LATE MAIL

Well TGIF! Yet another weekend of DT is upon us and boy are there some big ins and outs this week.

Here is the late mail to date, I will continue to update this section throughout the afternoon when more news becomes apparent.

St George vs Melbourne

Wayne Bennett has dropped Luke Priddis and Nick Emmett off his interchange.

The only possible change for the Storm is Ryan Hoffman, who is battling a hamstring injury, Hep Cahill on standby .

Gold Coast vs Cowboys

Gold Coast’s injured duo Mark Minichiello (knee) and Nathan Friend (ankle) trained yesterday, and coach John Cartwright expected both to line up

Cowboys big men Antonio Kaufusi and Matt Scott had come through their medial ligament troubles and will play.

Broncos vs Raiders

AFL Karmichael is expected to shift to halfback for tomorrow’s clash with Canberra.
Josh Hoffman expected to be elevated from the bench to fullback.
Winger Antonio Winterstein did not train yesterday but is not believed to be in doubt, despite a corked thigh. Prop Joel Clinton (groin) will be assessed today.

Canberra are expected to be unchanged.

Penrith Warriors

Penrith forward Frank Pritchard, named on an extended bench, is rated less than a ‘‘50-50’’ prospect of returning from a broken hand.

Warriors are expected to be unchanged.

Knights vs Roosters

Newcastle coach Brian Smith has made significant changes for tomorrow night’s encounter, switching fullback Kurt Gidley into the halves alongside Jarrod Mullen, who has been passed fit after an ankle injury. Shannon McDonnell will play at fullback, with Ben Rogers demoted to the bench.
Steve Simpson requires a clearance to play after a neck injury, with Cory Paterson in line to start if the second-rower is ruled out.

The Roosters are expected to be as named.

Sharks vs The Eels

Cronulla forward Paul "Nut Grabber" Gallen is likely to return from his shoulder injury after completing a full training session yesterday. He will come in at the expense of Tupou who is going to miss again this weekend. Johnny Mannah (rib) is in doubt, with Luke Douglas expected to replace him in the front row and Gallen to slot into the back row. Ian Donnelly trained with the squad yesterday.

The Eels are expected to be as named.

Bulldogs vs Souths

Both the Bulldogs and Souths are expected to be as named for their clash on Sunday.

Wests vs Manly

Keith Galloway (knee) and Chris Heighington (leg) are ‘‘50-50’’ chances of returning for Wests Tigers.

The Sea Eagles are expected to be as named.

Wenins Tips

St George

Titans

Broncos

Penrith

Knights

Eels

Dogs

Manly

All the very best this weekend

Wenin, out!

KinGs Trade Talk Round 21

Potential Trades

Ins

Trent Waterhouse

- Aiight its time to get real serious this week, as we approach the finals most of u chumps are struggling to make it to the top 8 so here is your chance.

- Only a tiny 4.59% of DT’ers have him in their teams, so he would make for a great blockbuster trade. Imagine the look of your opponent with TW in your team
- His value has fallen by $17k over the last few 3 games, don’t expect it fall much further
- Consistent performer don’t expect his value to fall anymore unless he gets injured
- His workload has increased with the injury to the Big Petero, thus the numbers are awesome

- Value $334,000

- Season average 72.73

The Verdict

- Trent Waterhouse is a DT beast, he racks up a tonne of tackles and hitups every week, even the occasional try assist (don’t tell me you didn’t see his try assisting kick out in the wings last week), if you real serious about making the top 8 my advice would be to get him OR even if you just want to send a message to the rest of your league it’s time to get Trent Waterhouse !

Outs

Steve Price

- Steve Price is one of the best Front Row Forwards in the game

- Tireless worker, who consistently racks up 70 odd points a game
- Great value for his current average
- Missed a lot of games this season for various reasons, injury/origin,etc

- Value $309,200

- Last 3 game average 76.33

The Verdict

- No I’m not being a smartass and no I aint taking shots at a Legend – that’s not how I do. I’m simply saying that’s its about to be DreamTeam finals, and you want someone who you know is going to play every game for the remainder of the season cos lets face it most of us DT’ers don’t have many trades left and don’t want to be in a situation where we have to use an auto emergency sub for the finals. Trust me if someone could assure me that Steve Price will play every single game still seasons end then I would be talking about him right now in my Ins section.

