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Harmey Returns to Greatness! | Round 1 Review #PODPOD
3.3k Plays22 hours ago
Fantasy Footy is back for 2026 and for many, it was a stark reminder of the torture this game puts us through… but we love it and we wouldn’t have it any other way! The game was fast, transition players feasted whilst the rucks and inside midfielders really struggled to score like we are used to. There is plenty to discuss!
In this episode, a full panel is on deck this week to review round 1. The lads discuss their rounds and the key decisions they made, talk about the key topics of Errol trade outs, trading strategy around rookie options and key players losing value as well as answering a stack of listener questions. We say it every year, the rankings at round 1 are always skewed due to rookie roulette and the real grind starts this week navigating the season and trading your way to success!
PODPOD Team Names
Holmesy - Holmesysheroes
Lewy - Hawk Tuah (Pittonet Thang)
Harmey - Hirdy’s Heroes
Sam - Mandaclawrian FC
Jordy - AIRJORDAN
PODPOD Challenge - Join the community!
League code: JXR8EF6M
Ask me on Qu
- Podpodafl has once again partnered with Qu platforms in 2026 to help answer your afl fantasy questions
- During the season - Selby and Holmesy will be recording a podcast late in the week to answer general questions and themes
- For a guaranteed answer and to help support the PODPOD, for a small fee you have the ability to have a personalised audio response to your afl fantasy questions
- There is the ability for full team reviews, questions on individual players and during the season there is the ability to ask trade questions, vc/c options and many more
- Head to https://askmeonqu.com/podpodafl now!
The PODPOD is brought to you by Moreira’s Magic in 2026. All Holmes Files episodes will be available exclusively as a part of the 2026 Season Guide. As well as the podcasts, the Season Guide will also include:
- Weekly pod with Selby and Xavier Ellis
- Thursday night pod with Holmesy and Selby after teams are released
- Player stats
- Team stats
- Market Share
- CBA analysis
- Much more!
The guide is now live! A must have for any serious Fantasy coach head over to moreirasmagic.com.au/ to subscribe in-season now!
Follow us on X:
The PODPOD: @podpodAFL
Holmesy: @Holmesysheroes
Lewy: @AFLewy
Harmey: @jonharmey
Sam: @grillis03
Jordy: @jordandsena
Dossy: @HKdos
Recommended
Transcript
The Mental Toll of AFL Fantasy
00:00:18
Speaker
G'day and welcome to the Pod Pod brought to you by Marrera's Magic. I'm your host Holmesy, three-time top 10 finisher and twice runner-up in AFL Fantasy Classic. Boys, round one has been and gone. don't know about you guys, but i parts of the weekend I remembered why playing this game is extremely stressful and bad for my mental health. But to be honest, wouldn't have it any other way. Footy's back and we're now beginning that grind to...
00:00:47
Speaker
Rise up the ranks as we yeah enter the season.
Weekend Woes and Lessons
00:00:52
Speaker
Louis, our perennial top 1K finisher, back for another week, mate. Thanks for jumping on. ah How was your weekend and did you enjoy having the footy back outside of Port Adelaide?
00:01:01
Speaker
Yeah, no, it was good to...
00:01:06
Speaker
Yeah, it wasn't a great weekend for me, but it was good to see the scores ticking over, which was nice. Certainly got my work cut out for me after after round one. um Maybe I sound a little bit depressed. It's actually not because of, well, it is because of my fantasy team, but I've also just mowed my lawn and and smashed my back window. So i I've jumped on the podcast about 20 minutes later.
00:01:31
Speaker
And I'm absolutely seething. So um I'm fighting the good fight. I'm here. um And yeah, to dissect a bit of fantasy, I guess.
Strategic Player Choices
00:01:41
Speaker
Louis, if you want, we ah we'll get Jordy to pull some strings. um We'll get you on five podcasts with Bales this week just to get you a little bit more cash. I need a few super chats. Yeah, I definitely need some super chats this week because that's going to cost me a bomb.
00:01:56
Speaker
Beautiful. And I did mention off the top, Geordie's back with us. And Geordie, I was a little bit sort of worried about you over the weekend. ah The Sydney game was happening. Brodie Grundy scored a 51. And I just thought, you know, Geordie was so gung-ho on him. He must have started him. And yeah, apparently not. You're a bit of a fraud deceiving the listeners there, mate. What happened? You didn't start, Grundy.
00:02:19
Speaker
No, I switched him to English and yeah, I did write in the chat, would you guys disown me if I did switch? But so you didn't respond, so I thought it was okay. So I did and I'm glad I did.
00:02:30
Speaker
um Yeah, it was just it was literally just the run of English. i was like, you know what, I'm just going to go him over Grundy. But it is concerning. I'm hoping that knock in the first quarter will bounce back this week and good trade target for us.
00:02:45
Speaker
Yeah, bounce back this weekend against the toughest ruck matchup combo in the league, Hawthorne, the Meakin Reeves. But I've deliberately left this guy until last. We actually forgot he was on the podcast having been away for so long.
John Harmy's Humorous Return
00:03:00
Speaker
We do have two-time top 10 finisher and runner-up in 2019, John Harmy. And I've actually prepared something for you, Harmy.
00:03:09
Speaker
bit of intro music, a bit of John Cena. Here we go.
00:03:24
Speaker
The time is now, John Harmy, welcome back. Oh, thanks, Holmesy. Very glad to be back. And, yeah, like you, experiencing the highs and lows of fantasy football. Started off early in the round when I had grill on field, thought I was a hero. The next day, had Jax on the bench, was a complete flop, and then redeemed myself Sunday Arvo with Robertson on field. So, yeah. Yep. um Managed to catch ah quite a bit of the footy on the weekend and, yeah, it was it was a lot of fun to watch some of the games.
00:03:57
Speaker
Harmi, let's not sugarcoat it, mate. we add We had a rough year last year. We we spent some times out in in the Dossie ranks. It was a bit tough for you, but I have actually prepared something else for you. I know it's been a long time coming, but we have had our number one fan call into the show just to provide you a bit of a message. So just here we go. I've got this for you. G'day, PodPod family. It is your boy, Dossie. Hear your roar.
00:04:24
Speaker
old friend Dossie back on the airwaves to provide a message for Harmy. Congratulations, Harmy. A heartfelt thank you and warm welcome back to your former glory after being in the woeful Dossie ranks for a number of years now.
00:04:41
Speaker
Now, that is what Holmesy asked me to say. However, it is not the truth, Harmy. I welcome you to the Dossie ranks now in the upper echelon of fantasy greatness. Dossie over on the Superior Format Supercoach, make sure you register online now supercoach.com.au, is up in the up in the top 1% with all the great coaches, just like Harmy. So welcome, Harmy, to the goaded ranks where you belong, up in the Dossie ranks. Congratulations again, Harmy, and farewell, PodPod family.
Stato and Dossie Picks of the Week
00:05:13
Speaker
Well, thank you, Holmesy. I mean, I do feel very privileged to receive um the mention from our former friend, Dossie. But look, I think he's probably deceived if you do. So if he is up that high, that means he hasn't started with Jack Bowers and Paddy Dow. So stay true to yourself, Dossie.
