Michael Walters has had an up and down year like most at Fremantle, with more downs than ups so far in a season that promised much. He has battled some injury concerns and perhaps that is why he has spent more time up forward than in midfield than his fantasy owners would like. The Dockers have also committed to a new generation of midfielders, so perhaps this is his fate now under Justin Longmuir as the club builds towards its next finals-worthy 22. He will have his days, but picking them might be difficult for fantasy purposes.
Michael Walters has had an up and down year like most at Fremantle, with more downs than ups so far in a season that promised much. He has battled some injury concerns and perhaps that is why he has spent more time up forward than in midfield than his fantasy owners would like. The Dockers have also committed to a new generation of midfielders, so perhaps this is his fate now under Justin Longmuir as the club builds towards its next finals-worthy 22. He will have his days, but picking them might be difficult for fantasy purposes.
Michael Walters is one of a number of small forward types who have come into the Fremantle side recently and played a role without carving games up, contributing here and there and lifting the quality of the bottom six of the 22 to a level where the club is competing for a finals spot. As a fantasy asset, he has established a decent-sized scoring floor which is particularly useful in draft leagues. He isn't going to win you any matchups off his own boot but he won't let you down either, which is all you want at this stage of the fantasy season out of a low-end starter.
Michael Walters started this season in the forward pocket role in which he finished the last, well past the age of 30 and deep into the twilight of his career. Subsequent events have meant a return to the guts for now, though, with Nat Fyfe on the sidelines and the young Docker midfield needing an older head. He is no sort of asset to own in fantasy leagues, but he's a spot starter at this stage and still a little underpriced in daily fantasy formats, so without setting the world on fire he could provide some low-end value in the very short term.
Walters tons up before tea
A key offensive driver for the past dozen seasons, Michael Walters spent 2019 adding midfield craft to his burgeoning repertoire. Splitting his time between forward and midfield, Walters gathered career highs in disposals, tackles and goals, the latter all the more impressive given his extra centre bounce attendances. The evasive Docker was in the top 20 for score involvements across the competition and 19th in the Coleman race. Walters suffered a right foot sprain in December leaving him in a moonboot, although early suggestions are that he would resume training following the Christmas break. A dominant fantasy season following consistent scoring over the previous five campaigns, the Docker will be expected to produce once more. Selecting the forward-eligible option in the early rounds may take you to the promised land.
Michael Walters has always had more value for fantasy coaches when released to midfield, particularly as the Fremantle engine room can underperform when undermanned. One of the key positional moves that Ross Lyon has made this season is to bring Brandon Matera back from the wilderness to play HFF, meaning that Sonny can move upfield and use his silky skills for inside 50s to the newly-populated forest of decent talls in purple. This has meant good things for Walters's fantasy scores in recent weeks, and long may it continue.
Walters goes helter-skelter
If we had an injury-prone crown, Michael Walters would be one of the first players to wear it. A knee injury ended 2017 early, and he missed a handful of matches last season too. He’s currently still recovering from a knee injury and is on modified training duties. Stats-wise, Walters delivered career bests in disposals and tackles, but kicked fewer goals that he has over the last half a dozen seasons... and still won the club goalkicking with a measly 23. Thanks to his dual position status, Walters presents a lot of value. His year-to-year consistency has been phenomenal over the past three and he has a huge ceiling. For these reasons, Walters is a walk-up start in any fantasy forward line. His midfield minutes aren’t indicated to dip, with his talent and precision needed even more in the engine room without Lachie Neale. It’s worth keeping an eye on his knee rehabilitation progress, but coaches should draft Son-Son confidently in middle rounds.
Michael the favourite son
Halfway through round 7 last year, Ross Lyon took the shackles off Michael Walters and released him from a moribund forward line to play on ball. Son-Son responded by turning that game and delivering six 110+ scores in the next eight, though he suffered under tags at the end of that sequence and missed fantasy finals after a knee injury in round 18. He booted 17 goals in those six tons, showing a rarified ability to kick more goals rotating from midfield than he did starting as a deep forward. It is a measure of how dangerous he is that Walters copped those tags despite Lachie Neale and Nat Fyfe attending stoppages with him. Can he sustain that form for an entire season? The safe play is to assume no, especially seeing as the Dockers loaded up on inside midfielders in the draft and will have to blood them in the seniors for long periods (Ross Lyon's history of not playing kids notwithstanding). Someone in your draft will reach for him in middle rounds based on that late form. That is a big risk.