Cap Space Booster

Scott Prince

- Last week Scott Prince had a massive game and hit the century point with 110 points
- His 3 game rolling average includes a 26 and 39 point performances
- Generally tends to give more points against week opposition.
- Value $223,400

- Last 3 game average 58.33

The Verdict

- Have trades up your sleeve? Need a cap boost right now? – The answer is Scott Prince, his value should increase by 20-30k over the next couple of weeks, as mentioned above his rolling average has two very poor scores. Throughout the season Scott Prince has scored greater points against weaker opposition, so this week we can expect a few try assists as the Titans battle the Cowboys This week the Titans are playing NQ so we can expect a higher scoring game and a few try assists from Scott Prince.

That’s a wrap for this weeks trade talk, tune in next Friday morning at 1.am
Next Weeks Preview – We talk Anthony Tupou !
Until then peace out !

One.

Don’t forget to post your comments or any trade related questions!

Nick's Captains - Round 21

Top 5 from last week:
1 - Farah (69)
2 - Hindmarsh (81)
3 - Harrison (63)
4 - Laffranchi (63)
5 - Sutton (79)

Nick's Captains is going to be a bit different this week. Every week it seems to be the same blokes that I'm banging on about. So this week's report is going to be split into 2 sections.
Section 1 - Captain's for Pussies; Section 2 - Captain's for Men with balls.

Section 1 - Captain's for Pussies
The analysis will still be as follows:
Mike Litoris(comp rank based on avg) - (3 week avg)(score last time these teams met)

You know these blokes by now. Stats are:
Hindmarsh(3) - (86)(42)
Farah(4) - (80)(40)
Stagg(5) - (77)(74)
Laffaranchi(6) - (66)(69) **suspended**
Hannant(7) - (74)(83)
Waterhouse(8) - (77)(n/a)
Bronson(9) - (63)(n/a)
Fitzgibbon(10) - (93)(45)

Section 2 - Captain's for Men with balls

Scottie Prince - had a massive 110 last week, however this was on the back of a 26 the week before. Against NQ at home - might go big again.
Michael Jennings - on fiar lately, with scores of 84, 33, 105 and 96 in his last 4. Against NZ at home - loves scoring tries in Penrith, and should score well again this week.
John Sutton - can he go big again this week against the Bulldogs??? I don't think so
Kurt Gidley - back this week, playing against the Roosters at home. If there was ever a time to bust out of his DT form slump then this would be the week.
Jarryd Hayne - against the Sharkies this week, Hayne should carve up and score well. He is in a rich vane of form.
Benji - against Manly this week. Don't think he will score so well. This applies for Farah as well (I hope he plays rubbish and drops in value then I can pick him up!!)
Jamie Soward - A Friday night game against Melbourne might not be the best stage for Soward to go large. But if you have the balls, then maybe....

Nick's Captains top 5 for the week

1 - Hindmarsh (can't go past him sorry)
2 - Waterhouse
3 - Hannant
4 - Jarryd Hayne
5 - Michael Jennings (do you have the balls to do it????)

45 votes last week - might crack the 50 this week!!

Player of the Week: Round 20

Sorry about the late post everyone, I blame Splendour recovery for my DT disorganisation, but better late than never so here goes...

As the NRL season creeps ever closer to finals and the inevitable end of the season, DT'ers are putting in place the last minute plans for the pointy end of their season as they jostle for a top 8 league finish to make finals for bragging rights amongst their buddies or newly met random league mates. For all those of us struggling for trades it will be a push right to the finish.

This DT'er is one that has been feeling the pain, having cruised into the top 8 and being afforded the luxury of carrying Paul 'Scrotum Grabber' Gallen for weeks on the bench, it's make or break time to push through a few last blockbuster trades to get the team firing for finals. Hefty competition in the league will accept nothing less.
We've been seeing some massive performances from some centres and backs that are flat out refusing to bow out without a fight and although lacking the absolutely massive performances of the last 2 weeks, this week is impressive nonetheless.

1. Scott Prince
Giving everyone a preview of what they have to look forward to come finals time, the struggling Broncos were delivered defeat at the hands of Prince who has stepped up massively after a few low key games. Coming off the back of 26 & 39 point performances in the last 2 weeks he absolutely exploded this week setting up his teammates 4 times and even running one in himself, finishing up with 14 points, the Broncos never stood a chance.

And the stat tally goes like this..

Tries - 1
Try Assists - 4
Conversions - 5
Tackles - 16
Line Break Assists - 3
Runs - 5

Total points: 110

2. Chase Stanley
The kid can play the game.
At only 20 years old, Chase 'Smokin' Stanley lit up the field on Sunday night against the Warriors, playing in only his 5th first grade game this season he showed everyone what he is capable of and no doubt getting the Storm excited for next season when he switches clubs.