00:05:33
Speaker
its Oh, that's elite, boys. let's Let's get stuck into it. Back for 2026. Back to our awards and and chatting about how our rankings went. So, Louis, I'm going to kick it off with you.
00:05:47
Speaker
Give us your score and your rank and we'll start to go through your Stato Pick of the Week and your Dossie Pick of the Week. Yep, so ah i scored a twenty thirty two which has me ranked out at 42,300. So not the greatest start. um I suppose we'll roll straight into our our picks here, Holmesy. The Stato pick of the week for me is Dan Houston. I jumped on this podcast last week and I said, look...
00:06:16
Speaker
if dan houston comes out and he goes 120 it might be the absolute biggest miss um of the year and and that's exactly what he did ah you know that cash generation is well and truly moving now and i think there's a little bit more confidence between uh coaches who own him and those that don't as well that maybe that role is going to stick and that he can be that main distributor down back so Certainly giving my stater pick to Dan Houston. My dossie pick of the week, though, has to go to Colby McKercher. This one hurt on the Sunday, especially watching Roos absolutely demolish.
00:06:56
Speaker
My team, Port, scored just the 40 points. Time was heavily managed and the role was far from what I wanted it to be. Certainly was picking him to be off that halfback flank.
00:07:09
Speaker
He's been replaced by 35-year-old Luke Parker. He's now playing midfield 30% and sitting on a half-forward flank instead. I would say magnificent coaching Clarko, but they did go on to win by about eight or nine goals. So, yeah, this is this is going to be, a yeah, this is one that's probably going to be an immediate trade out, I think, for me.
00:07:35
Speaker
Yeah, we'll we'll get to that in our in our strategy discussion. It's one of those ones when there's smoke, there's usually fire, but we've jumped at these ones before with Colby and and it it has bitten us. So yeah, it was probably, I didn't start him, but I can't imagine it was a good feeling to not have him come on the ground until almost the 20 minute mark in the in the first quarter, but I digress. We'll get there later on.
00:07:58
Speaker
i am next, Lou, and I'm not much further ahead of you, to be honest. So I had the 2042, which has me at a rank of
00:08:09
Speaker
My Stato pick of the week, and it's the only sort of thing keeping me happy at the moment, is I've managed to nail my rookies. So I've got all of Milan, Murdoch, Cook, LeMires, Jagger, Grill, Jarks. So basically any rook that that popped on the weekend that we needed to have, I've at least got in my squad. Now, I didn't manage to get many of them on field, which is why I ended up where I am. But relatively happy having nailed those, which means I should hopefully be able to make some moves this week rather than having to patch up those rookies. But my dossie pick of the week, and this one's on me, but I did start Kitty Coleman.
00:08:47
Speaker
I liked the role. I thought that with the game speeding up those halfback distributors, He'd get amongst it for Brisbane. You know, all of the defenders for Brisbane basically go 75, 80 plus.
00:08:58
Speaker
But watching that game on the weekend, he was well off the pace. Brisbane got pumped. So with the bye this week, he's probably someone that I took a punt on but didn't pay off and I'll be looking to move off quickly.
00:09:11
Speaker
Jordy, we have you next. Yep, so I got the 2088. That puts me at a rank of 22,768. So not too bad.
00:09:23
Speaker
um i think, yeah, I had some of those rookies, as Harmy said, I had a few of those on field, which was nice. But my Stato Pick of the Week, as we talked at the top of the show, switching Grundy to English.
00:09:33
Speaker
So I'll give him the Stato Pick of the Week. And I had him
Fantasy Scores and Reflections
00:09:36
Speaker
captain, so that was nice on the Saturday Arvo. And the Dossie pick of the week, I went with a bit of a pod and I faded Sam Walsh and I started Will Ashcroft instead, about the similar price point. But um yeah, 67 from him. He had the role, 65% CBAs.
00:09:54
Speaker
um Obviously, we'd clog out. So just it was the M2 in the midfield. just thought maybe he may be a bit better there. But I'm happy to to hold him and hopefully he's got a good run coming up. So hopefully he can bounce back.
00:10:08
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. Brisbane, I don't think any of us saw that that flogging that Sydney gave Brisbane on the weekend. They're usually always competitive in in whatever game they play and for them to just lie down in that first half was was quite concerning. They are missing a lot of best 22 players. We always thought they had very good depth, which they do, but obviously making that granny and and coming in a bit flat, hopefully that'll turn around for you. Jordy, Harmi, let's do it.
00:10:35
Speaker
Yeah, that's bit unlucky there, I reckon, Jordy with Ashcroft. So for me, I scored a 2160.
00:10:47
Speaker
As I said, that could have been better if I had Jakes on... Field is a bit of a disappointing one, that. Even thought about trading in a red dot, which I probably could have done now. But anyway, that's cool. You don't win it in round one, do you?
00:11:02
Speaker
And that puts me at a rank of 5, 6, 8, 2.
00:11:07
Speaker
That dropped, actually that dropped about, was watching the ranks, dropped about 2,000 spots at the end when people's emergencies flipped over for the ones that are had Marshall or who's the for their time on ground.
00:11:23
Speaker
ah My Stato Pick of the Week, I'll give it to Zach Merritt, who I started with. can't remember what he had at half-time. I was about 65, 68, something like that. So he started off really well and ended up with a 112. I was pretty happy with what he did.
00:11:38
Speaker
And my Dossie Pick of the Week, I'm going to stick with the Bombers, Lockie Blackiston. I'll probably get to this one a bit later because I didn't really like what I saw.
00:11:49
Speaker
i know gave away a number of free kicks and lost points in the last quarter, but um yeah, he probably didn't do what I thought he would. So bit disappointed and I didn't have too many picks that failed, but I'd say that one wasn't a success for a few reasons.
00:12:07
Speaker
Well, might as well touch on it now, Harmi. What didn't you like about the pick? Because he had the role that we wanted him to have. Clearly, Essendon got smashed in that game, particularly in the second half. He was on 53 at three-quarter time before having that negative six final quarter. I mentioned off the top, you know, that Meek-Reeves combo is is going to be the toughest ruck combo going around in terms of scoring points.
00:12:32
Speaker
priced at 38, he's going to have to be on probably throughout the buyers anyway. do you think even with the role, he's not going to be a scorer or can you see him turning it around a bit? oh I would say he had role. wouldn't say he had the best role. He got beaten at the taps regularly ah and wasn't really outperforming around the ground, which I would have thought given he should have been more mobile than Reeves, you know, like that sort of thing. um He didn't make any money. Hold on, let's have a look at him. Oh, I don't have him there. Yep, here we go.
00:13:13
Speaker
He made $5,000, sorry. ah That score is built into his rolling average now for next, well, at least four weeks, isn't it? Five-week rolling average. He has a nice matchup this week against Port. I think it is, isn't it, Lou?
00:13:30
Speaker
And then... He rolls into some very difficult games. So i guess personally I started as him as somebody that I thought could score 70 or ah more for the first month at least and make 150 to 200,000 in doing so. Now I have real question marks around whether either of those things are going to occur.
