THE RESCHEDULING of the annual St Kilda v Port Adelaide game in China has thrown a spanner in the works for AFL Fantasy coaches.

Bye rounds add an extra challenge for coaches playing in leagues with settings for bye rounds being on and those hunting the overall title.

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The three multi-bye rounds (round 12, 13 and 14) have been shaken up as the Saints-Power game is now set to be played in round 12, when they were initially scheduled to have their bye on return from the game overseas. The clubs will have a standalone bye in round 11.

Fantasy coaches will need to think about their team structure and the best way to manage this change. There are some positives for the change.

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Multi-bye round rules state that coaches have three trades to use and the best-18 on-field scorers will count. This will be in place for rounds 12-14, but the new Saints/Power bye in round 11 will remain as normal; two trades and best 22.

If you have any St Kilda or Port Adelaide players in your team, you will need to either trade them out or place them on your bench for the week.

This is likely to cause ownership of some players to drop as coaches will be unwilling to take some premium players in knowing they'll have a bye earlier than the rest of the clubs.

Value selections will be an exception here. Max King (FWD, $170,000) and Dylan Roberton (DEF, $327,000) have hopefully gained their cash by that time and you could upgrade them.

Dan Houston (DEF/MID, $596,000) could cause some selection issues as 39 per cent of the competition have picked him as a possible under-priced premium who would been seen as a 'keeper' for the year.

Essentially, most high-scoring Saints and Power players could be seen as upgrade targets following the round 11 bye.

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Coaches will be looking to pick multiple players from these teams when they use their three trades as they will play through the challenging rounds 12-14 period. With the opportunity to play in all three games, while every other player in the competition will miss at least one of the matches, may help gain a few extra points with some tactical trading.

St Kilda and Port Adelaide players will be like Fantasy gold throughout the bye rounds.

Fantasy Draft

Most Fantasy Draft leagues have byes switched off. Players from the other 18 clubs will have better value as they've got the opportunity to play in every game of your season, whereas the Saints and Power boys are definitely missing one round of Fantasy.

If you've already drafted and have some St Kilda and Port Adelaide players, you may just have to take the loss that week … or hope your bench players can step up to fill the void. Maybe hunt the free agents for some Essendon and Western Bulldogs players for cover in round 11 as they play Gold Coast and Carlton, the two easiest teams to score against last year.

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If you've got a draft coming up, consider bumping your Saints and Power guys down a few spots, but remember, they could end up being good value. It's a tricky balance but keep in the back of your mind that you will need to cover them for round 11.

This bye week change opens up a variety of options when hitting the free agents in the first half of the season and the possibility of some interesting trade scenarios with your league mates.

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