NRLFF community managed fantasy team

Be interesting to see what the new team looks like once it's in place.
We also have to pick a captain.

Team is finalised. This is the mighty fanatics team that will first win the elimnator and then the whole comp (or smash at least half of the fanatics/LS, CK and Damien Cooks team)....

Come help us vote for our week 1 captain (https://www.nrlfantasyfanatics.com/t898-week-1-vote-for-our-captain).

Final Team:

For those wondering how I'm planning on running this here is a rough breakdown of a week in the life of the forum team.

- Monday - weekly team recap.
- Tuesday - TLT and start of serious trades discussion
- Wednesday (release the vote for Captain and vote for trades polls - see this as a typical example: https://www.nrlfantasyfanatics.com/t898-week-1-vote-for-our-captain)
- Thursday final lineup set just prior to 1st game (may be sweating injury news but a general ruleI'll try and stick with)
- Friday through Monday - Glory, many fantasy victories, banter, people comparing their pitiful team to our glorious mob and occasionally counting the points gap all the way down to 2nd......

Feel free to post in any thread but I'd like to keep most of the chat in here (apart from the polls cause I can't really have votes any other way). Thanks to everyone who voted for our starter team and I look forward to a whole season of excellent performances.

Just FYI I'm in London and on a fairly busy job at the moment so I may not stick 100% to this/reply straight away all the time but I'll always respond if you tag me or PM me in time so feel free to chat with me if you have concerns or want to put your hand up to help out with the team.

Best of luck to everyone else and your teams that didn't have 1297 votes for players ;P

nice team! and good on ya ranta for doing this!

Ok, rundown on voting

These players were the top 15 in order, and all comfortably made the team

Cameron Murray
Jai Arrow
Andrew Fifita
Briton Nikora
Andrew McCullough
Luke Garner
Michael Morgan
Kerrod Holland
Dylan Edwards
Dylan Brown
Martin Taupau
Adam Keighran
Kurt Capewell
Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad
Reed Mahoney

(Originally Taupau was a bit more borderline, but there were a fwe big votes for him, after I posted yesterday afternoon's update, in perhaps the 1 example of votes being 'gamed')
Given at the time our 2nd FRF looked like being Jacob Host, I am not unhappy with the outcome

Then
Ravalava
Sivo
Garrick
Lachlan Burr
were all popular cheapies and got into the team for cash reasons.

The final decision on the last 2 players came down to
2 of Lane/Gillett/Tolman
or
Tedesco/Cleary and Jacob Host

Was very tight between those options.

Matt Gillett is the 22nd man, being the guy who was closest to selection but missed out. Although even if he had an extra vote or 2 he would actually still have been rejected in favour of Tolman as I was enforcing a rule of having backup in every position. Tolman did seem to get in on his own merits though
Nathan Cleary was also very close to selection

Great work

Matt Gillett is the 22nd man, being the guy who was closest to selection but missed out

Ouch

At least we captained Fifita

Did we end up putting Keighran ahead of Brown?

filthridden wrote:Did we end up putting Keighran ahead of Brown?

Yes.

Unless I've missed someone were the top celeb team. Well done fanatics!

I should know this given I did a lot of work compiling the team, but what is our cash in hand?

Garrick most obvious player to ditch, but not sure who are the viable trade ins.

Round 1 Weekly Wrap

And the weekend is a wrap. A score of 875 has us sitting in 4,750th which feels rough for such a good score but certainly some high scoring plays from a lot of rookies helped that cause for us and others as well. For fanatics that's 84th out of 173 fanatics teams and to help track things. I was too late for this week but @Krump made a good point to compare us to the other celebrity teams. I've setup a league and will benchmark us there starting next week.

We went excellently in most of our decisions:

- Captaining Fifita was the right move as he was our highest scorer
- Playing Keighran over Brown got us 38 extra points
- Playin Sivo over Ravalawa cost us 26 points but who knew TBs were a base stat for Ravalawa......


NB: Old image from pre-lockout.

The STUDS

- Fifita went huge and looks to be a great captain choice with 70 mins of high PPM action netting us 69 points
- Our Morgan/Keighran halves combo each found the line and played well for 68 points a piece
- Nikora, Garner and Murray gave us 55+ points each. Murray firms as a keeper with the other looking to be mainstays until Chris Lawrence and Wade Graham return
- Other solid picks included Tolman, Lane, Capewell, CNK, Brown and Ravalawa who all exceeded their BE and should continue to do so comfortably.