00:13:58
Speaker
Yep, fair enough. I think we give him another week against Vicentini this week to see what he can do against Port Adelaide, hopefully get that cash moving. But yeah, maybe he's a ah bench option moving forward after this week if you know we're going to have guys like Jarks, Jakes and Grill and all these big scorers in defence or shifting around in the midfield to get our rookies on. So don't mind that.
00:14:21
Speaker
Quick update on the PodPod challenge. It is back again for 2026 with over 1,000 coaches in there. The lead code is still in the show description below. so if you want to jump in there and get amongst the PodPod community, I would highly recommend it Two coaches, no one in the top 100 so far, but two coaches that have made a very good start to the year. We have Navy Hoos, who is ranked 136 with a score of 22-61, if you don't mind.
00:14:50
Speaker
And then two points behind, Fill Your Boots, with a twenty two fifty nine who is ranked 158. So really looking forward to seeing the Pod Pod family move into that
Dealing with Player Injuries
00:15:00
Speaker
top 100. I think we had 18 or 19 coaches last year in the top 100 by the season's end and we're aiming to build on that this year and as a reminder the the winner of the pod pod challenge will receive a custom afl fantasy ring from our friends at supercoachchampion.com but boys let's get into our general discussion and this one hurts lou
00:15:22
Speaker
Errol Goulden, I was pumping him up all pre-season. Moreira's Magic subscribers would have known that he was my M1. What did he do? 120 in opening round, was on 99 at three-quarter time in this one. Yes, the role wasn't fantastic, but he was back to doing Errol things and he goes down with that shoulder injury. Now confirmed out for four months.
00:15:45
Speaker
50% owned, so he is very, very popular and I dare say a lot of elite savvy coaches would have started him with that value. The question is, where do we go from here?
00:15:56
Speaker
Yeah, well, that is quite literally the million-dollar question for a lot of coaches this week. um I mean, it's going to lay in the context, isn't it? It's going to depend if somebody like yourself, Holmesy, who's nailed all the rookies, needs to needs to be targeting them this week or whether or not they can have a look at some of these other, ah call it discounted premiums, but maybe just premiums in general. And um I'm sure we'll touch on...
00:16:24
Speaker
A couple of these premiums a little bit later, Holmesy, because I'm not entirely sure a whole bunch are actually presenting themselves at this stage. um Just having a look around the community at this stage, I think that there's a lot of coaches that are kind of looking at two fix-ups. And look the rookies on a lot of coaches' lips are Braden Cook and they are Milan Murdoch.
00:16:48
Speaker
And i think we're going to be seeing a lot of coaches trading down via a golden and via another player ah into these two rookies. You know, we know that value is is so important early and generating that cash and jumping on the right rookies.
00:17:06
Speaker
as soon as possible, certainly early on in the season, is is vitally important. And I think that's going to be a popular trade this week, Holmesy. Where are you sitting here? I know that you've sort of got these rookies.
00:17:18
Speaker
So I'm keen to hear your opinion as somebody who's potentially looking at jumping across to another premium, but also if you can put yourself in the driver's seat of coaches who have maybe missed a Cook, have maybe missed a Murdoch, but they have a Gould and they've got another fix up.
Cash Generation Strategies
00:17:36
Speaker
rookie trade on the other end, what you might do yourself? Yeah, well, I want to throw it to Harmy first just to get his opinion because I am hearing now the the community has shifted largely thanks to DT Lemon, but, you know, Selby and others around these fixed-up trades needing to be, you know, the big cash generators. So I really understand from that point of view, but you still need to score points as well. And I'm hearing the very popular move this week of downgrading Errol and then downgrading another failed pick to bring in Cook and Murdoch and then carrying in, I'm seeing some coaches carrying in 800,000, 1 mil, even 1.2 mil. And personally, yeah, or and or maybe even more, Lou. And personally, I think this is fraught with danger. We are seeing a game at the moment that is so high-paced
00:18:27
Speaker
There are injuries left, right and center. We just have to look to Philippo and others on the weekend. We're already starting to see the carnage. If you carry in that kind of cash with the aim of using that for an upgrade next week to take a rookie up to maybe a Nick Dacos, Max Holmes, whatever that that premium is coming off the buy, if you get carnage next week, you're not going to be able to spend that cash again.
00:18:48
Speaker
And it just it could just keep going. And that's that's what's a bit concerning for me, Harmi, is that we still need to score points. what what are your opinion on these coaches that are looking to potentially carry over north of a mill into the following round?
00:19:02
Speaker
That is a lot of money, isn't it? um I think that we could all remember a time that we've been caught out by an injury when we had a planned trade and it wasn't able to be fulfilled. So, yes, there is a chance that that would occur.
00:19:19
Speaker
um I don't really like the idea of carrying across a million dollars. i expect that that is likely to be um because those coaches don't have any faith in the teams that weren't on the round zero buy, that makes sense. So like yeah West Coast, Essendon, the teams that didn't play round zero.
00:19:44
Speaker
But, I mean, there are options there. So I'm not really in favour of it. um You know, that's far too much money in my opinion. But I guess what are we? Best 18. So I guess those coaches are thinking, geez, I might get a pop score from half a dozen rookies and that's going to carry me through this week. But you're right, there's every chance that that could backfire.
00:20:08
Speaker
And just before we we jump back to you, Holmes, to get your two cents on that, what I will say from banking a lot of cash over over this week is if you're double downgrading this week, if you're carrying over 800, 1 mil, maybe even more,
00:20:24
Speaker
into next week. Potentially, you're also eyeing off a double upgrade ah you know next week as well. So, yes, understanding that things can happen out of our control. There might be injury suspensions where that puts a bit of a logjam there, but also across two weeks, that might still look like a you know a one up, one down, one up, one down, and being able to potentially trade into some of these guys coming off of the round two buy. So,
00:20:51
Speaker
It's not an ideal situation, but I think you do have to roll with the punches a little bit here. And, you know, none of us expected Gordon to be out after round one. So, um you know, potentially ah um' i'm kind of looking at it optimistically. This might be a chance to get a little bit of data based off the new game style that we're seeing from pretty much every team across the competition to be able to trade into...
00:21:14
Speaker
potentially two premiums next week where we can have a little bit more confidence and get some more points on the board the following week. And look, if we're saying, you know, some of these rookies have impressed us this week, I know they can be a little bit of rollercoaster week to week, but I think, you know, speaking quite generally, the rookies do look like they are producing some pretty decent scores here. Some of them have some really nice roles.
00:21:40
Speaker
might be able to be something that we can get away with in a best 18 system. But understanding that, yes, you know best 18 does certainly favour that ceiling, but I'm not sure it's necessarily there with a lot of the popular starting picks anyway.
Team Management and Trade Dilemmas
00:21:56
Speaker
Holmesy, you said you had all the rookies, but if you've ah got Cook and that sort of thing, I'm expecting that when Lockie Doverston goes 100 this week, it'll be advantage to Lou, Geordie and myself over you. um Look, just with your trades though, Holmesy, if you're feeling like you've got them all, I guess that puts a bit of a different spin on the way that you're looking at your trades this week if you're not targeting yeah those guys. Yeah.
