FANTASY finals are here, and leagues across the country are splitting down the middle between top-eight contenders and those consigned to 'consolation' finals, the Fantasy equivalent of a kid's encouragement ribbon.
If you're playing finals, with a fiery Western Derby coming up this week, it will pay to have plenty of Fremantle players in your Fantasy side.
The Dockers have had the wood over the Eagles, having not lost one of these local skirmishes since round nine, 2012.
If Fremantle gets the job done again this week, they'll pretty much secure top spot and Ross Lyon can start turning his thoughts towards bigger issues than the final three home and away rounds.
That means an absolute fire sale on Dockers, given their coach's history. He's always been quite comfortable to cut a swathe through his line-up in the later rounds for games that have no impact on ladder position.
Suddenly, you could find your team missing players like Lachie Neale, David Mundy and Michael Barlow. The only reason Nat Fyfe could be excused from that list is that the Dockers might just decide the champ needs a few 'top-up' Brownlow votes to clinch an award that looked a total formality just a month ago.
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With Fantasy finals kicking off this week, it's crucial to keep a close eye on the fixture to see which teams those in your squad are facing up to.
Players opposed to the Brisbane Lions look to be wise selections from here on – the Lions face Carlton this Saturday night in an apparent battle for the No.1 draft pick, before games against Adelaide, Hawthorn and the Western Bulldogs to round out their year.
Consider players like Rory Sloane, Jordan Lewis, Jack Macrae and even Patrick Cripps as options for your team over the finals.
The Blues finish up with Melbourne, GWS (away) and (shudder) the Hawks in the final round. That ghoulish-looking round 23 clash shapes as a Fantasy bloodbath, particularly if Hawthorn still has a sniff of a top-two spot.
Eight Hawks topped the century mark when the teams last met in round 17, and that list didn't include perennial high-scorers Isaac Smith and Shaun Burgoyne.
But don't get caught looking too far ahead. Half the Fantasy finals this weekend are straight elimination and if your boys don't leave every point they can out there on the park, you're no better off than a top draft pick with a busted knee.
Get 'em in
Rory Sloane (MID, $446,000)
Devon Smith (FWD, $427,000)
David Armitage (MID, $511,000)
Isaac Smith (MID, $494,000)
Corey Enright (DEF, $457,000)
Farewell for now
Nic Naitanui (RUC, $498,000)
Adam Treloar (MID, $555,000)
Tom Scully (MID, $440,000)
Lance Franklin (FWD, $423,000)
Nick Malceski (DEF, $384,000)
