Is this young stud going to be a top six forward for the rest of this season and beyond? A GWS midfielder reminding us of just how good he is going to be? Will this Western Bulldogs star get traded in the off-season? There are so many questions coming out of round 21. So, let's turn our attention back to fantasy footy for a second and identify some risers in form and others who should be falling out of favour with all fantasy coaches in our GameDay Squad Aussie Rules Round Review. Let us know your thoughts on who we have down below on all of our social channels twitter, facebook, instagram, discord.
RISERS
Luke Jackson – FWD, Fremantle Dockers (167 points)
Luke Jackson with a timely reminder of what he’s able to do when he is handed the keys to the car! Coming off of two below-par games by his standards, it was exciting to see him return to form in round 21, scoring 167 GDS fantasy points thanks to a whopping 24 disposals, 5 marks, 6 tackles 44 hit-outs and a goal! For me, he is a must start for the rest of the season as he takes on West Coast, Port Adelaide and Hawthorn which is one of the easier runs home for ruckman. He will be a name to monitor over the off-season as well. The Freo front office have some big decisions to make with Sean Darcy and whether they cash in on him and continue with Luke Jackson as the sole ruck option. It will be interesting to see if Jackson returns forward status heading into 2024 as well given his increased ruck duties to end the season. He’s a must start and a must watch!
Tom Green – MID, Greater Western Sydney Giants (158 points)
Tom Green goes bang! I’m his return from injury, Tom Green could have been afforded a slow start to his return but boy did he deliver for coaches who trusted in his scoring power! In his return he didn’t skip a beat, scoring 158 GDS points thanks to accumulating 16 kicks, 22 handballs, 4 marks and 10 tackles! Green has a tough-ish end to the season match up wise as GWS take on Port Adelaide, Essendon and then finally Carlton, but Green has proven to be a match up proof operator earlier in the season so feel free to lock and load! The scariest part about Green is that I’m not even sure we have seen the best of him yet, the next leap in his ascension will be to start impacting the scoreboard regularly like the Marcus Bontempelli’s or the Christian Petracca’s of the league, if he can do that… you’ve got the number one fantasy asset in the league on your hands!
Angus Brayshaw – DEF, Melbourne Demons (114 points)
Is Angus Brayshaw the most annoying player in the league for fantasy footy? He’s got to be somewhere near the top at least! He had an unreal game, scoring 114 GDS fantasy points from 37 disposals, 4 marks and 2 tackles. My issue here is that of those 37(!) disposals, 27 were handballs… I mean at this point he’s got to be taking the micky, 27 handballs! It’s promising for owners that he found the ball so frequently, 37 touches of the footy in any case is a big day and it leaves us with a bit of a conundrum of what to do with Gus over the off-season. A few weeks ago he was a sell at all costs but now it might be worth holding or going out and trading for a Gus Brayshaw card on the cheap while you can and stashing him for next year. His role is always a talking point but he has shown enough fantasy talent historically to back him in once again.
FALLERS
Nick Daicos – DEF, Collingwood Magpies (45 points)
Yikes! You have got to feel for Collingwood fans and fantasy coaches all across the globe as star boy Nick Daicos goes down with a knee injury ruling him out for up to 6 weeks! Excruciating for Pies fans, and you have to wonder where fantasy coaches will pivot to with their rock and fantasy gem Daicos being ruled out for the rest of the fantasy season. It’s a chance for owners to get a little funky and select some point-of-difference options to end the season but in absolutely no means necessary do we sell Nick Daicos! He is not a sell option, he is still the best dynasty prospect league-wide and he will be back better than ever for 2024!
Bailey Smith – MID, Western Bulldogs (76 points)
#freebaileysmith I think at this point owners of Bailey Smith need to pray for a trade to another team over the off-season. It truly is hard to fathom his fall from grace from last season where he finished as a top 10 midfielder, top 3 amongst players 23 years old or younger, to now averaging just 97 GDS fantasy points per game and falling! We know how talented Smith is, we have seen it, it wasn’t a dream - but I’m not sure the recipe to reaching his full potential is to sit 6th in the Western Bulldogs midfield depth chart, running around aimlessly in the forward line, getting the ball kicked over his head time and time again, week after week. It makes no sense for him to be stashed away at the Bulldogs and I hope some teams get on the front foot and try to get his signature!
Wil Powell – DEF, Gold Coast Suns (112 points)
In more devastating injury news, Gold Coast Suns defender and dynasty prospect Wil Powell looks to be headed to the sidelines for some time. He had to be carted off and was seen with the old trusty green whistle almost instantly which suggests a broken bone of some sort. He was enjoying a career-year, averaging 100 GDS fantasy points and was coming off 6 triple digit score in seven matches. This will be Powell’s third serious lower body injury in as many season and you do have to wonder how much more his young body can take but here’s hoping his back in a Suns jersey soon and picking up right where he left off!