00:22:25
Speaker
Yeah, well, i mean I mean, before we do that, Hamian, let's just talk Cook and Murdoch because they are the two players that are on everyone's minds for this week to bring in. I mean, Braden Cook, he was he was ah he was really good on the weekend, right, against Collingwood, playing out on that wing, mature age, 23 years old.
00:22:43
Speaker
But he's priced at 39 now. He's not cheap. ah The exact price, if you give me two seconds. So he's gone up He's now worth 386K. he's now worth three hundred and eighty six k so he's not cheap.
00:22:55
Speaker
And then Milan Murdoch plays that high half-forward role for West Coast. I actually think he's the more must-have compared to Braden Cook. If you've got a Doverston, Robertson and Leo Lombard combo in the forward line, I don't think you need to be breaking your side to bring in Braden Cook. Yes, I think he's going to be good. But do we really think on that volatile wing he's going to be much more than a 60, 65 guy when when it all comes out in the wash? Probably not, which means you're you're going to maybe get 20 points of value, maybe 25, whereas Milan Murdoch priced at 29,000.
00:23:31
Speaker
There's every chance in that high half forward role for Eagles that he goes the same as Cook. Yes, he's mid only, but he's potentially going to get forward status come round 6-2 because he is playing exclusively as a forward.
00:23:42
Speaker
and and there So I would say that Murdoch's the more important one and then maybe you look at Cook as well, but I'm not sure is the the exact must-have that everyone's talking about just at this point in time because of how expensive he is now being priced at 39. But to answer your question, Harmi,
00:23:58
Speaker
I am looking at obviously fixing Errol and then Kadeen Coleman. So I've got two hundred and thirty k banked from last week. I need to fix both of those players.
00:24:11
Speaker
Jordy, the thing I was talking about with Lou earlier and and he kind of mentioned it is that I want to be able to fix Errol, but the issue that I'm having at the moment is I don't like a lot of the premiums that don't have a buy coming up, which we're going to go over in a little bit.
00:24:24
Speaker
But then they're all they're all priced quite highly and I'm not sure I want to trade into a buy player either knowing that you know if I go, for example, a Finn Callaghan or someone of that ilk that you know in two weeks' time or a week's time, they're going to be sitting on a buy anyway. So have you looked at the premium options or are you looking at sort of doubling down too?
00:24:44
Speaker
Yes, and the players, Jordy, perhaps. Yeah, ah um I'm looking at the double down just because of the cash gen. That was my first thought with the, just got a bit of a straight bat. But um I actually think Harmi's man Merritt is interesting, interesting me the most just because he had CBAs. He had 80% tog.
00:25:01
Speaker
He wasn't getting stuffed around in that midfield. Harmi, I don't know what happened with that midfield, but 60% tog for every other midfielder except for Zach Merritt. So what's happening there?
00:25:15
Speaker
Yeah, well, I watched it. Oh, actually, did turn it off, um given the scoreline. ah Yeah, I was pretty happy with that, Tom, given the picks that I made, other than Parrish. Yeah, I don't know if that's something that they can keep up. I mean, yeah, that low time of time on ground and rotating those midfielders through the bench...
00:25:41
Speaker
Well, it didn't work very well, did it? Because it's not as if we were smashing the clearances either. So I expect things will change. But the point you've made is very good.
00:25:51
Speaker
um Merit wasn't disadvantaged by that, but some of the others in there were. yeah Yeah, so I suppose, Harmi, the thing I'm toying with, right, in terms of the premium midfield options, and there are some good defender options, I will admit, but even they're quite expensive now and a lot of them have a buy. But because of how well the rookies went and how well some of the value guys went, the magic number has been smashed. And a lot of these midfield premiums now find themselves dropping in cash, but actually being priced quite
Finding Value in Premium Players
00:26:23
Speaker
highly. So if we if we purely talk about players that don't have a buy to come,
00:26:28
Speaker
Jordan Dawson's now priced at 114. You've got Zach Merritt priced at 108. You've got Jai Caldwell priced at 107. You know, outside of that, even like yeah Caleb Sorong's now priced at 98.
00:26:42
Speaker
Brayshaw, you can't touch with that 50, but he's still priced at 100. We still need to find value in these premium picks. And although i like the idea of a Jai Caldwell and a Zach Merritt, do I really see them going north of 107, 108 when we are seeing these midfield numbers come considerably down? I i i couldn't tell you.
00:27:02
Speaker
Look, just one thing on the magic number that you've raised there, Holmesie, is... It includes the round zero adjustment as well. So it's actually not a normal one round change in a price cycle. So just just don't expect that to be the same again the next round, I suppose. So you're right, there's been an adjustment, but it's not going to be the same next round.
00:27:25
Speaker
yeah Yeah, I get that. But at the same time, if Zach Merritt is priced at 108 now, that's the figure that I'll be paying for him. moving forward. And ah I'm not sure he's north of 108. If I had to put my life on it in terms of that midfield rotation and how it looked, I'd think he's going to come back a bit, Lou.
00:27:44
Speaker
This is where i like the potential double down because, look, while I think Cook is probably a this-week play and maybe next week, ah you know, the time has passed and certainly not suggesting you can't pick Murdoch next week either, certainly if he puts up another display like he did on the weekend. But...
00:28:01
Speaker
ah with You know, if you're not picking these guys, it feels like we're kind of waiting for a rookie to come out of the woodwork a little bit next week. And there's no guarantee that that's necessarily going to happen.
00:28:13
Speaker
Generally, coaches, when they pick their round one team, they're going to come in with... you know, some convictions and they're not necessarily going to throw them out the window after one game. So that's where a few concerns lie is, you know, if you're not trading into these rookies now, not necessarily going to get any better options the following week, which is where I sort of lean towards that, that value play with these double, with this double rookie downgrade potentially. And, you know,
00:28:42
Speaker
what you've what you've said there homesy in terms of value with these premiums is certainly ringing around in my head at the moment there's just not a whole lot of value there at the moment
00:28:53
Speaker
I've got something to add on the just the the value thing. So we saw the game change quite a lot. So it was a lot more open and transition players went up. I think it was 12% and the can the stoppages
Is Nick Dacos Worth the Price?
00:29:07
Speaker
went down. So I'm a little bit worried about trading into these big midfielders. So I know there's some value, but I think the next week, potentially Nick Dacos might be a really big talking point of do we pay up and trade him in? But if the transition's up, he's like the perfect player that is gonna benefit from that. Did we lose Jordy?
00:29:27
Speaker
Just there for boys?
00:29:31
Speaker
Look, Dacos is interesting. I'm just going to cut in there, Jordy. So I'm not sure whether we had you or not, but he's now priced at 118. So like unless he comes down over his buy, so as Harmy mentioned with the with the round zero adjustments, if maybe his price that comes down a little bit next week.
00:29:47
Speaker
But at this time of year, is paying up 118 for a Nick Dacos smart, Harmy? Do we really think he he could go 125 and be valuing a smash? But yeah, what are your thoughts on Dacos, Harmy?
00:30:08
Speaker
You're muted, Harmy. We've had a nightmare here. Good minute there. i Yeah, look, I think you're right, Holmesy. I mean, you don't want to be paying full price for any player, right? He's had a couple of good games.