The HOLDS

- Macca going for 49 is okay but 55 would have been nicer especially as the other HOK in that price range popped off (Friend). Nothing to doubt this wasnt a good pick but just short of the return most envisaged. Notably got tired towards the end of the game and hoping that picks up after a few rounds..
- Arrow got 45 points in 55 minutes. Will be one to monitor as he has shown a big motor and 65 minutes would guarantee 50+ scores. Is the same player we all remember just need to monitor the minutes over the next few rounds as we are with our next MEH.
- Taupau got 42 in 45 minutes. Only 1 TB and 0 offloads on a miserable day where he probably didn't come back on due to how far they were behind in the game. Coming off a season best year I don't think panic is warranted yet but it is disappointing.
- Edwards should improve on 20 points. He outscored Tedesco for 200k less and with backs 1 game is too soon to jump off. Passed my eye test at least and I think better things are coming.
- The above are mostly gun/value picks that we know are good and shouldn't drop after one game. HOLD the course.

Ranta's Concerns

- Mahoney scored above his BE and was an absolute mongrel constantly getting involved for 55 points in 68 minutes. This did include an excellent try which is what concerns me. Take that out and we are looking at a sub 40 point game for more minutes than we expected. On the other hand having a nose for the line and with the amount of errors the panthers had his tackle count could be higher in coming weeks to offset this. I don't think he has as much cash in him as we hoped but in week 1 he has done enough to stay in our squad for the next few rounds at least. Just something to keep an eye on.
- Burr is on this list not because of the good game he had. 43 points off mostly base stats in 52 minutes is great but we need to remember Ipap and Luke are returning. Hes certainly staying in our team for now like Mahoney but need to watch TLT and next weeks rotations to make sure he's going to get the playing time to sustain these price rises.
- Holland scored 25 in a well beaten side and this could be his worst score of the year as I don't see how he has a much worse game than this. I certainly think he's still a value pick but this score dampens his money making potential in the short term and with Nikora and Capewell providing a better base (with some upside due to both having heavy involvement) do we really need him at CTR? Once he is on our bench I don't know if he gets a run and if thats the case 440k could be better spent on other picks. I don't think he's a season keeper (Latrell, Capewell/Nikora, Bateman) so while I'm not panicking I think we need to seriously look at him this week and determine what place he has in our plans. He does play the 1st bye round but if that game is the bulldogs normal I don't know if that small upside is worth keeping him in our 17/18 spot especially chewing up the cash that he is.


The DUDS

- Sivo for 12 points
- Garrick for 10 points

Rookies hey. You hit some and you miss some. They were both okay but note that Rawalava could easily be here next week if he doesn't repeat a ridiculous 10TBs but he's got the cash money train started so he's distinguished himself from the other rookies. We know Garrick will stick till rd4 at least (TTurbo return will push him or Elliot out) while Sivo could drop when George Jennings returns (possibly this week). I liked Sivo more than Garrick on the eye test but like most this round they both played in horrendous conditions. Maybe we should be more concerned on Sivo as he played in a winning side outside noted non-passer/ball hog M Jennings.

Plan of Attack

55k left in the bank makes trading a lot harder as Sivo and Garrick can't really be traded to anyone 1 for one apart from maybe Host (258k) and Lawrie (276k) who TLT won't help us with. JDB, Frizzel (testicle), Sims are all likely out this week but could come back at any moment. Predicting a long term role for either is going to be hard and we realistically only have the cash for Host based on the predicted price rises. Other options include Mikaele (238k) or  Kamikamica (241k) who are low minute FRF options (30 mins or less expected) could be good but low minutes are always a points cap.

This means if we want to make quick moves I think we need to look at getting rid of Holland as I have already detailed. Bolder (aka riskier moves) moves that free up more cash include:
- Lane (slow burn but his base was good and is a noted try scorer - eels looked really good against a panthers team who I think are pretty good). Doesn't free up a heap of cash but an option.
- Arrow (lots of value in the 2RF already) as he will never get 80 mins and would fund many upgrades. Is definitely a potential keeper but if hes scoring 50s for 753k with Garner, Murray, Lane, Capewell and Nikora in our team already do we need him?
- Taupau (Tolman and Fifita should have us covered at FRF but this does get rid of our depth) and he will bleed cash quickly. Decisive moves now pay off big but like Arrow we could be over reacting to one score. Big Marty is always super volatile and could score 100 next week but with the lack of cash all options must be considered.