Coming off the back of his last two games, giving an 82 point performance in Round 18 and a 76 point performance in Round 12 the big 100kg centre has dropped a massive 96 points, loves DT!

Tries - 1
Try Assists - 1
Tackles - 25
Offloads - 3
Line Breaks - 2
Runs – 11

Total Points - 95

3. Richard Fa'aoso

This big Tongan native has been a consistent performer over the season for the 1.8% of DT'ers who have him in
their team averaging around 53 points. He obviously decided it might be a good time to poke his head into NRL DT Talk's players of the week and exploded against the Sea Eagles this week dropping 94!


Tries - 1
Try assists - 1
Tackles - 18
Offloads - 3
Line Breaks - 1
Line Break Assists - 1
Runs - 15

Total points - 94


And that's a wrap, good luck in the second last league game of the year!

Tom's Teams Wrap Up - Round 21

Ok time to get a little controversial. I put this to you David Gallop, why would you enforce all teams to announce their teams for the upcoming rounds play on a Tuesday afternoon? I mean come on, now with the addition of Monday Night Football, after travel/downtime and recovery, some teams will not have a chance to even hold one full training session before team selection panels wheel the axe. The issue I have here is that teams are announcing ever enlarged extended benches, players are dropped after one bad game with no chance to prove themselves during the week, players are coasting through training with confidence, there is more time for injury etc. With this, DT’ers around the country are frequently frustrated! When they turn on the TV or head down to the ground to watch a game and see a totally different team line up, how do you think that makes them feel? They think about all the points lost and rue those potential trades that were held off until next week. With this, I implore you Mr Gallop, change Team Lists day to Thursday!!!

Anyway, with that behind us, welcome to Tom’s Team’s for this week, where the ins and outs for this week’s action are posted and discussed. Some of the DT favourites are down on form atm, might be time to look for a replacement. Enjoy.

Melbourne V St George
Two of the league’s best go at it on Friday night in what should be a close one. Melbourne has won 11 of their last 12 Friday night matches. St George has won just one of their last 10 matches against Melbourne, having never beaten the Storm at WIN Jubilee Oval. St George essentially has two days less to prepare for this one, coming back from New Zealand on Monday. Even with their great form, I can sense an upset. This should be a defensive battle, with both lines to be peppered all night.

Melbourne
In – Turner, Inglis, Johnson, Hoffman
Out – Blair, Anderson, Neilson, Cahill

St George
In – Prior, Priddis

Gold Coast V North Queensland
Will Gold Coast finally lose at home this week? One would think not given the Cows terrible road record. As I expected Scotty Prince ran rampard over the Broncos last week, don’t be surprised if he takes the cake against JT this week too. In saying that, JT is a good buy this week, because he has bottomed out price wise, and will look to improve personally for a finals charge to help his team. The Coasties lose Lafranchi this week to suspension, terrible news for DT’ers!!! Serious doubt for all 2nd rowers for GCT, hopefully the young guns will step up and score big. David Meyers would still be my best bet for a mid-range replacement 2RF. Doubts over Minnichello for this one, maybe Daniel Conn to be a late replacement.

Gold Coast
In – Matthews, Graham
Out – Harrison, Laffranchi

North Queensland
In – Watts, Manukafoa


Canberra V Brisbane
Flip a coin with this one. As much as the Broncos need a win, I do not see two home losses in a row on the cards for the Raiders.

Brisbane
In – Carroll, Hunt, Lockyer, Halu
Out – Gorrell, Mcguire, Williams

Canberra
In – Mccrone,Waddell
Out – Buttress, Herbert

Penrith V New Zealand
Penrith will be looking for another strong performance to solidify their top 8 spot. They are good players to have coming into DT finals.

New Zealand
In – Ropati, Tuimavave, Brown
Out – Price, Royal, Ah Van

Penrith
In – Elford, Pritchard

Newcastle V Sydney City
Surely if the Knights are to contend this year they will show some pride in themselves and bounce back this week against the featherless Roosters outfit. Some names come back into the team for Sydney (Fitzgibbon), but it doesn’t matter when your goal line defence is as bad as theirs. Add to the fact that half the team is not switched on, and your result is a Newcastle flogging. Gidley back this week, I promise, points may be up and down as he may play some minutes in the halves.
Newcastle:
In – Gidley, Mullen

Sydney
In – Fitzgibbon, Brown, Hauraki
Out – Kenny-Dowell, Ahern, Symonds

Cronulla V Parramatta
The Eels won last week with a big upset against the Bulldogs, and with half Daniel Mortimer in such good form and Trent Barrett done for the year, expect another Gold and Blue victory.

