• Nine things we learned from round five
• After the siren: Was the Judd call a dud?
HEADING into the Easter round of football, most NAB AFL Fantasy coaches made two forced trades, and scores were as varied as the quality of chocolate devoured this weekend.
BRISBANE LIONS v RICHMOND – Gabba
Bouncing back was Richmond captain Trent Cotchin (138) who had a 32-disposal game that included seven tackles and mark after being held to just 70 points last week.
Also racking up 32 disposals was Lions midfielder Tom Rockliff (116) continuing his excellent form.
In his 250th game, Brisbane Lions forward Jonathan Brown (113) turned back the clock, kicking four goals to go with his 12 kicks and nine marks.
At the other end of the ground, Jack Riewoldt (105) also booted four goals in the Tigers’ 43 point win.
There was some solid Fantasy scoring from Richmond players. Dustin Martin (94) came home strongly, posting 43 points in the last quarter to boost his numbers while Ben Griffiths (80) and popular forward inclusion this week Sam Lloyd (70) will see more price rises off the back of their games.
COLLINGWOOD v NORTH MELBOURNE – MCG
Collingwood midfielder Dane Swan (145) was happier than a pig in mud at the MCG. He finished with 35 disposals, 11 marks and five tackles as he put up his highest Fantasy score of the season. Is he back? That makes it back-to-back tons and his value is heading north again, so yes, he is!
The Magpies feasted on Fantasy points like I feasted on Easter eggs, with eight players scoring more than 100 points.
Midfielders Steele Sidebottom (141), Dayne Beams (131) and Scott Pendlebury (127) racked up 91 disposals between them. Forwards Jamie Elliott (119) and Travis Cloke (111) kicked two and four goals respectively while Alex Fasolo (110) played a Fantasy-friendly game running out of the backline that saw him finish with 32 disposals.
The top scorers for the Kangaroos were FWD/MID Brent Harvey (108) and midfielder Ben Cunnington (106).
Forward Ben McGlynn (153) scored a ‘quadruple-double’ of stats - that is, 14 kicks, 10 handballs, 10 marks and 12 tackles - to be the highest scoring Fantasy player on the ground.
Midfielders Josh Kennedy (123) and Daniel Hannebery (112) both returned their best scores of 2014 after slow starts to the season. Forward Lance Franklin (110) booted four majors as his form continues to improve.
For the Dockers, midfielders David Mundy (121), Nathan Fyfe (114) and forward Matthew Pavlich (112) were the best performers.
A popular sideways trade from the injured Tom Mitchell was to teammate and fellow FWD/MID Luke Parker (92). He has been averaging in the 90s and may possibly be one of the top forwards available as the season progresses.
ESSENDON v ST KILDA – Etihad Stadium
St Kilda fans would have enjoyed the result and there was icing on the cake for owners of veteran midfielders Leigh Montagna (135) and Lenny Hayes (117), who both scored well. Nick Riewoldt (111) kicked five goals to be the difference between the two sides.
Brent Stanton (146) kicked three goals to go with his 29 disposals and nine marks to be the best for the Bombers. Defender Cale Hooker (131) took his season average above 100 points per game.
The man that loves a mark and kick combo, Michael Hibberd (116), took 13 marks to add to his 18 kicks and nine handballs as he linked up running out of the backline.
Making it four-from-four scores of 100 plus this season, FWD/MID Paul Chapman (110) returned from his week off gathering 27 disposals, eight marks and four tackles.
After an impressive first quarter, midfielder Jobe Watson (87) was quieter than usual spending some time forward in the second half. And after Roy talked him up during the week, Murphy’s Law came into play as Dyson Heppell (43) was held to 17 disposals.
St Kilda draftee FWD/MID Jack Billings (88) avoided the substitute vest to collect 19 touches, seven marks and kick two goals in his second match.
WEST COAST v PORT ADELAIDE – Patersons Stadium
Early in the match, the Eagles and more than 77,000 Fantasy coaches lost Xavier Ellis (2) to a calf injury. The majority of these coaches had him on the bench, but there were some who had him on the field. My hand is up for that one.
