the lips of many a fantasy coach this week, nothing to do with his personal statistical output but which of the Bulldogs' gun midfielders he would go to as a tagger in today's big game. Bontempelli is arguably the most damaging, though he can drag a tagger forward out of his comfort zone. Macrae and Dunkley may be somewhat untaggable, due to their inside game and their workrate which may be too much even for seasoned tagger Dutchy. Johannisen may be the one most susceptible to close-checking pressure to shut down his outside run.
MDB is a rough diamond
Delisted by Fremantle two seasons ago, Matthew de Boer has cemented himself as key to the Giants fortunes. A member of the leadership group, de Boer’s run of hamstring injuries continued last year, forcing the former Docker into an extended period on the sidelines. Playing through a half forward position, he reached an average of 20 disposals for the first time. Continuing with his handball-happy ways, de Boer recorded nearly two handballs for every kick. With the extended absence of Brett Deledio and Toby Greene, de Boer’s responsibility of connecting midfield and forward was never greater. As throughout his career, de Boer will be behind many in the pecking order and is likely to be reliant on injuries for a desirable fantasy role. Given his capacity to provide both defensive and offensive jobs, his adaptability can lead to guesswork for his owners. He should be selected in the last five rounds of the draft, unless injuries dictate otherwise.