Cronulla
In – Green, Tupou
Out – Barrett, Norre

Parramatta
No Changes

South Sydney V Canterbury
Another big week for the Rabbits. Need to come out strong and show the league that they are the real deal. Wins against soft opposition has lifted team morale and led by John Sutton, another big game is needed this week. The Bulldogs too need to show some form after last week. This should be a cracker. Big name DT’ers Hickey and Stagg back in the team.

Souths
In – Crocker

Bulldogs
In – Stagg, Hickey
Out – Morrin, Holdsworth

Wests V Manly
How is the form of the mighty Tigers? At home against the Eagles, a chance to show the fans the brand of footy that is propelling them towards the top 8. A crucial game for both teams. Expect big things from inspired leaders Farrah and Marshall.

Wests
In – Collis

Manly
In – Matai, L’estrange

For a full list of teams for the rounds action visit:
http://www.foxsports.com.au/league/teamlists

Thats all for this week, peace.

Chk Chk Boom! Wenins report from the Cross – The high’s and the lows of the DT weekend.

Howdy DTers, not much to report on this weekend, the boys were well behaved and I was in another world at Splendour. The only controversy involved some sleeping pills and energy drinks.....Boring!!

So let us just get on with the highs and the lows of a rather disappointing week of dream team.

Highs

Jamie Simpson

With the news of the passing of a close friend in the back of his head, this steal of the weekend ($156,800) racked up a hat trick of tries, to score a fantastic return of 77 points in Souths win over the hapless Roosters.

Scott Prince and the Titans.

Finally the Titans look set for a finals birth in 2009. Despite a horrid run of injuries again this year Gold Coast continue to make skill stadium a house of pain for opposition teams. Who has been nearly a forgotten man this year, Scott Prince ($223,400) demonstrated why he is one of the elite half backs of the completion on the weekend. He amassed an incredible 110 points for a half, which is not easy to do. Prince had a hand in every single one of the Titans tries and he collected 1 try himself, 16 tackles, 4 try assists, 3 line break assists and 5 hitups throughout.
In order to free up some bank for some upcoming finals blockbuster trades I had to choose between him and Mortimer ($227,300) for a downgrading. I chose to trade Prince out!! Hopefully my choice doesn’t backfire on me in coming weekends..…

The Titans will be tested again this weekend, especially in the forwards, with the loss of a DT favourite Laffranchi ($339,100) to suspension and Ashley Harrison ($273,400) has been ruled out.

Parramatta Eels.

The Eels scored one of the biggest upsets of the year over the weekend, defeating the nearly unstoppable Bulldogs 27-8. Daniel Anderson stated that this victory was the best under his leadership.

My two new DT heroes Daniel Mortimer ($227,300) and Nathan Hindmarsh ($361,300) had large scores again with 70 and 81. The only disappointment for this game was the absence of David Stagg ($321,200) who was a late withdrawal. The Eels were amazing in defence and hold a usually bullish dogs attack to only 8 points. Jamal Idris ($202,400) showed just how good he is at DT, scoring 57 despite the low dogs score. Very happy I brought him in last week, he is a gun!
If the Eels can continue their form over the last two weeks, who knows how far they can go!

Lows of the weekend

The Broncos and their injury problems.

The Broncos have caused some serious DT headaches this year through both Origin commitments and injuries. Already this season we have seen Hodges and Folou miss large chunks of the season. This week was no exception, the Broncos were without Lockyer, Wallace, Carrol and Thaiday. Sam Thaiday is a massive out for DTers as at his great price of $228,900 he was just starting to hit some form. If he can get himself back on the paddock he will be a great pickup come finals time.

Current casualty ward

http://www.nrl.com/telstrapremiership/casualtyward/tabid/10247/default.aspx

I know these updates are a bit useless, but I am struggling to find anything better on the net. If I do, you will be the first to know..

Results from the weekend

Manly 44 - Newcastle 20

Gold Coast 34 - Broncos 18

Bulldogs 8 - Parra 27

NQ 20 - Panthers 28

Melbourne 30 - Sharks 10

Raiders 4 - Tigers 25

NZ 4 - Dragons 29

Souths 40 - Roosters 20

Until next weekend, happy DTing.

Wenin out!

Late Mail

Hello fello DTers, ready for a massive weekend? Well unfortunately I am not going to be able watch any games this weekend as I will be splendouring it up at Byron Bay. However, this doesn't prevent me from fullfilling my friday duties....So here goes.