What was worse, I played him instead of Port Adelaide midfielder Jared Polec (110). I cried 108 tears after hearing that difference and that Ellis will be on the sidelines for a while.
Brad Ebert (125) and Robbie Gray (115) kicked two goals each to be the top-scoring Power players in their win on the road.
Midfielders Chris Masten (128) and Matt Priddis (112) both topped the 30 possession count, while Jack Darling (104) kicked two goals as the best Fantasy scorers for the Eagles.
ADELAIDE v GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY – Adelaide Oval
It’s been a slow start to the season for Patrick Dangerfield (149), but 33 disposals and a five-goal haul saw him post his highest score of the season to date.
In his 250th match, Scott Thompson (131) had a game-high 38 possessions.
A surprise packet in defence this year has been Matthew Jaensch (127). He is averaging over 100 points from the first five games playing a Fantasy-friendly role racking up plenty of “plus sixes” (mark/kick combinations).
One of the most popular inclusions in the past three weeks was Matt Crouch (110). In his third game, the midfielder was subbed out at three-quarter time but not before he gathered 28 disposals and 10 marks. Although his price is rising, Crouch could be a decent option to bring in for the injured Ellis.
Giants’ co-captain Callan Ward (44) was subbed out with concussion in the second quarter.
An impressive 32 possessions and two goals made Gary Ablett (119) a solid captain choice again this week.
Ablett was well supported by defender Greg Broughton (99) and midfielder Michael Rischitelli (90) collecting 25 disposals each. Popular Fantasy DEF/MID David Swallow (84) kicked two goals.
For the Demons, Nathan Jones (115) was the top scorer while forwards Chris Dawes (92) and Jeremy Howe (91) produced their best performances of the season to date.
It might be time to give Dom Tyson (46) the flick. He only just made his breakeven and as a result, his value as a cash cow is likely to be limited from here on.
WESTERN BULLDOGS v CARLTON – Etihad Stadium
Carlton captain Marc Murphy (137) copped attention from the Bulldogs, but was able to have his best game of 2014 finishing with 28 disposals, 11 tackles, five marks and two goals.
Bryce Gibbs (111) racked up 29 touches and the five goals to Lachie Henderson (107) saw the Blues run out 28 point winners.
Midfielder Jack Macrae (113) topped the scoring for the Bulldogs for the third week in a row, taking his season average is now 116.4. Forward Luke Dahlhaus (110) kicked two goals after missing last week with a calf complaint.
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It was a down day for Shaun Higgins (46) after a great run of games, gathering just 15 disposals with no marks.
Starting in the green substitute vest, Chris Judd (8) played just a few minutes before injuring his hamstring. Another injury concern for the Blues is inform midfielder Ed Curnow (83) after he crashed into the behind post.
GEELONG v HAWTHORN – MCG
In the Easter Monday game, Steve Johnson (139) had the ball on a string with 20 kicks, 14 handballs and 10 marks to his name.
Fantasy coaches with the Geelong midfielder in their side would have been fist pumping each one of his three goals he kicked.
Forward Tom Hawkins (113) kicked five goals while Jimmy Bartel (114) was the only other player in the game to score more than 100 Fantasy points.
Kicking three goals, forward Jack Gunston (92) was Hawthorn’s top player. Jonathan Simpkin (90) and Sam Mitchell (87) collected 26 disposals each. There was doubt on Mitchell taking his place in the match, but he was one of the more impressive Hawks.
Will Langford (46) did a great job on Joel Selwood (54), holding him to 20 disposals and just one mark. The Geelong captain gave away three free kicks for the match.
There were some hard-luck stories of the round and none bigger than Nathan’s Fantasy match-up. He tweeted that he needed three more points from Ben McEvoy (52) just before he was subbed out. Very unlucky!
HOW DID THE TRADERS GO IN ROUND FIVE?
Roy is back! His side, destROY, was the best of The Traders’ teams this week scoring an impressive 2,222 points in the high-scoring round.
Calvin’s Calvinators were boosted by Steve Johnson in the final game of the round to score 2,174 and my Warne Dawgs brought up the rear with 2,139.
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