Join us as JT puts on his general manager cap and selects his dream team going into round 6 of the NRL! He'll have the entire player pool to choose from, which should make selecting 3 winger/fullbacks, 2 centres, 2 halves, 2 edge forwards, 3 middle forwards and 1 hooker weekly easy right? Please note that the round rank is based on where the player ranks within their position. The same applies for the overall rank except the rank is calculated on the players average not total points. Well, let us know who you agree with and who else you might have selected down below on all of our social channels twitter, facebook, instagram, discord.
Winger/Fullbacks (WFB)
Dylan Edwards
Penrith Panthers (Average 60, Round 5 Rank – 21st, Overall Rank – 3rd)
Verses Sea Eagles at BlueBet Stadium, Penrith
Saturday at 5:30pm AEST
Edwards had a quiet outing in a rampant Panthers display against the Raiders. I believe the match up against the Sea Eagles will be a lot closer and not as open. If this is the case, I’m expecting Edwards to get back to the grind and make his standard 200+ running metres. He’s just an all-round solid fullback that should provide you with 50+ scores most weeks. Because of this, he remains in my team to beat. I have him scoring 55+ points this week.
Latrell Mitchell
South Sydney Rabbitohs (Average 48, Round 5 Rank – 15th, Overall Rank – 13th)
Verses Bulldogs at Accor Stadium, Sydney
Friday at 8:05pm AEST
Latrell makes it back into my team to beat this week based on a gut feel. He hasn’t had the best couple of rounds fantasy wise and I believe he is due. The traditional Good Friday clash against the Bulldogs is usually a great game and it goes right down to the wire. The Bulldogs are coming off a five day turnaround after their golden point win against the Cowboys on Sunday night. It will be interesting to see if they have the legs to go with the Bunnies in the last 20 minutes of the game. If the Bulldogs are to tire, we may see some loose defence and Latrell may be able to capitalise on this. I have him scoring 60+ points.
Lachlan Miller
Newcastle Knights (Average 66, Round 5 Rank – 2nd, Overall Rank – 2nd)
Verses Warriors at McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle
Sunday at 6:15pm AEST
What a season this man is having! He’s averaged an astounding 80 points over his last three games and this sort of form can’t be overlooked. Even against an in form Warriors outfit. I have him scoring 60+ points this week.
Centres (CTR)
Joseph Manu
Sydney Roosters (Average 29, Round 5 - DNP, Overall Rank – 22nd)
Verses Storm at AAMI Park, Melbourne
Thursday at 7:50pm AEST
Manu has only played two games this season and he has been less than impressive in either of these games. He returns from a two match suspension to face the Storm who are coming off their best defensive performance of the season. With James Tedesco missing this game due to concussion, Manu will slot into the #1 jersey. In 2022 he played only one game at fullback, and he scored 87 points. I know this is only a small sample size but when we have a centre playing at fullback, what else can we ask for as fantasy coaches. When he plays at fullback, he is given the freedom to roam around behind the ruck. The amount of touches Manu will make at fullback dramatically increases compared to when he plays at centre and he becomes more of a handful for any defence. I have him scoring 50+ points.
Dane Gagai
Newcastle Knights (Average 57, Round 5 Rank – 2nd, Overall Rank – 1st)
Verses Warriors at McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle
Sunday at 6:15pm AEST
Gagai has been the best centre in GDS fantasy this season and he averages 10 more points than any other centre. I really like his match up this weekend as the Warriors have allowed three scores of 55+ points to opposition left centres this season. Coming off scores of 77 and 64 in the last two rounds, Gagai is primed for another big game. I have him scoring 50+ points.
Halves (HLF)
Nathan Cleary
Penrith Panthers (Average 65, Round 5 – 2nd, Overall Rank – 3rd)
Verses Sea Eagles at BlueBet Stadium, Penrith
Saturday at 5:30pm AEST
Cleary remains set and forget for me. With back-to-back scores of 80+ points, why would fantasy coaches want to start any other HLF ahead of him this week. I have him scoring 65+ points.