Titans vs Broncos

The Broncos are already without Darren Lockyer, Israel Folau, Nick Kenny, Sam Thaiday and Tonie Carroll because of injury, and yesterday fullback Karmichael Hunt (corked thigh) and halfback Peter Wallace (hamstring) were ruled out as well.

Brisbane coach Ivan Henjak has been forced to dig deep and bring a couple more youngsters in to fill the holes, with Ben Hunt playing halfback and Josh Hoffman fullback. Another youngster, Dale Copley, has been promoted to the wing, with Alex Glenn dropping back to the bench.

Gold Coast hooker Nathan Friend has an ankle injury and is regarded as a 50-50 chance. The Titans, who lost 23-16 to the Bulldogs last Friday night, have delayed a decision on him until today. Update Friend has been confirmed as a starter for tonights match.

Knights vs Manly

Manly coach Des Hasler said Jared Waerea-Hargreaves, who was named in jersey 18, would miss out for tonight's game against the Knights at Bluetongue Stadium. Newcastle, who are already missing a few players injured, have further concerns going into the match.

Fullback Kurt Gidley is considered highly unlikely to play because of a rib injury, while halfback Scott Dureau (hip) and bench forward Cory Paterson (quad) are in some doubt after being hurt at training yesterday. Update Gidley is out!!!!!!!!

Bulldogs vs the Eels

Bulldogs coach Kevin Moore cannot pick a stronger team than the one named for tomorrow night's game against the Eels at ANZ Stadium and he said none of the 17 were in doubt. Parramatta coach Daniel Anderson said his side was intact as well after beating Melbourne 18-16 on Monday night.

Cowboys vs Penrith

North Queensland forwards Matt Scott and Antonio Kaufusi are expected to overcome knee injuries in time to play against the Panthers at Dairy Farmers Stadium tomorrow night. Penrith have no injury concerns among their 17.

Storm vs Cronulla

Melbourne have a string of worries leading into tomorrow night's game against Cronulla at Olympic Park. Winger Steve Turner (foot) is not expected to play, while centre Greg Inglis (knee) and lock Dallas Johnson (neck) are rated 50-50 at best.

The short turnaround from playing on Monday night has put the Storm under the pump when it comes to players trying to overcome injuries. Five-eighth Brett Finch is set to play after missing the Parramatta game with a chest complaint and hooker Cameron Smith (shoulder) is considered a good chance after also missing that game.

Cronulla second-rower Anthony Tupou is in doubt with a hamstring injury.
Canberra players Josh Dugan, Joel Monaghan, Terry Campese and Joel Thompson are all battling the flu leading into Sunday's game against Wests Tigers at Canberra Stadium. They all missed training yesterday and with today being a day off they will be checked tomorrow.
Officials are optimistic they will all play. Wests Tigers are intact.

Warriors vs Dragons

St George Illawarra have pruned a seven-man bench to five for their trip to Auckland to play the Warriors at Mt Smart Stadium on Sunday. Luke Priddis and Matt Prior drop off. Star forward Jeremy Smith will definitely make his long-awaited comeback from injury. The Warriors are as named.

Souths vs Roosters

South Sydney bench forward Michael Crocker remains in doubt for Monday night's game against Sydney Roosters at ANZ Stadium because of a corked leg. The Roosters, who lost 30-24 to the Warriors last Sunday, are intact.

source: http://www.leaguehq.com.au/news/lhqnews/broncos-lose-more-stars/2009/07/23/1247942008700.html

KinGs Trade Talk - Round 20

Potential Trades

Ins

Kevin Locke

- Most DreamTeamers spotted Kevin Locke a few weeks back and what dividends has he paid, however he has put most people in a dilemma – Do I sell him and cash in on the $70k+ that I made or do I keep him on my interchange

- So why is he a “In” in KinG’s trade talk, well just simply look at his value and 3 game average below

- Value $166,700

- Season average 51.67

The Verdict

- Kevin Locke is a great player, his not afraid to go for a run and that’s what results in him scoring 4 tries in 6 games, not to mention an average of a line break a game. Now that’s solid. His price to avrage ratio is one of the best, (sure Brett Stewarts is better but I don’t see him doing much on the field now do I?

