In this blog we will have a brief look at the previous and upcoming rounds of the NRL. In round 14, who's performances stood out for the right or wrong reasons and which players made the GDS Squad of the round. With round 15 of GameDay Squad Rugby League not too far away, who should coaches consider starting and which players have positive matchups. Have a read below and gain an edge over your competition. Let us know your thoughts on who we have down below on all of our social channels: twitter, facebook, instagram, discord.
GDS Squad of the week for round 14
HOK - Reed Mahoney (Bulldogs) 52 points
MID - Addin Fonua-Blake (Warriors) 73 points
MID - Liam Henry (Panthers) 72 points
MID - Patrick Carrigan (Broncos) 69 points
EDG - Dylan Lucas (Knights) 79 points
EDG - Luciano Leilua (Dragons) 78 points
HLF - Tyran Wishart (Storm) 87 points
HLF - Jahrome Hughes (Storm) 82 points
CTR - Zac Lomax (Dragons) 116 points
CTR - Tommy Talau (Sea Eagles) 86 points
WNG - Brian To'o (Panthers) 121 points
WNG - Blake Wilson (Bulldogs) 80 points
FB - Latrell Mitchell (Rabbitohs) 109 points
BENCH FWD - Klese Haas (Titans) 71 points
BENCH FWD - Mitchell Barnett (Warriors) 67 points
BENCH HLF - Daine Laurie (Panthers) 79 points
BENCH BACK - Dane Gagai (Knights) 78 points
BENCH BACK - Stephen Crichton (Bulldogs) 72 points
Squad Total 1471 points
How many of these players did you start?
The performance of the week
This award goes to Brian To'o. To'o rewarded those faithful coaches with his best performance of the year by scoring an impressive 121 points. On attack, he had 3 tries, 4 line breaks and 13 tackle breaks for 85 points. This was the fourth time this season that To'o has made the squad of the week and he's now ranked 1st in the GDS winger rankings. With the winger position being a minefield from week to week, To'o can be seen as a solid starting option. Through running metres and tackles each game he averages 25 points. This might not seem much but it's more than many of the players at the winger position. To'o is a tackle breaking machine, and he averages 23 points a game just through this one stat. Like all wingers, To'o can have a few low scores and has had five scores of less than 40 points this season. However, he is the only winger that has had three scores of 85+ points. As a GDS coach, you look for wingers that offer a very high ceiling and a low floor. To'o fits into this category and he will likely be considered for many GDS coaches starting squads every time the Panthers play.
Riser
This award goes to Liam Henry. Henry might be the new kid on the block, but he seems to be one of the most sought-after cards in GDS at the moment. He is a PPM beast and averages 1.11 PPM this season. With a three-round average of 68.6 points he is one of the inform MIDs, but he is a very risky option as he starts from the interchange. Two of his last three games have been off the interchange and he has had scores of 64 points vs Sharks and 72 points vs Sea Eagles. These are great scores, but he has scored a try in each of the games, and I wouldn't be expecting him to score a try every time he comes off the interchange moving forward. If Henry is given the opportunity to start, I believe he may become one of the first picked players for GDS coaches each week. At only 22 years old, he has a very bright future ahead of him in GDS and I would be looking to acquire his card as soon as possible if you don't already hold one.
Faller
This award goes to Damien Cook. It seems that the days might be gone where the hooker position is one of the highest scoring positions in GDS. Even though Cook is ranked 1st in the GDS hooker rankings, I think it might be a great time to sell. Cook will be turning 33 years old later this month and he is starting to share dummy half duties with the young up and coming hooker Peter Mamouzelos. Since round seven, Mamouzelos is averaging 35 minutes a game and most of them have been at hooker. Cook has still played 80 minutes in four of the games over this period but out of position. This rotation looks to be what the Rabbitohs are going to continue with for the remainder of the season and with Wayne Bennett returning as head coach next season, who knows what Cook's role at the Rabbitohs is going to be moving forward. With Cook averaging over 50 points and still playing 80 minutes regularly, I think this might be the best chance GDS coaches have to sell high.