00:30:25
Speaker
Looking at last season, those tagged games really drag him down. And they I'll tell you now, there will be an opportunity to get him cheaper at some point during the season. However, it's the scores that you're going to miss out on between now and then, and if that's going to make a difference to your overall ranking at the end of the season. So I can see an argument each way, but personally, I'm not really in favour of paying 118 for any player.
00:30:53
Speaker
Yep. So some other sort of injury news. Filippo just doing Filippo things. Corky couldn't run out the rest of the game. I'll put my hand up for the first kissed moment of 2026, being able to take Cook's 84 with Filippo's score dropping off in the the best 18. I think that was the universe's way of just evening up a little bit of the the rookie roulette that I found myself on the edge of. Cheating.
00:31:20
Speaker
Cheating. It's in the rules of the game, Jonathan Harmy. If he's out this week, I'm not sure whether I'd trade him or not. I think I have more pressing issues and in the best 18 system, I think I could probably get away with it. His role was good.
00:31:33
Speaker
He looked really good in that first quarter, got burnt a few times in the second, but you know it is just once again highlighting that unfortunately his body does let him down at AFL level.
00:31:45
Speaker
Todd Marshall, did did it? Any of you boys actually go Todd Marshall? Yep. So we've got two two Todd Marshall owners here on the podcast. ah Latest injury report was that he's not even going to be a test, but Jordy, has that moved to being one week as of today?
00:32:05
Speaker
Well, Port have just put a, the injury report out and he's completely not on there at all. So he's not even a test and it says he'll train Thursday. So in my view, it that sounds like he's playing unless something is is different to that. How do you read that, Louis? I think to me, he's in.
00:32:23
Speaker
Yeah, well, I mean, that's the best information we can go off of. Hopefully he does get up. um Even if he doesn't, it sounds like it's going to be a one, you know, maybe two week injury at the max. I think, you know, given he went like, what, 38 points in the first half, that's definitely a guy that can potentially make 150, 200K over the next four to six weeks. so Definitely think there's still some money left to be made there. I'm not sure i'd be rushing off to trade him just yet, I think.
00:32:54
Speaker
Potentially, he can be a loop option this week and and then come straight back onto your field or onto the bench to to hopefully make some money um over the next couple of weeks. you know hes He's still quite cheap. and yeah I just think he's probably not one I really want to waste a trade on just yet.
00:33:16
Speaker
Yeah, no, I'd agree with that. He actually looked good in that first half, scored okay, had some kick-ins. They like they like using him. So I think if he plays, you hold, obviously. And even if he if it looks like just being one week, I don't think you burn a trade on him down to a cook. I think there's better use there.
00:33:35
Speaker
Harmi, we've spoken about the the Errol Goulden trade and and what people are looking to do there in terms of the double down and whatnot. But we have some other quite popular players. I don't have the ownership off the top of my head, but they're quite popular in terms of your Colby scoring is 40, Bergman scoring is 52, and then Archie Roberts with that 59 in the weird role.
00:33:56
Speaker
How do coaches determine whether or not those type of players are urgent trade-outs when you put that alongside an Errol Goulden? I mean, if you're double downing with those two players, you could be looking at 1.6 million plus. So do you are there any of those players that you'd suggest maybe be holding to give one one more week or are they just must trades considering how much cash they're likely to bleed over the next few weeks?
00:34:21
Speaker
Well, you'd have to have a pretty special team with no issues to be trading out Goulden one of Mkircha, Bergman, Roberts because those guys in the backline aren't, you know, they're not compulsory trades. I think you could certainly hold them. um Yeah.
00:34:44
Speaker
I don't know The thing is, with McKercher and Bergman, there was a level of uncertainty and injury risk going into the round. If you've picked them, you've picked them with that knowledge um that hasn't changed. And I reckon that's the reason why their scores were affected.
00:35:01
Speaker
So... Yeah, I just think that you'd probably be fine to sit on them, but i don't know. I mean, McKerch is low time on ground. He's, you know, wasn't right for round one or wasn't fit and firing ready to go, was he? So i think there's still a level of concern around both him and Bergman. Roberts, I think there's they gave him bit of a crap roll on the night and I think he'll be fine personally. Yeah.
00:35:30
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, personally, if I had to rank the priority trade-out order of those three players, I mean, if we take a step back, we were picking Colby in the preseason for that halfback role. He's got that mid-forward split, which we've seen him not be that dominant fantasy scorer in that role and and with that managed time on ground. So I think he'd be the number one trade-out priority, knowing full well he's got the Eagles this week and you could get a pop score, but he's still going to lose cash and not someone I'd want to have long-term.
00:35:58
Speaker
Myles Bergman as well, I think he'd probably be number two just because he's got the midfield role, but it's managed. Maybe Rosie goes back um to provide a bit of leadership back there and and maybe that increases Bergman's role. But with Wines coming back in, what does that necessarily look like? And Archie Roberts, I think there was there was talk of maybe him being sick. So does that explain his low time on ground? He was like their highest time on ground player last year.
00:36:24
Speaker
I'd be happy to to give that one another week and see how he goes against Port Adelaide. But I think it's looking like all three of those guys might not be the option, Lou, for that sort of value premium in defence.
Concerns Over Team Dynamics
00:36:36
Speaker
Yes, it it is looking that way. i think with McKercher, the concern is that Riley Hardiman's got to come back into that team and so does George Wardlaw. So there will be players that come out, but in terms of the McKercher midfield time, i would assume that Wardlaw's going to affect that. He can't really play in any other position and then...
00:36:57
Speaker
In terms of half-back time, I know he didn't play any on the weekend, but Hardeman is probably going to put him a little bit back in the pecking order there. So, yeah, I've i've got alarm bells. the ah The only positives I can come up with him is, like you said, the tog and the match-up. But, um ah you know, we really look for the role, don't we, in fantasy, and he's going to start bleeding cash quite quickly. Myles Bergman, he's going to be an interesting one because his role was pretty good in the first half. He certainly...
00:37:26
Speaker
Didn't score like it. Neither did any of the Port players. It was like a 1250 fantasy point game for Port Adelaide, which is just so far out the realm for what they've done previously.
00:37:39
Speaker
Under a new coach, obviously. So I guess that is hard to predict, but also i wouldn't expect that to be the norm. The big thing with Bergman is that he was moved back in that in that last quarter when when Marshall went down to become a defender. So it does look like he's going to be that guy that's still going to plug some holes, which is a concern. But if a key defender is named, I'm still...
00:38:04
Speaker
A little bit optimistic that maybe Bergman can can hold that midfield role. I think he can still float around 50% CBAs, which is what we sort of said is the hitting zone for him in the preseason.
00:38:16
Speaker
And like you said, Rosie going back into defense, I think is something that's probably going to happen. They lacked a lot of leadership back there. And I think they just need a cool head, somebody that can slow down the play a little bit. So that's what I'm tipping. And then Roberts, this was one I was always nervous about. I think you want him as a halfback flanker, right, Harmy? We haven't seen a lot of what he's been able to do as a midfielder.
