With the round 1 lockout now lifted in the inaugural GameDay Squad AFLW competition, I’m sure there will be a lot of coaches looking to mix things up with their lineup. The beauty of the GameDay Squad platform is that you can make as many trades as you’d like each week as long as you have the cards, which is a great thing if used wisely, but can also result in a lot of panic trades that result in even more frustration.
I’ve crunched the numbers and identified some key decisions you’ll have to make this week for trade targets, and players who are potentially on the chopping block. I haven’t talked about Bowers who unfortunately was a late out but should 100% not be traded (unless you want to trade her to me).
Let us know your thoughts on who we have included below on all of our socials - twitter, facebook, instagram, discord.
BUY!
Georgie Prespakis
Geelong Cats - Midfielder (MID) - Average: 168 GDS Fantasy Points
What a start for the young Cat! Prespakis comfortably finished with the highest score of the round with 168 points and looked incredible. I’m sure Georgie was already on your radar after averaging an impressive 110.63 in season 7, but it looks like she’s taking it to the next level. She controlled the midfield alongside McDonald in a dominant Geelong display, racking up 34 touches (including 22 kicks) and 11 tackles. Next week she comes up against Sydney who historically have been easy to score against, although the new look side may make things a bit harder. Regardless, Georgie Prespakis is someone you should be looking to play week in week out. She should be your number one target this week.
Ella Roberts
West Coast Eagles - Forward (FWD) - Average: 112 GDS Fantasy Points
Ella Roberts may not have been the highest scoring forward for round 1, but there was a lot to be excited about. What impressed me the most was her big score came without any goals! She spent most of the game in the midfield which seems to be here new role and ended up as the leading disposal getter for the game. Her performance was enough to win her the derby medal at just 18 years of age. In a competition with inconsistent forwards, someone playing out of their fantasy position in the midfield could be incredibly valuable.
SELL
Breann Moody
Carlton Blues - Ruck (RUCK) - Average: 49 GDS Fantasy Points
For the past few seasons, Breann Moody has been the premium ruck of the competition and I know a lot of you probably started her this week. Unfortunately she only returned 49 points this round which is well below her average from last season. You might be thinking one game of 49 shouldn’t be enough to give up on a premium player, but there were a few things that concerned me regardless of the score. It looks like Jessica Good might be the preferred ruck option for Carlton this season with the blue getting twice as many hit outs as Moody. Breann also managed just 5 touches in her new role and only one of those touches was effective. It might be that the blues alternate the two players for the main ruck duties but I don’t think I would be confident starting her going forward.
Jesse Wardlaw
St Kilda Saints - Forward (FWD) - Average: 42 GDS Fantasy Points
Wardlaw might not have been the most popular fantasy option, but some people might have been tempted by the fact that she was the competitions leading goal scorer last season at Brisbane. Unfortunately for Jesse, it looks like life will be a lot harder for the key forward at her new club. St Kilda really struggled in round 1 against North Melbourne, going into the half time break not scoring a single point. Although she’s a talented player, she wont get the opportunities like she did at the lions, and will most likely be hard to justify in our starting lineups. You might be able to bring her out for some of the weaker opponents such as Port Adelaide in round 3, but even that might be risky.
HOLD...
Ebony Antonio
Fremantle Dockers - Forward (FWD) - Average: 38 GDS Fantasy Points
Antonio had a disappointing start to the season scoring just 38 points. She managed just 5 touches and 2 tackles but did hit the scoreboard once. Ebony came into the game under an injury cloud and did miss the pre season fixtures so its understandable that she might be starting a bit underdone. Let’s not forget that she was the leading forward in the few games she played last season and has always been a good scorer throughout her career. Give her a chance to get back to her best over the next couple of weeks and maybe even take advantage of anyone panic selling her. Theres still plenty of games to go and I expect her to come good.
Charlotte Thomas
West Coast Eagles - Defender (DEF) - Average: 40 GDS Fantasy Points
Another player who had a disappointing start to the season was Charlotte Thomas for West Coast. The young defender had the third highest average in her position last season and many expected her to push even further this year. Unfortunately she only managed 8 touches, which was well below her average from last season, and couldn’t really get near the ball. Interestingly, she had a similar performance at the start of season 7, before coming good with some consistent scores and averaging 76 for the remaining 9 games. Thomas plays an important role for her team which is a very fantasy friendly one so I will be sticking with her even after this week.
The information contained in the article is not intended and should not be understood or construed as financial advice. As always please do your own research, my placing history suggests you should absolutely do your own research!