GDS Team to Beat - Round 15
HOK - Harry Grant (Storm) - GDS average of 47 points & positional rank of 5th
MID - Payne Haas (Broncos) - GDS average of 63 points & positional rank of 2nd
MID - Isaah Yeo (Panthers) - GDS average of 63 points & positional rank of 1st
MID - Addin Fonua-Blake (Warriors) - GDS average of 59 points & positional rank of 3rd
EDG - David Fifita (Titans) - GDS average of 66 points & positional rank of 1st
EDG - Angus Crichton (Roosters) - GDS average of 52 points & positional rank of 2nd
HLF - Shaun Johnson (Warriors) - GDS average of 58 points & positional rank of 4th
HLF - Nicholas Hynes (Sharks) - GDS average of 69 points & positional rank of 1st
CTR - Joseph Manu (Roosters) - GDS average of 57 points & positional rank of 3rd
CTR - Euan Aitken (Dolphins) - GDS average of 59 points & positional rank of 1st
WNG - Dominic Young (Roosters) - GDS average of 51 points & positional rank of 3rd
WNG - Reuben Garrick (Sea Eagles) - GDS average of 48 points & positional rank of 4th
FB - Latrell Mitchell (Rabbitohs) - GDS average of 67 points & positional rank of 2nd
BENCH FWD - Connor Watson (Roosters) - GDS average of 53 points & positional rank of 5th
BENCH FWD - Patrick Carrigan (Broncos) - GDS average of 57 points & positional rank of 4th
BENCH HLF - Sam Walker (Roosters) - GDS average of 44 points & positional rank of 18th
BENCH BACK - Dylan Edwards (Panthers) - GDS average of 69 points & positional rank of 1st
BENCH BACK - Jayden Campbell (Titans) - GDS average of 50 points & positional rank of 10th
Players with positive matchups
Connor Watson
Watson has missed the last couple of games for the Roosters due to a throat injury and I'm expecting him to come back and play as he has done since round eight. Watson started two games at lock and two games at hooker from round eight through to eleven and he averaged 69 points across these games. Looking at the Roosters interchange, Watson looks set to have a 65+ minute roll. He might even play the full 80 if he was to shift to the lock position during the game. There is a concern with him coming back from injury, but I'm not overly concerned as it wasn't an injury to the leg or shoulder. The Eels have looked a far better side with Moses back but I'm expecting the Roosters to come out firing after their loss at home to Cowboys. The Eels have allowed the most tries to the hooker position and I wouldn't be surprised if we see Watson cross for his third meat pie of the season.
Jayden Campbell
This might be one of my spiciest takes of the season, start Campbell this week! After a strong GDS performance returning from injury against the Rabbitohs last week, this week he is up against the Wests Tigers who have just been well beaten by the Dragons. Once again, we see another change to the Wests Tigers halves combination, and I wouldn't be surprised if we see the Titans score quite a few points this week. The Dragons halves of Hunt and Flanagan both scored 50+ points and a try last week and I wouldn't be surprised if we see Campbell do the same. Campbell also had the goal kicking duties last week and I think he will have them again unless Tanah Boyd is a late inclusion.
Joseph Manu
Manu has been one of the best centres in GDS this season and this week I think he has a great match up against the Eels left edge defence. The Eels are allowing an average of 50 points to opposing right centres and this is most by any team. Only last week we saw Stephen Crichton score 72 points against them. Like I mentioned above, I'm expecting the Roosters to have a big game and wouldn't be surprised if Manu scores 65+ points. Even though I'm high on Manu this week and for the remainder of the season, he is set to finish with the Roosters at the end of the 2024 and move to rugby union. Hopefully we see him back in the NRL after this season but if you have multiple cards of his, now might be the time to sell or trade some away for a younger player coming through.