Outs

Michael Ennis

- He is an irritating player, whenever I watch the doggies play, I always catch Ennis up to his dirty tactics

- Well he has had way too many low scoring games over his past few games, his 5 game average is infact lower than his 3 game rolling average
- I personally don’t think his value can fall any further, as his value has taken a massive $101k hit over his last 7 league games

- Value $159,600

- Last 3 game average 31.67 points

The Verdict

- Yeah sure he helped NSW win the state of origin but that’s cos we Queenslanders got a bit tired of winnig to many one sided games so it was time to let NSW win a game so that QLD will be back with a bang next year ! Believe that

Cap Space Booster

Dave Taylor

- Now that he has been starting games for the Broncos, his true potential is being exhibited to the world, Souths must be loving this the most.
-Given the performance of his last two games and the fact that the Broncos are struggling, expect big performances from the beast of man.
-Value $197,800

-Last 3 game average 63.33

The Verdict

- He has a 25 point performance in his rolling 3 game average, given the fact that the bring forwards will be under more pressure due to the current injury crisis for the Broncos, who else is more capable then Dave Taylor, I’m anticipating another solid performance from him which will make his 25 point game a distant memory. Expecting his value to go up by 30-50k over then next two weeks, so if you a cap boost for your finals blockbusters than Dave is your man !

That’s a wrap for this weeks trade talk, tune in next Friday morning at 1.am
Yeah I know this week’s post is smaller than last weeks but I promise you this, next weeks will be awesome as we gear up for the finals. Here is a small preview we talk Trent Waterhouse!

Until then peace out !

One.

Don’t forget to post your comments or any trade related questions!

Nick's Captains - Round 20

Well what a week of DT - some very rubbish scores produced this week. My man John Sutton, whom I said wouldn't do anything, blasted the Broncos for a lazy 118 points, and Benji bamboozled the Cowboys for a cool 135. The DT regulars struggled a little, with send-offs and injuries causing points to be much lower than normal.

The top 5 from last week scored as follows:
1 - Farah (61) - 10 in the bin didn't help his score
2 - Hindmarsh (81) - maybe he should be #1 every week
3 - Stagg (67)
4 - Fitzgibbon (69)
5 - Tupou (37) - Hammy goooooone

Analysis this week is as follows:
Steve (comp rank based on avg) - (3 week avg)(score last time these teams met)

Manly v Knights
Manly - no-one in the top 20 still. Glenn Stewart is on the fringe at 23. No captain material.
Gidley(15) - (62)(91) - this 91 was back when Manly were struggling. Although he has been named, I wouldn't be surprised to see him miss this week.
Taia(17) - (68)(78) - consistent.

GC v Broncos
Laffranchi(6) - (89)(n/a) - Another solid performance on the weekend (72) and with the Broncos in their poor current form he could be set for another big one this week.

Parker(18) - (54)(n/a) - soft.

Dawgs v Eels (massive DT game right here)
Stagg(5) - (77)(n/a) - Stagg has been putting up big numbers lately, and should score well here again. Very reliable captain. Loves DT!!
Hannant(7) - (89)(81) - the big Polar Bear is back!!!!!!!!! Has been a DT star in the games he has played so far this year, so will be interesting to see how he goes this week. I think he will work his way back into it.
Hindmarsh(4) - (84)(n/a) - I know this is getting a bit repetitive, but big Hindy kills it in DT. His value is up to $360k and he loves nothing more than scoring DT points!

NQ v Panthers
JT(22) - (49)(n/a) - not at the same lofty heights as earlier in the season. DT value diminishes with every week
Waterhouse(9) - (73)(n/a) - another solid 69'er last week for Trent "I like to be 3rd man in when 2 men are already going at it" Waterhouse. Good at DT though.

Storm v Sharks
Storm - nothing again. Big Sika Manu had a good score this week though. Smith may play this week you would think.
Tupou(16) - (59)(n/a) - a hammy injury and a 37 forced him to drop 3 places in the player rankings last week. Will he play this week (he has been named)? If so stay away, but get on next week or the week after when he should drop to about $260k or so.

Raiders v Wests
Bronson(8) - (69)(101) - big time 101 score last time they met, although this was in Round 1. Should be a free flowing game in Canberra so he might go big again.
Farah(3) - (75)(53) - will be looking to atone for last week. Getting sin-binned for 10 minutes does not help in DT. Will put on try assists and score big this week.

NZ v Dragons
Price(10) - (73)(63) - hopefully he will be back this week, but not as captain against the Dragons. Soward(20) - (97)(61) - has been on fiar recently. I think he will score averagely well this week, but not captain material.

Rabbits v Roosters
Sutton(19) - (99)(71) - massive last couple of games, getting back to the form that had him touted as an Origin star in days gone by. You would expect him to go big again against the Roosters this week.
Fitzgibbon(10) - (93)(50) - OUT!!!!!!!