00:38:42
Speaker
think they've got plenty of midfielders. I think we saw in the third quarter that the Tog went into the toilet for Caldwell and Parrish especially. Merritt stayed in there, but those are their three guys, right? Plus Durham. So, you know, not really picking an M5 midfielder at 85. I want him across half back and hopefully that reverts to the mean. And and if that's the case, then look, I could build a case for for holding Roberts as well.
00:39:06
Speaker
Yeah, it also wouldn't surprise me if Isaac Kakko is fit this week that he comes into the side, they drop one of the young defenders, Roberts goes back there and then you know Roberts and Kakko are that sort of fifth midfielder rather than Roberts having that really low tog being exclusively through there. But, Jordy, before we move on to the questions, we kind of touched on it before it or at least I did, and it's the thought of if a coach doesn't want to double downgrade this week and they want to trade in a premium,
00:39:35
Speaker
the idea of trading into a premium that either has a buy this week, like coming up, sorry, or in two weeks' time in terms of the Saints and GWS players, does that scare you a little bit or is it the you know the thought process of, well, you were happy to start them with the buy, your structure is set up that way anyway, as long as you're not carrying too many and you'd be happy to go there game theory-wise if coaches aren't really considering that because they're double downing or they don't want to bring in a buy player. what do you think?
00:40:06
Speaker
Yeah, and I think this goes back to Harmi's or annual point, Holmesy, at the start of the show of we the game is we've got to get points on field. So I was actually counting today my team and I've got 10 players that aren't rookies this week.
00:40:20
Speaker
So it's sort of that question of, all right, even though we have got a bye, do I want to get a Jack Sinclair in for two weeks? I know he's got the bye in round four. But I'll be able to cover that a lot more with these other primos.
00:40:33
Speaker
Whereas this week, I sort of might need a primo to make that up. So, i mean, I was mentioning Louis today and I thought, you know I'm still keen on doing the double down, but I feel like I'm going to take a hit this week if I do that.
00:40:47
Speaker
And just your comments of before, it sort of got me thinking. So, look, I started it. I've got a Sinclair on my team. So, I've been happy to do it. And I don't think...
00:40:57
Speaker
I think if you're going to have them for the season long, I think you can still go there with a guy that's going to be their best 22 player. So a Callahan potentially, a Sinclair.
00:41:09
Speaker
i mean, the only option other option is probably your Merritt or your Sarong, right? And Friot's game style, I just i would sort of want to see a bit more data for us from Sarong.
00:41:21
Speaker
That's sort of why i feel like Merritt is the safest one.
00:41:25
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, Sinclair's priced at 109, right? So he's not cheap anymore. Callaghan at least is priced at 102 and fits the mold of that inside-outside midfielder that's actually going to to benefit from the transition style. Although I do worry about him being the one that cops the attention. If I had to put money on it, Windhager goes to him this week after Windy went to Nassar. Was it to Nassar?
00:41:49
Speaker
No, sorry, Pickett. Yeah, Windy went to pick it this week. they Windy and Asai are playing same side. So um yeah, that that would be interesting as well, trading into a player that might potentially have a tag. So yeah, I'm i'm not going to rule it out, but it does it does make it interesting trading into a player that has a buy. But boys, let's get stuck into the listener questions to finish off the pod. But just as a reminder, once again, in 2026, Podpod has partnered with Q Platforms to help answer all of your AFL fantasy questions. So
00:42:21
Speaker
for Morera's Magic in-season members, Selby and myself will be recording a podcast on Thursday night, which is gonna be answering all of the general questions and themes and and what I'm thinking in terms of my trading strategy. But if you would like a guaranteed answer and to help support the Podpod for a small fee, you have the ability for a personalized audio response to any of your AFL fantasy questions. So we have full team reviews, questions on individual players,
00:42:49
Speaker
Anything that you want to ask, if you head over to askmeonq.com forward slash pod pod AFL, that is QU. The link is in the show description below and we will help answer those questions so that you get a guaranteed answer. But Harmi, the first question we have is from Sean.
00:43:08
Speaker
Hey guys, have six hundred k in the bank already, but with Goulden and Gallup needing to be traded, are we sideways trading a primo for Goulden? or is the cash gen rookies of Murdoch and Cook priorities, even if it means banking, 1.3 million? So we've kind of already touched on that, but I suppose the interesting component that we haven't sort of mentioned too much is that does the best 18 mean that we can hide behind having how much cash we're looking to have, or is it too much still?
00:43:37
Speaker
You know, Ty Gallup, what did he score? Sorry. Let's have 16. 16. Wow, 16. sixteen Don't laugh at him. Well, bit where he'll be on on i e on his buy, won't he? So, geez, that's not the best result. um Oh, look, I'd be trying to get a rookie and a premium personally.
00:43:59
Speaker
um I think that that's what I would be doing. I mean, this whole notion of carrying across all these and millions of dollars, I just not don't really like the idea.
00:44:10
Speaker
If it were me, I'd be trying to get the best rookie you can, And then yeah, your best premium that you can as well. Yep, and I'm with you on that one, Harmy, but as I as i mentioned before, my situation's a bit different. So if you want to go with John Harmy, who is absolutely back this year and seeing it like beach balls, then try and find a premium or you can go down the avenue of Louis and Jordy who are looking to double downgrade. Jordy, this one is from Olivia Calvi, Hi Pod Pod, struggling to find anyone screaming, pick me up to replace Goulden.
00:44:44
Speaker
Ideally targeting a player with no buy and a ceiling. Do we play it safe with a merit or LDU type or get creative with a Luke Jackson via some DPP or a Jack Ross type who they really like that midfield role? So help the listener out here, Geordie. What are you thinking?
00:45:03
Speaker
What if Luke Jackson, he was amazing. 125. I know he had a soft matchup, but the great thing about him, Ruck Contest, he was the number one guy. Sean Darcy had 45% tog, so that's a good thing.
00:45:17
Speaker
um I think it's merit for me. I've sort of been on the merit train the whole show. i would be interested in Luke Jackson. He's got some DPP there. So I assume that that means you're benching McAndrew or a Vicentini or someone like that to...
00:45:35
Speaker
Yeah, to play Jackson. I would say if you are doing, if you don't have a primo rut, go Jackson. But if you're having to put Jackson R2, I think I'm still happy to run these McCandrew, Vicentini types at R2.
00:45:48
Speaker
So I'm going to stick with Merritt.
00:45:52
Speaker
Yeah, Jackson's interesting, right? Priced at 101, looked unreal on the weekend, but he's not going to get to ruck against a debutante and a 37-year-old blitzarbs every week.
00:46:03
Speaker
Has Max Gorn this week? So that's clearly a trickier matchup, but we do know grudge matchup against Melbourne. There's going to be plenty of outside ball there for him. So don't hate that idea and like the advice you gave there, Jordy. Louis, this one is from Wilson Bindi.
00:46:18
Speaker
Thoughts on Windsor as a trade out. good Could his low mark slash tackles and the Melbourne game style cap his scoring? And also thoughts on Millerer as a trade target. So we didn't speak about Wayne Millerer. I know Vams will be very happy happy listening to this one. So 34 touches as that main distributor of halfback scored the 111. I think he's priced at about 78, 79.
