WHEN crafting any starting Fantasy side, we all search for value, and so often that value comes from players who have left one club for another in the off-season.
The greener pastures of a new team so frequently offer up new roles, new gameplans, and new teammates, leading to the glorious scoring increase that we are all searching for.
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Join me as I have a look at some of the best options (in price order) for AFLW Fantasy in 2024 among those players who will don new colours in 2024!
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Alison Drennan (MID, $1,002,000)
If feels truly fitting that Drennan is the first player analysed in an article about playing for a new club, given she will become a four-club player (an AFLW record) when she runs out for West Coast in round one. Drennan had not shown any signs of regression in her time at the Suns, with season seven being her most impactful. However, in 2023 her high CBA midfield role largely vanished, surpassed by the rise of Claudia Whitfort (to elite midfielder) and Lucy Single (to become the League's most feared tagger). The Eagles' young midfield group, which lacks much veteran help, ought to be a fertile scoring spot Drennan, who has been a Fantasy points per minute (ppm) beast in previous seasons (averaging 1.52 ppm and 83.2 points in season seven). Priced at 77, she is currently the lowliest owned player over $1million, but I feel that she's being undervalued, and a season average close to 90 shouldn't come as a complete surprise.
Gabby Newton (DEF, $861,000)
When Newton moved from a less-than-fruitful role at centre half-forward to key defensive distributor at the Western Bulldogs in round five of 2023, her Fantasy average jumped from 56.5 to an immense 73.2 points per game. Additionally, in moving to defence, the former No.1 pick completed her positional bingo, having spent previous games/seasons playing in the midfield and forward, plus operating as a chop out ruck. With a trade to Fremantle, Newton joins a club with potentially more unknowns than any other in the AFLW, so it stands to reason that Newton's versatility will be appreciated. For Fantasy purposes, a role in the defence (with some chopping out in the mid/ruck) is the ideal role, so it's a big watch this space.
Katie Lynch (DEF, $702,000)
It is hard to find a player who had a tougher drop in form in 2023 than Lynch. The first-time All-Australian defender for the Bulldogs (who had previously been traded from Collingwood) was sadly pushing through a foot injury for most of 2023. Lynch was then moved forward in a game against Carlton in round six, in the hope that it might limit the aggravation of her injury, but it was not to be, as she departed sore and was shut down for the rest of the year. Lynch secured a trade to the Suns, who will be looking to supplement both their stocks at key defender (Saad, Clayden, Fitzpatrick) and defensive distributor (D'Arcy). At her best, Lynch has an AFLW Fantasy ceiling above 90 points playing as an interceptor and kick-in taker but is prone to following her best games with floor scores when forced to play 1v1 defensive roles on key forwards. She's priced about 8-9 points below her best (which was in the shorter games of 2022). Throw her on the watch list!
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Kalinda Howarth (FWD, $560,000)
If you are sensing a pattern here, with players either leaving the Western Bulldogs or Gold Coast, you're not wrong, because next up for discussion is Howarth, who left the Suns for the Pies over the off-season. Howarth's AFLW Fantasy relevance comes less from what she's been able to average in the past (with a career high average of 53), but for what skills she brings to Collingwood. The former All-Australian is able to excel across all parts of the field, with an exceptionally fundamentally sound game in possession, and with great speed and agility in tight spaces, and Collingwood has certainly lacked a player of her quality in its front half for several seasons, thus making her a potential key gameplan focus. On that basis, and because Fantasy coaches are desperate for value in the forward line, Howarth is one to watch. HOWEVER, it's not all good news, as Howarth is still recovering from an ACL injury suffered early last year and is touch and go to play for round one. We may need to wait a few weeks before selecting but keep your eyes peeled.
Jess Hosking (DEF, $544,000)
Well, well, well, if it isn't Hosking, another three-plus club player. Formerly of Carlton, and more recently Richmond, Jess is a Swiss Army Knife on the field, playing roles in the midfield, across both flanks, and as a lockdown small across her career. Arriving as a delisted free agent at the Eagles, Hosking has made a big impression this pre-season. Her versatility as a player will have some Fantasy coaches nervous, with her last Fantasy scores at Punt Rd (33 and 20) coming as a lockdown defender. However, word is that Hosking has often been training as an inside midfielder to start this pre-season, and if the role carries into the regular season, she could jump quickly into premium defender territory.
Ellie Gavalas (FWD, $519,000)
Gavalas has shown promise for some time but struggled to break into the incredible North Melbourne midfield of Jas Garner, Ash Riddell and Jenna Bruton. Following that apprenticeship, a fresh start at the Western Bulldogs might be exactly what Gavalas needs to showcase her phenomenal talent, assuming she can get regular midfield minutes. Priced at 40.1, Gavalas has the talent to increase that by 25+ points if she has the right role, and the Western Bulldogs look set to throw the magnets around as they rebuild under new coach Tamara Hyett. If we see more than a mere glimpse of that midfield role, expect to see Gavalas' Fantasy relevance shoot up as we hunt for a skerrick of value in this season's toughest position!
Mikayla Pauga (FWD, $363,000)
In her two seasons and 15 games at Brisbane, Pauga has not shown a heap of Fantasy potential. Oft cast as a forward by the Lions (and with low time on ground), Pauga looks set to feature more prominently as a midfielder for the Giants in 2024. This role positivity is heavily linked to her performances in a four-game stretch playing for GWS' VFLW team earlier in 2024. During that stint, Pauga polled coaches votes in three of the four games (which is a good sign for role/job security), managed to average an impressive 97.8 Fantasy points,19 disposals, nine tackles, and 2.5 marks, and also snagged four goals. At only $363,000 with forward status, watch out for Pauga as cheap starter in 2024.
Yasmin Duursma (DEF, $350,000)
With their fifth pick in the 2022 Telstra AFLW Draft, Port Adelaide selected Duursma, a defensive mid/winger/medium defender out of the Gippsland Power. Duursma's stint for Port only lasted 11 games and two seasons, as she made the move south-east to Carlton for 2024. Fantasy coaches should be on the lookout for Duursma in the pre-season, as she's a rookie-priced forward and is looking as if she'll play a role across half-back for the Blues, where I have higher hopes for her Fantasy scoring capabilities against her leaner days in Alberton.
Honourable mentions
Montana McKinnon (RUC, Richmond, $662,000) was primed to be the most important player on this list, but her debut season at Richmond after moving from Adelaide will need to wait as she recovers from an ACL injury sustained in match simulation. Eliza West (MID, $896,000) and Kirsty Lamb (MID, $957,000) – both midfielders who moved over the off-season – are players I expect to score similarly to what they had at their previous clubs. The same could be said of Maddison Gay (DEF, $644,000) and Elizabeth Keaney (MID, $736,000), who will play the same roles on the half-back line and wing for Essendon as they were for the Demons and the Suns last year. Lauren Ahrens (DEF, 508,000) has switched places with Katie Lynch at the Dogs but has not been a good Fantasy scorer in three-plus seasons. Casey Sherriff (FWD, $509,000), who was a forward for the Demons, may have a role in the midfield for the Hawks, albeit currently unconfirmed. Finally, notwithstanding the fact that Lilly Pearce (RUC, Geelong, $300,000) has switched from Richmond to Geelong in 2024, given she had not made the field in one season on the list at Richmond, I felt it might be slightly disingenuous to include her in this list.
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