Based on the above, the top 5 for this week is:
1 - Farah
2 - Hindmarsh
3 - Harrison
4 - Laffranchi
5 - Sutton

I umm'd and ahhh'd about Stagg, and he was very unlucky to miss out. Sorry for the lack of poll last week - but it's back this week! 26 votes last time - let's go for 40 this week

Tom's Teams Wrap Up - Round 20

Welcome back to another week of Tom’s Teams Wrap up! First of all, to my loyal fans, I must apologise for the unexplained hiatus from this blog. I have been in WA without my laptop for a while and I sort of forgot about NRL for a few weeks. Also, the eating of the world’s hottest burger at the Off the Wall diner has played a part, mainly because it nearly killed me! But not to worry, I’ve been brewing for a while now and am ready to unleash some pain on this blog. Let’s do it.

Plenty of great DT players to be running around in the NRL this week due to the wave of injuries that have struck some of the big name players in the league. Good news for DT’ers as that means plenty of bargains to be had for all (if you have trades left). Time to see the ins and outs for round 20!

Manly V Newcastle

Manly are back to near best at Brookvale, with Newcastle up and down on the road. However, fresh off the bye round and with inspirational skipper Kurt Gidley a certain starter, the Knights may upset the Eagles this week.

Manly:
In – Bailey, Rodney
Out – Mauro

Newcastle:
In – Gidley, Patterson, Dureau
Out – Houston, Mullen, McDonnell
Gold Coast V Brisbane

This all Queensland affair will not be close. Broncos are way off their game these days, and the Titans seem unstoppable at Skilled Park. Look for Scotty Prince to bounce back into form this week.

Gold Coast
In – Harrison, Cannings, Lawdon, Lacey
Out – Conn, Matthews

Brisbane
In – Simms, Sweeny
Out - Carroll

Canterbury V Parramatta

The Eels lifted last week against an underdone Storm outfit; however the ever reliable Bulldogs are a class above anyone on their day – they will be way too good for the Eels at home. I say every week to jump on any Canterbury forward you can afford, and this week is no exception. DO IT!

Canterbury
In – Goodwin, Hannant, Eastwood
Out – Utai, Hickey

Parramatta
No Changes


North Queensland V Penrith

Fresh off an Origin defeat the big boys from up north were off their game and looked flustered last week. Expect a big win for the Cows this week, complemented by a big score from JT and Matty Bowen.

North Queensland
In – Scott, Weston
Out – Watts

Penrith
In – Elford

Melbourne V Cronulla

As much as I would love to see it, an upset is never on the cards for the Sharks down in Victoria. Even with injuries, the Storm will get home this week. Btw how good was Billy the Kid in the halves? Why can’t we see that every week!

Melbourne
In – Smith, Hinchcliff, Finch
Out – Kelly

Cronulla
No changes

Canberra V Wests
I cannot look past a Tigers outfit that played with such passion in the previous round. Look for them to knock off the heavily fancied Raiders on the road in a high scoring affair. Playmakers will score big in this one…

Canberra
In – Thurling, Picker
Out – Leyroyd-Lahrs

Wests
In – Collis

New Zealand V St George

The warriors charging home to the finals! Sounds good right Kirkup? Too bad they have the full strength Dragons fresh from a bye coming to town this week to spoil the party. Expect a close one, I’m tipping the upset. Will we see the Dell go head to head with the beast that is Manu Vatuvei? Two DT heavyweights back in the lineup for NZ.

New Zealand
In – Locke, Price


St George
In – Boyd, Poore, Weyman, Creagh, Costigan, Prior, Smith
Out – Emmett, Lett, Nightingale, Merrin

South Sydney V Sydney

In the final game of the round, Monday night sees the Rabbits and the Roosters go at it. The Rabbitohs looked good at Suncorp last Friday, and with an extended break, they will choke the Chooks at home. Get on John Sutton as he is doing everything to lift these Rabbits into the finals. Minechello is back for the Roosters, likely to play on the wing so is probably not worth the gamble.