00:46:42
Speaker
You really need him to be that sort of top six-ish defender from that price tag to be value Lou. But, I mean, far out, he was good on the weekend. We did see St Kilda run right in defense against Collingwood the weekend before. So it was, could it be matchup based, has a much tougher game against the Bulldogs this week. But talk through Caleb Windsor first and then give your thoughts on Millerer.
00:47:05
Speaker
Yeah, look, Windsor potentially is a trade-out. I think I'd be inclined to give him one more week, but a lot of the concerns that Coach has had in the preseason has probably come to fruition there. I'm not sure Melbourne is going to be the most fantasy-friendly team This year as well, just in the way that they actually want to play. They moved the ball seriously quickly on the weekend. And I just don't think there's a whole lot of room for chippity-chip, which is what we want for a Windsor type.
00:47:34
Speaker
And look, the the concerns about him not being a massive accumulator, even despite having an accelerated role, were probably there. If I gave...
00:47:45
Speaker
If I give him an asterisk, look, he he was probably a little bit underdone. He had that big corky and he was even rumoured to be a little bit of a late out. So um it's a small asterisk. He had a gravy matchup. So I'm not sure I'm giving him too much of a pass there. But if I'm trading out Windsor, I don't know if I'm going up here and certainly not to a Miller. I think, like you said, Holmes, you really want him to be a top six defender upside. And I'm not sure that there's enough...
00:48:14
Speaker
off of a one-game sample size certainly, to be able to rely on Wayne Miller to be that guy. ah You know, you're you're spending a fair chunk of change to get up there. So he's at 790k now.
00:48:27
Speaker
um You know, Windsor's what? 200k, 250k less. I think I would rather go down and maybe dabble in a couple of these rookies that are going to generate a little bit more cash quickly.
00:48:37
Speaker
um i think there's every chance that their scores could... Not necessarily um you know swap over next week, but I'm just not sure that Miller is going to be putting up 100 scores every week and Windsor is going to be that 65 guy just yet. So for me, if um if I'm going to be trading out Windsor, I'm probably going down to a rookie and and taking my cash into the following week and just waiting for that extra week of data before trading into somebody that I'm a little bit more confident in. And that might be Millerer.
00:49:08
Speaker
As I said, you know, you you kind of want to trade into a guy that has that top six upside at this point. And, you know, he will still be underpriced then if that's going to be the case. If you, um Lou, having a look at the players that popped a nice one in round one and don't have a buy, could I sell you Jadon Short?
00:49:33
Speaker
Oh, what did he go? 114. see that. um Didn't see the game though, Holmesy. What do you think?
00:49:44
Speaker
He was good and backed it up for that preseason game against Melbourne where he had 70-odd just after halftime before the game got got called off. All the talk of him potentially moving out so that they could fit you know banks and grill and stuff back there.
00:49:59
Speaker
Army, correct me if I'm wrong, but Nick Vlosten didn't play, correct? No, that's right. And I reckon he'll be back this week. but So that's always it that's always a big one. that Different game. Different style of game to short.
00:50:12
Speaker
Yeah, he's a player back there. And you look at the numbers with Vlosten in the side, he had a big effect on Banks and Short last year. So i couldn't i couldn't trade into Short, I don't think. But the 114 is definitely something to take note of, Louie. I mean, before we move on, Millerer, this time last year, we were talking about Lockie Ash after his pop score and then his lower score.
00:50:33
Speaker
And then Lockie Ash just goes on to be that top six defender and those that got on really reap the rewards. So, you know, if someone likes Wayne Miller, I'm not going to talk them out of it.
00:50:44
Speaker
Back your gut on that one. If it pays off, it pays off. It's a hefty price tag at 79, but we see players have career years and and he's primed, I think, at 28 after finally getting past his fitness woes.
00:50:57
Speaker
I think what I would ask is what's changed in defense for Adelaide. They haven't had a guy who's been able to to put up top six numbers in defense for some time now. No keen and no hinge.
00:51:08
Speaker
Is that enough? you know Do you think those guys, you know is that enough to be able to elevate into top six? Yeah, maybe. um But I don't think Adelaide are going to be playing a back half game. I think they're going to be getting it out of that back line. They're such a tight unit. or at least they have been certainly last year. i think they're going to be wanting to play of more of a forward half game, especially with that that tall forward line.
00:51:34
Speaker
Harmi, this one is from Shenanigans. Can Rochelle keep up his scoring with the return of Rankin? So he scored 98 on the weekend. Didn't think he was too bad. A lot of people kind of mentioned that. they didn't They weren't really impressed with his game. He he was a bit of a plotter. he He scored well, but wasn't necessarily that good to the eye.
00:51:55
Speaker
Adding in Isaac Rankin, is that an extra body in the midfield? And Rochelle goes back to a bit more of the high half forward. I think you've got him. So if you've got him, you definitely hold. But could you recommend trading in a Rochelle from a Coleman or a Windsor or a Philippot even?
00:52:13
Speaker
Well, what's he priced at now? Let's have a quick look. can get that for you, mate. He's priced at 68. 68. 68. sixty eight sixty eight I had a bit of a theory on some players and Rochelle is one of those. Windsor's another.
00:52:31
Speaker
Players that got subbed out last year and I felt that their price was going to be suppressed because of that. So Rochelle was subbed four times last year. Made me think that he's going to go at a higher average than what he was last year regardless of how much midfield time that he had. He had a good chunk in the midfield. I don't think that...
00:52:53
Speaker
that's going to reduce from Rankin being back. If anything, it's probably going to increase his centre bounce usage. Let's just have a quick so look at the Adelaide midfield from the weekend. Just on that, Harmi. Sorry, just one thing to add. It sounds like Saligo trained with the Bees today and and might be the one that makes way, at least this week, being off a six day break and and not being as fit as he needs to be at this time of year with his health issues. So that might be one there where Saligo didn't have big CBAs anyway. I think it was about 13%, but that's a ah best 22 on his day player going out that can only be good for Rochelle.
00:53:29
Speaker
Well, did Paitland get suspended as well? I think he did, didn't he? Don't think so. Okay. All right. So we have Berry. So Sam Berry, most CBAs. Dawson, Peatling, Rochelle the same as Peatling, then Saligo. So, man, I just look at those guys and think Rochelle's got to be in there because he brings something different than, um you know, Peatling, Berry and Saligo that plod around a bit, that's all.
00:54:03
Speaker
Yep, fair enough. Don't mind that one. Yeah, I'd still probably look at trading him in. He's someone that I haven't ruled out just yet, but I am nervous in the back of my mind that Rankin being a ah top two or three player in that side is coming in and and how that looks from a ah market share perspective. Jordy, this one's from Lucy and this one hurts. Do they hold Brayshaw or trade him trade off him immediately to either Bont?
00:54:30
Speaker
So they've they've mentioned Bont, but I mean, Just talk about trading him in terms of going to another premium. Is Bray sure someone you've got to jump off? I think if your side is perfect, you've got the rookies, you're not missing someone. Like we've seen over the years, this time of the year, round one, like I've i've traded guys that I don't like and i and it's paid off. So I think if your side is perfect, you can do it. Otherwise, i would be holding Bray, but it is pretty concerning to have 84% CBAs.
