2017 NRL.com Fantasy thread Finals Edition Part 1

rhinoceroo wrote:@WL If Tauk is front row it'd surely be off bench with JWH/Napa there. Won't Mitchell kick?

Probably SST would come off the bench & play in the middle somewhere but there are rumours that Napa could be off so that's probably where the SST front row idea came from. I can't see the Roosters letting Napa go especially since Evans has already gone to the Eels.
The goal kicking is interesting because both SST & Mitchell are good goal kickers but it seemed SST was first choice. Whenever SST was off the field having a rest, Mitchell did the kicking but once SST came back onto the field he took over. I think they rate SST as first choice.

Speaking of goal kicking who kicks at the Panthers?

Mighty Fishes wrote:Speaking of goal kicking who kicks at the Panthers?

Cleary has a higher percentage than Maloney so I'd say Cleary.
Goal kicker at the Sharks will be interesting & it may be between Townsend & Holmes. Apparently Holmes was backup kicker to Maloney.

My first hot tip for 2018 = R. James
With all the middle forwards at the Titans, Brennan has confirmed that James will be playing as an edge 2fr in 2018. So you have a frf in fantasy playing 80 minutes on the edge.

You have a short memory WL

Ryan James 2015 statistics
Played 22 games on the edge averaging 75.5 minutes for 39 points. That's 0.52 ppm.

Surely he will do better then that but its risky to think he would average mid 50's or more to make him a FRF option, after all he will have to score above 47.8 to at least make a profit.

And I recall so many people calling him a lazy bastard when he played on the edge.

So thanks for the tip but I for 1 will pass.

Merry Christmas

Yeah I had a feeling his previous stats in the 2fr weren't that flash but I think R. James is a much different player to the player he was couple of years ago because:
(a) he is now the leader of the pack
(b) he is no longer the lazy player he was & looks to get involved. I agree he was lazy back then but he has progressed. He was also a player that gave away a lot of penalties & he has cleaned that up
(c) he is now a good try scoring forward & with more space out wide he could excel

It's also of note that M. Johns has been hired by the Titans as a halves coach. This could really improve A. Taylor's game & I assume James would be playing on Taylor's edge & could have positive flow on effects for James attacking game.
I know Taylor plays on the right edge & so does Proctor but I am assuming that James as captain & the more senior player then I expect James to play on the right edge & Proctor the left edge.

bluetige wrote:You have a short memory WL

That's because of my dementia

Recent quote from Barrett on the Manly 5/8th position:

"I have 2 very good halves here in L. Croker & J. Hastings"

White Lightning wrote:Recent quote from Barrett on the Manly 5/8th position:

"I have 2 very good halves here in L. Croker & J. Hastings"

and Cullen

But you would think that Hastings gets first crack as the goal kicker too

L. Croker may get first shot if no 5/8th is brought. Last week Barrett spoke on the Manly fan forum & was glowing in his praise of Croker who has really been performing in pre season training. He also mentioned T. Wright & Hastings as options but gauging from Barrett comments he ranks Croker as the front runner.

The only problem with Croker is that he is injury prone. Previous injuries have prevented his career from taking off so Hastings probably will still get his chance if Barrett does indeed opt for Croker.

White Lightning wrote:My first hot tip for 2018 = R. James
With all the middle forwards at the Titans, Brennan has confirmed that James will be playing as an edge 2fr in 2018. So you have a frf in fantasy playing 80 minutes on the edge.

I'll put him on my POI list, DPP is always a good option... even so Jimmy Graham should come at a cheaper price-tag

Howdy all

2018 Prices get released tomorrow.

2 teams at a time, but once we get 1 team released it will be easy enough to predict everybody's price - barring ESL recruits, and guys that only played 1 game in 2017.

I'll try and get the sticky at the top of this thread updated as quickly as possible once the prices drop.


I'd meaning to get some of my spreadsheets updated in the off-season to run a bit better. Made a few tweaks but not made a lot of progress yet. Work is sending me on some free excel training this week, so hopefully I can get some pointers there.

Chewie wrote:

I'll put him on my POI list, DPP is always a good option...  even so Jimmy Graham should come at a cheaper price-tag

I believe if James is named in the 2nd row in the first game they'll change him to dpp straight away instead of usual process. Based on previous years this is how it worked.

Milchcow wrote:
Howdy all

2018 Prices get released tomorrow.

2 teams at a time, but once we get 1 team released it will be easy enough to predict everybody's price - barring ESL recruits, and guys that only played 1 game in 2017.

I'll try and get the sticky at the top of this thread updated as quickly as possible once the prices drop.


I'd meaning to get some of my spreadsheets updated in the off-season to run a bit better. Made a few tweaks but not made a lot of progress yet. Work is sending me on some free excel training this week, so hopefully I can get some pointers there.

You are a champion Milchy. Cheers.

Reading the Bulldogs forum the other day apparently Mbye is moving to f/b & Hopoate to the ctrs. So this leaves an open spot in the halves. There's an article on nrl.com about Cleeland & he definitely has the backing of the Bulldogs forum, they love him. But there's also Nu Brown who has a shot as well but he's probably better on the bench as a utility as he can cover a few positions.
If Cleeland does get first shot there's going to be some good cheapies going around like Cleeland/Brown, Hastings/Croker/Cullen, even Cartwright if he keeps his dpp status & starts & doesn't have any lunatic ex girlfriends, Watson. Even Maloney is cheap but he is rubbish & he won't be goal kicking.

Milchcow wrote:
Howdy all

2018 Prices get released tomorrow.

2 teams at a time, but once we get 1 team released it will be easy enough to predict everybody's price - barring ESL recruits, and guys that only played 1 game in 2017.

I'll try and get the sticky at the top of this thread updated as quickly as possible once the prices drop.


I'd meaning to get some of my spreadsheets updated in the off-season to run a bit better. Made a few tweaks but not made a lot of progress yet. Work is sending me on some free excel training this week, so hopefully I can get some pointers there.

Cheers to your work for investing in your skills which will benefit your Fantasy. Very considerate.

Starting to feel a little like Christmas

SI wrote:Starting to feel a little like Christmas  

Yep got the tree up now