Trade Targets

(Note: not in any particular order but pre-TLT this is a list of who played well I think we should look at - please discuss if there are any others I may have missed). I have bolded my personal favourites:

2RF
- Gillet - Big minutes. Won't always get the tackle counts but could be compensated with more attacking stats
- J. Bateman - An 80 min lock available to play at centre that reminds me of JTurbo for 200k less
- Taumololo looked unstoppable but hard to imagine (without doing some tackling - only 15 tackles) he has any bigger games in him.
- B Smith - With 40 mins being his new normal there is value there. Most on here love his motor and could be good.
Stimson could take the 64 points and 76 minutes from KBrom. While he wouldn't score a try every week this shows potential if he's named to return in the starting side from injury. Risk but at 400k a second Garner wouldn't go astray
- Aubbs has definitley outplayed big money signing Migthy Angus Crichton. Based on handsomeness and a low BE his cult following will want him in our squad for sure as a cheaper starting 80 min 2RF with no threats to his job security after the performance of the season.
- An 80 minute 57 point Fisher Harris at Lock could be another mid range for keeper scores 2RF. Based on last year I'd say this is definitely the higher end of his scores but he worth considering.
- Niukore is another mid range 2RF from the eels who will have a low BE. Definite POD for all the POD chasers. With Brown out for a while high minutes could be the new norm.

CTR/WFB
- Bird - Did not pass the eye test. Scored 50 and will make quick cash. Trust Failhub to keep the points coming I guess?
- Staggs - Passed the eye test but need to know more on the Roberts injury front first. A spot for 6+ weeks is all thats needed for serious consideration.
- Burns - Lower fantasy score and at a similar price point to Bird but did pass the eye test and would be a preffered starter to Sivo/Rawalava roulette at WFB.
- RTS won't play the bulldogs every week but looked in great touch. I'd rather Burns for the money potential but a cheap early keeper could be considered. I don'y fully buy the story but he looked good.

HOK
- Friend/Farah - High scores will fuel price rises but they are very expensive. 2 tries for Farah with only 76 points to show proves he's probably no Smith/Cook but big scores, high point and low BEs should be considered
- Peats for about 600k could be the goods but although he played 80 for his 57 points when Taylor comes back he might be swapped with Brimson and only get 60 minutes which limits the attractiveness
- Egan made the most of Katoa being gone. Could ride his low BE to some money but if Katoa is back from his training concussion his percieved low minutes in the backup role make him risky.

FRF
- Host/Lawrie will have an impossible to predict role for many weeks but the risk could be compensated by their excellent scoring and for the moment high enough minutes.
- Surgess looked good and could be a better FRF option based on his involvement. Had a try but also had a HIA.
- Vaughn was good as well. As mentioned the Dragons pack is hard to decipher going forward but like Surgess could be a good FRF cover pick
- Tamou is another FRF option who will have a low BE for weeks after a great score (92) in the opening round on solid minutes (55).
- Mikaele or  Kamikamica are low minute FRF options (30 mins or less expected) but are straight trades from our dud cows with our limited bank.

Long Term Targets

Tedesco, Cook and Crichton with a few more subpar games could drop massively .........

See you all on Tuesday. Till then feel free to start proposing trade ideas and I'll post a poll Tuesday night to help us move on whats more popular. Till then hope everyone's teams went well.

edited: Updated post lockout numbers

Milchy wrote:
I should know this given I did a lot of work compiling the team, but what is our cash in hand?

Garrick most obvious player to ditch, but not sure who are the viable trade ins.

55k means we really only have base guys like Xerri, Salmon or Lomax who may come in at some point or a low range cow like Mikaele or Kamikamica as the straight trade options.

I think serious consideration needs to go to cutting at least one of Holland, Taupau or Arrow probably in that order for mine to make the right early trades.