Shaun Johnson
New Zealand Warriors (Average 70, Round 5 – 1st, Overall Rank – 2nd)
Verses Knights at McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle
Sunday at 6:15pm AEST
SJ is arguably the surprise of the season in fantasy terms. Four of his five scores have been 60+ and I believe he will score north of this again this week. He offers an extremely good base of 55+ points and with the attacking upside he provides, he makes it into my team to beat for the first time this season. He has a hand in everything the Warriors do at the moment, and I can’t see this changing any time soon. I have him scoring 65+ points.
Edge Forwards (EDG)
Zac Hosking
Penrith Panthers (Average 81, Round 5 Rank – 2nd, Overall Rank – 1st)
Verses Sea Eagles at BlueBet Stadium, Penrith
Saturday at 5:30pm AEST
Hosking seems to be going from strength to strength in first grade and he backed up his outstanding Panthers debut in round 4 with another solid fantasy performance in round 5. The combination he has with Cleary is excellent for time they have spent together on the footy field. The lines he is able to run are great and because of this he has been able to score a try in his last two games. While Hosking plays outside Cleary, he will remain in my team to beat. I have him scoring 55+ points.
David Fifita
Gold Coast Titans (Average 58, Round 5 - Bye, Overall Rank – 2nd)
Verses Dragons at Cbus Super Stadium, Gold Coast
Sunday at 4:05pm AEST
Fifita has been surprisingly consistent this season and only has a season low of 51 points. What’s even more impressive is that he is offering a great base of 40+ points and he hasn’t done this in the past. The Dragons are one of the worst teams fantasy wise at defending against the left edge forward and they have allowed an average of 51 points to this position. Fifita had a solid game against the Red V in round 2 and scored 61 points on this occasion. He still hasn’t got a try this season and I have a feeling that I may cross over for one this week. I have him scoring 55+ points this week.
Middle Forwards (MID)
Cameron Murray
South Sydney Rabbitohs (Average 57, Round 5 Rank – 1st, Overall – 4th)
Verses Bulldogs at Accor Stadium, Sydney
Friday at 8:05pm AEST
Against the Storm, Murray showed us why he was the number one MID in the game in 2022. He is a set and forget for me. I have him scoring 60+ points this week.
Payne Hass
Brisbane Broncos (Average 66, Round 5 Rank – 2nd, Overall Rank – 1st)
Verses Raiders at Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Saturday at 7:35pm AEST
Haas put on a spectacle against the Wests Tigers. He came away with his highest score of the season and scored 72 points in 46 minutes. That’s a whopping 1.5 PPM! Like Murray, Haas is set and forget, even when Walters is managing his minutes. I have him scoring 60+ points his week.
Isaah Yeo
Penrith Panthers (Average 63, Round 4 Rank – 9th, Overall Rank – 2nd)
Verses Sea Eagles at BlueBet Stadium, Penrith
Saturday at 5:30pm AEST
Yeo is the Mr Reliable of the MIDs. His highest score this season is 78 points and his lowest is 55. What is there not to like about this being a fantasy coach! What really impresses me about Yeo this season is his ability to churn out decent weekly scores on limited attacking stats. After four games this season, he has only accumulated 33 points from attacking stats and this gives him a base of 54 points per game. Yeo has a very high ceiling of 80+ points and when he is providing scores in the 50s as his floor, what else can you ask for in a MID. I have him scoring 60+ points this week.
Hooker (HOK)
Harry Grant
Melbourne Storm (Average 63, Round 5 Rank – 1st, Overall Rank – 1st)
Verses Roosters at AAMI Park, Melbourne
Thursday at 7:50pm AEST
Grant was the top scoring hooker in round 5 and I’ll be backing him to do it again this week. Against the Roosters, he will be asked to make lots of tackles. To add a bit of spice to this match up, he comes up against his old teammate Brandon Smith. Smith has been taking a few jabs at the Storm in the media and it wouldn’t surprise me if Grant does what he can to outperform Smith. With Hughes back in the lineup for the Storm, it will be interesting to see if Grant continues to earn 4+ points from kicking metres. I have him scoring 60+ points. Fringe players that just missed out on the starting 13:
Tom Trbojevic WFB – Sea Eagles
Reece Walsh WFB – Broncos
Valentine Holmes CTR - Cowboys
Adam Reynolds HLF - Broncos
Isaah Papali’i EDG – Wests Tigers
Ryan Matterson MID - Eels
Joseph Tapine MID - Raiders
Damien Cook HOK - Rabbitohs