THE WESTERN Bulldogs are always a relevant AFL Fantasy team and 2025 should be no different.
On a positive note, they ranked third for Fantasy points scored last season and the two years prior, the were the No.1 team for scores of 100 Fantasy points or more.
Tim English (RUC, $1,074,000) was one of the big reasons they were up there in 2023 when he was the top player in the competition with his 118.7 average. He was the consensus first pick off the board in Fantasy Draft but things didn’t go to plan.
The ruckman’s output was down last season, averaging 104.7. Fewer disposals, marks and tackles were factors, but a slight drop in ruck contests attended due to Sam Darcy’s usage and therefore hitouts was telling. More than 4 points per game were lost from that thumping return in the season prior.
Fantasy coaches will be asking whether this is where he’s likely to be again, or does he offer some value?
Coach Luke Beveridge is another reason the Dogs are relevant as he’s not afraid to spin the magnets. Ed Richards (MID, $882,000) enjoyed his best Fantasy season after becoming a regular in the midfield.
But the magnet spinning isn’t always a good thing!
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Fantasy favourites Bailey Smith, Jack Macrae and Caleb Daniel found new clubs in the off-season. They previously racked up plenty of points, but over the last couple of seasons, their roles were anything but settled. While Smith missed all of 2024 through injury, Macrae and Daniel played away from the positions that made them Fantasy guns. Last year they were often used as the team’s substitute and also spent time in the VFL.
Hopefully 2025 will see a settled line up and any Bulldogs we pick up and Bevo becomes a favourite of Fantasy coaches once again.
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Lock them in
Everyone loves Bont! The Western Bulldogs’ captain, Marcus Bontempelli (MID, $1,101,000), took his Fantasy game to the next level in 2023 where he posted his career-best average of 117. While this was almost 10 points better than anything he had done in the past, it was all about bringing everything together that Fantasy coaches like: a high kick-to-handball ratio, career-high 7.5 marks per game and being the Bulldogs’ most used midfielder. Bontempelli’s averaged dropped to 107.3 last season with a few numbers shaved off across the board; however, he kicked a career-high 32 goals in 2024. Bont is a sure thing to be a top eight midfielder and a mid-to-late first round target on Draft day.
Track their pre-season
During the last four seasons, Bailey Dale (DEF, $950,000) has been on the cusp of being a premium Fantasy defender. He’s been the Dogs’ go-to player to take kick-ins during that time and is coming off his personal best Fantasy season where he averaged 92.6. A durable player who hasn’t missed a game in the last four years had an indifferent start to 2024 where he scored just 47 in Gather Round and started the following game as the substitute. He followed up with 160 and 134 showing his ceiling.
Dual-position tempter
Matthew Kennedy (MID/FWD, $791,000) made the switch the Dogs in the off-season hoping for greater opportunity. His versatility has been a positive for his ‘real’ game, but that has sometimes frustrated his Fantasy owners. His season average of 77.1 was impacted by having to play forward and his role as a substitute in a few matches. When he attended 50 per cent or more centre bounces in non-sub games in 2024, Kennedy averaged 105.8. Kennedy’s ability to score when playing the right role is excellent. Keep your eye on him and what his midfield splits could be at the Kennel.
Bargain basement
A basement priced player to monitor is tall defender Jedd Busslinger (DEF, $230,000). Heading into his third season on the Dogs’ list, the 20-year-old has been plying his trade in the VFL. Last season he played 19 games for Footscray, averaging 83.3 in what can be considered a consistent season where he only once took fewer than five marks in a game.
Draft sleeper
An average of 63.9 was a solid return for Ryley Sanders (MID/FWD, $656,000) in his debut season. He was used as a substitute in five of his 14 games and in games he avoided that role, he averaged 70.1. Sanders had two stints in the VFL and had no trouble finding the ball. Impressively, he built his stat lines in a variety of ways. In one match he kicked three goals, another he laid 14 tackles, and he showed an ability to spread to take marks. He averaged 116.1 in his seven games for Footscray. Sanders is currently the 50th ranked forward based on 2024 average and with greater opportunity heading into his second season, expect him to return better numbers than his ADP will suggest.
Custom stat star
Tom Liberatore (MID, $898,000) might be coming to the end of his career and Fantasy points are trailing off, but he is still in Beveridge’s first choice midfield rotation. It’s a hard sell to suggest Libba should be someone to consider in Fantasy, but the 32-year-old may have some value in Draft leagues with custom stats. He ranks second in the league for clearances and eighth for contested possessions. If your league is putting extra weight on the stats that benefit the inside midfielder, you may get a jump on your mates who avoid him due to his age.
Buyer beware
It’s not that I don’t love Adam Treloar (MID, $1,129,000), it’s just that I don’t want to pay this much for him in AFL Fantasy Classic to start with. At 110 points per game, he was the top averaging midfielder last season as he posted his best return since 2019. His ceiling is up there with the best in the game after collecting six scores of 120 or more including 149 thanks to a three goal haul in Geelong and 154 against the Tigers at the MCG. Wait for Treloar to get a little cheaper in Classic and hold off if you can in Draft. As he’ll turn 32 on the eve of the season, there will be safer options to use your first-round pick on draft day.
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