00:55:02
Speaker
and get 53. As i sort of touched on earlier, I forgot to reference Vams, but Vams had a really good tweet out about the contested players and the transition. So a tweet that, if you are on Twitter, go and check it out. And I just feel like Brayshaw has just been accustomed to that. So um look, i would it depends on your team, but if you can, I would just trade him.
00:55:31
Speaker
Yeah, he was he was bad, 53. Everything that we sort of predicted in the preseason surrounding that Frio game style came to fruition. you know they They played really well, at least for sort of three quarters before they got run over, but they scored over 100 points and still had low 1,300 fantasy points. It's a very clear directive of going really fast with your Murphy reads, yeah getting the ball on the outside to your quicker players. and Brayshaw just, you know, that's a very decent sample size now of, you know, nine games to finish last year plus the first one this year that the role that he's playing for the side isn't necessarily a fantasy one, Harmi.
00:56:10
Speaker
Yeah, well, how do we reconcile this then? Because Brayshaw was in the middle um equally as much as Sarong, little bit more. So how do you reconcile that Sarong would be a good pick and Brayshaw is now a trade-out option?
00:56:27
Speaker
Yeah, I suppose. I mean, they were both pretty close to each other at three-quarter time. Like Brasher only had the one touch in the last quarter where Sarong had 12 and ended up on 108. So Sarong doesn't have that 44-point last quarter, which might just be one out of the box. Then we're probably having the same conversations about Sarong as not being a fantasy option either. So...
00:56:47
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, I have Jack Steele who didn't score as poorly as Brayshaw, but in a similar ilk where that bigger bodied midfielder didn't really look up to the pace and and initially going to struggle with these new rule changes. I'm not looking to jump off Jack Steele just yet because I have bigger issues in my side, but it's along the same lines with Brayshaw and Brayshaw.
00:57:06
Speaker
Brayshaw scored even less, so he's going to bleed even more cash. So if your team's perfect, I would recommend jumping off Brayshaw just with the sample size that we've seen at the back end of the year. And now into round one.
00:57:17
Speaker
Louis, this one is from Kingfisher. G'day, lads. Pretty happy with my side. Selwood to Murdoch, he's happy to do. But since I have a defender in utility for trade two, should I trade Blackiston to Grill?
00:57:29
Speaker
and chase value or do a jack steal out to potentially grill or another rookie so this is where is it the rookie to grill because grill is a must-have or are you happy to trade a jack steal down to grill to take in more cash the following week now i think i would go blackiston to grill here you know harmy probably made some pretty good points at the top of the podcast um regarding blackiston I know Steele is a bit of a concern. I've also got him. I know you've got him as well, Holmesy. I thought he got to an 85 at the end, which was probably just a pass mark. He...
00:58:04
Speaker
You know, he he didn't look the greatest, I'll admit. He also, in his post-game interview, said that he he was a little bit off on the day as well. So ah maybe I'm giving him a little bit too much grace there. I think it's certainly one that we circle and we watch, but we've picked him as an underpriced premium. Hopefully he can bounce back over the next coming weeks is as he sort of, you know, comes up to speed with the game.
00:58:29
Speaker
yeah Melbourne aren't going to... they're not i don't think they're going to be a heaps good team this year. I think they're probably still going to be that bottom six side and and they're not going to go so gung-ho every single week. I think that will slow down as we see a lot of young teams. They do start to slow down quite quickly as as they sort of get figured out and as as they sort of start to tire. So I think Jack Steele is going to be a big part of that team and that's probably why we saw that he was able to score that 85, whereas some other inside beasts were a little bit less. And that's just because Steele is kind of the mainstay in that midfield, I think, at the moment. So for me, I'm going Blackiston down first before Steele, but um certainly seeing the the train of thought that you're running with here and and one that you know I would definitely keep at the top of the mind, maybe over the coming weeks if this continues. But one-week sample size, I think you give him a couple of weeks more.
00:59:27
Speaker
I really like that, Lou. and And what I love even more is that you know here at the Pod Pod, we pride ourselves on some really good advice and analysis and Melbourne are a heaps good team.
00:59:39
Speaker
So I really liked how you how you phrased that. Armee, last one for you to finish us off and I want an unbiased opinion here. This one is from Matt r Hey, lads.
00:59:52
Speaker
Thoughts on Parrish. Is he a hold? ah So I probably have a spare trade this week and I toyed with the idea of Parrish out, but I'm going to give it at least another week.
01:00:08
Speaker
And it is biased. That is a biased view though. He was on 35 at the Yeah, I think on the same. Yeah. Yeah, looked good in the first quarter according to Louis. I didn't see that first quarter. I just turned on for the second quarter and didn't see him touch the footy. um But...
01:00:24
Speaker
Yeah, I think you give it another week just to see if that Essendon midfield mix changes. He's not going to lose too much cash, I wouldn't have thought, especially playing Port Adelaide. And then you go from there, Lou. He was on 35 in the first quarter, but he looked fantastic. He was going for his handball receives. He he really looked like he was he was just chugging along quite nicely. he looked super fit. ah The second quarter, he went a little bit missing, but found it a bit late. and you know he was He was on 50 by halftime. This is a guy that's priced at 75 at least when we picked him. Yeah.
01:00:56
Speaker
ah flawless pre-season a guy who's gone 100 multiple years went in that role understanding there's been a you know the game has changed slightly this year so far but I'm finding it really hard to read too much into that second half for Essendon you know certainly the tog for Parrish was way down at 49% but um in that second half the the dons just got absolutely smashed so i think you give him another week certainly and and i'm i'm optimistic i think this is a guy that's going to to prove us wrong and and hopefully over the next couple of weeks does punch out a 90 or so average and and one that can sort of replicate what we saw from adam chair last year
01:01:41
Speaker
All right, boys, that is going to wrap up a Monster Round 1 review. We're all, except Harmy, down in the dumps a little bit, but this is where the grind continues.
01:01:53
Speaker
I can't sit on a pre-season podcast all the time and and mention that last year i just needed to chip away, chip away. The rankings in Round 1 don't really matter, and it rings true. Rookie Roulette was probably the difference between 20,000, 30,000 ranks this week. So we just need to make sure that we do the best trades from possible from here, really get that cash gen going so that we can make some moves later on in the year. But before we wrap up, I just want some final closing thoughts from our number one ranked coach on the pod, John Harney.
01:02:25
Speaker
Give our listeners some ah some some wise words as you sign off. Okay, well, I guess the wise words would be fix up your rookies. Nobody target Zach Merritt because I need to keep him as my point of difference for the next month or so.
01:02:43
Speaker
There's the sneaky John Harmy that we know and love. Make sure you are following us on X at PodPod AFL. Make sure you subscribe to us on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to your content.
01:02:57
Speaker
As a reminder, if you're not a Marrera's Magic in-season member, as I said, I'll be sitting down with Selby on Thursday night after the teams have dropped. to discuss all of my trade insights and the key themes for the week. So if you're not a member there, head over to lorerasmagic.com.au to get involved in that community.
01:03:15
Speaker
We'll be back this time next week on our new recording night of Tuesday. Here to do it all again and wrap up round two. We will see you then. Bye.