Ideally I'd want Burns to plug in at WFB over Rawalava and Sivo. That means ditching at least Holland and would get us enough for a few more base price options like Host or Lawrie.

If we want to be getting guys like Gillett, Bateman or Niukore, Surgess, Vaughn or Tamou means we'd need even more thus why I'd consider Taupau/Arrow......... Especially with Burr also being at risk this week with Ipap and Luke to return. We may need a war chest. But this is a community team so I'm interested in what others would do.

The fear with Host was that Sims would come back and push Frizzel from the middle to his edge but looks like Friz will be our for 4-6 weeks if that’s the case Host holds his spot for at least that long.

I don’t think 3 top frontrowers are needed at this stage so I’d be looking at the following trades

Tapau + Holland to Host + Bateman

Will score at least the same amount but while the ceiling isn’t as high the floor is a lot higher. Also saves a heap of cash for the following week if a few cows are still underperforming

Shanbon wrote:The fear with Host was that Sims would come back and push Frizzel from the middle to his edge but looks like Friz will be our for 4-6 weeks if that’s the case Host holds his spot for at least that long.

I don’t think 3 top frontrowers are needed at this stage so I’d be looking at the following trades

Tapau + Holland to Host + Bateman

Will score at least the same amount but while the ceiling isn’t as high the floor is a lot higher. Also saves a heap of cash for the following week if a few cows are still underperforming

Great summary Capn Ranta.

Would prefer we go Taupau + Holland to Lawrie and Bateman. Lawrie may even get a start this week.

Krump wrote:Unless I've missed someone were the top celeb team. Well done fanatics!

How do you work this out ?

And is there a league ranking this year ? I can't find that either

Great work Cap

My thoughts based on the early discussion here - trading Taupau would be a waste of a trade. We don't trade keepers, right? I also think Holland could do with a bit more time.

At this point, I think only Garrick needs a look (potential failed cow) - depending on what options pop up on TLT. Bank a trade early doors. Although, I'm holding Garrick if named.

Bateman looks to be the only close to 'must have' that was missed. Essentially, we cant have everyone - some will slip through. Do we need to trade a keeper or cut a mid-pricer to make this happen? I'm not sure.

Lastly, whoever voted for Sivo to start needs a 1 week ban from any votes this week

Great work Cap!!

Personally think Gillett & Bateman are the two guys we should target to both make money and generate more points in our 17. In addition I think we need to try and get the relatively cheap and serviceable Host into our side. Then lastly I would see over the next few weeks about dealing with Burr, Sivo, Garrick and turning one of more of them into better cows.

I dont like the thought of ditching a potential keeper to get them Gillett and Bateman though. For me that rules out the thought of trading Taupau (probably FRF2 for the season) and Arrow who should end up as a top 17 player.

It leaves Holland, Lane, and Edwards IMO as the guys we could lose in order to have the cash to improve overall.

Therefor I'd be looking at:

Holland and Edwards out this week for Host and Gillet (would play Ravalawa in the empty WFB spot).

That would leave 190k ITB.

Then next week I would then move Lane to Bateman (should be ~$40k) and use the remaining $ to grab the best cow we've missed next week, turning Garrick/Sivo/Burr into someone like Burns who could din turn bump out Sivo from the WFBs

I think the main thing to be cognisant off here is that while the team went well, there are several areas that need to be addressed and therefore several weeks worth of trades that will have to align to fix as many as possible.

Verbal Kint wrote:Great work Cap

My thoughts based on the early discussion here - trading Taupau would be a waste of a trade. We don't trade keepers, right? I also think Holland could do with a bit more time.

At this point, I think only Garrick needs a look (potential failed cow) - depending on what options pop up on TLT. Bank a trade early doors. Although, I'm holding Garrick if named.

Bateman looks to be the only close to 'must have' that was missed. Essentially, we cant have everyone - some will slip through. Do we need to trade a keeper or cut a mid-pricer to make this happen? I'm not sure.

Lastly, whoever voted for Sivo to start needs a 1 week ban from any votes this week

The argument for Bateman is that he is looking like Jurbo, priced $200k less and available at CTR. He will likely be 15 points better than any other CTR this season, so is someone you need to get at some point, might as well be now. Taupau can come back later when we are seeing he is getting the minutes. Can you see another way to get Bateman in the team?