Souths
In – Crocker

Sydney
In – Minechello, Soliola, Ahern
Out – Fitzgibbon, Cherrington, Earl

That’s it for this week. May this week be full of growth and playing time for your beloved 17!
Tg

Player of the Week: Round 19

Greetings from sunny Cairns! Sorry about the AWOL post last week, I was off somewhere celebrating the reclaiming of a little Origin pride with the win at Suncorp on Wednesday night by the Blues. Yes yes, I realise that we still lost the series, yes yes I've heard the myriad of normal QLD'er excuses, the refs were biased, we only won because of the players they had out injured, dirty NSW players, the wind was blowing in the wrong direction etc etc etc. Was good to see a physical game, some massive hits, and even a bit of biff resurfacing with hardman Steve Price KO'd by Mr White. In all fairness I was pretty impressed with the way Pricey took it post game, unlike Hodges shooting his mouth off at White while he was behind a team of players acting tough like he wouldnt have been laid out next to Price on Medivac #2 if he tried to take White one on one, he couldnt punch his way out of a wet paper bag...

Anyway, on to the important stuff, it was a bit of an up and down week this one with some decidedly average performances from some of the big guns. Origin also took it's toll with a few big names out with injuries and the like. But celebrating a big return to form and an absolutely massive week:

1. Benji Marshall

I've had Benji in my team from Day 1 and he has generally been a solid performer, but of late he has been dragging the chain a bit and I've often found my mouse hovering over the trade button but in the spirit of trying to save trades for later in the season he's lived on, boy am I glad..
Benji dropped a proverbial atom bomb on the Cowboys this week:
Tries - 1
Try Assists - 3
Goals - 5
Tackles - 12
Offloads - 1
Line Breaks - 4
Line Break Assists - 3
Runs - 9
Total points: 135

Take that.


2. John Sutton
It's probably no surprise the names fleshing out the rest of the top 3 are decked in red and green after the Rabbitohs drubbing of the Bronc's, an underpowered Bronco's side were destroyed at home by the rampant Rabbitoh's attack, spearheaded by Sutton. A homage to his epic performance last week of 134..
Try assists - 4
Tackles - 16
Offloads - 3
Line Break Assists - 5
Runs - 12
Total Points: 118

3. Beau Champion
Helped out massively by the big man in the Number 2 spot, Champion lived up to his name and posted his biggest fantasy score of the season getting the job done and crossing the line time and time again for the Bunnies:

Tries - 3
Tackles - 9
Offloads - 2
Line Breaks - 3
Runs - 13
Total points: 106



Special mention : Junior Tia-Kilifi - 79 points
This Panthers rookie has been creating ripples ever since he got on team in Round 16, currently averaging 58.67 over his 3 rounds, expect big things from him in the future!

Konichiwa bitches.

Nicks Captains - Round 19

Welcome to another week of Nick's captains. First off, thank f**k that Jamie Soward isn't playing this week. I'm sure people who have him won't be saying that, but he has killed me the last 2 weeks. Last week I had him in the top 5 and he didn't disappoint, notching up a lazy 125 points. Stagg and Hindmarsh were also in the top 6 highest scorers in the entire comp , so the Nick's Captains top 5 did alright last week, as set out below:
1 - Laffranchi (63)
2 - Stagg (88)
3 - Hindmarsh (95)
4 - Bronson (66)
5 - Soward (125)

The Knights and Dragons have byes this week. Here's the analysis of this weekend's games:

Broncos v Souths
Parker(19) - (70)(n/a) - kicking duties seem to have been taken off Corey, which could limit his DT output against a lowly team like Souths. Not captain material.
Souths - John Sutton had a massive 134 last week, but I wouldn't expect him to do anything like that again this week.

Dawgs v GC
Stagg(5) - (76)(99) - had a day out on the GC last time these 2 teams met, with a massive 99 points. Top 5 (again).
Laffranchi(6) - (91)(58) - the big fella let me down a little last week. With a 58 last time he played the Dawgs, he doesn't have history on his side. But he has the ability to go big.

Panthers v Canberra
Panthers - Waterhouse is in, but after his grubby act in State of Origin I'm not even going to put his stats up. He's a cat. But honestly - get on Paul Aiton. I am one of only 2,371 people who have him, and he is a gun. Dropped 90 last week. I'm not confident enough to make him captain, but he is a solid addition to any team.
Bronson(8) - (83)(71) - big Bronson seems to be a bit up and down these days. Either goes massive (100+) or average (60's) - there is nothing in between. He won't be in the top 5 this week

Sharks v Manly
Tupou(13) - (75)(n/a) - Tupou would want to have a massive game this week. With Gallen still out you would think Tupou would get through a bit more work. I am predicting a 75 from him.
Manly - don't seem to be that good at DT. No-one from Manly is in the top 20 averages.
Roosters v Warriors
Fitzgibbon(10) - (89)(76) - the Warriors are gone, and thus is an afternoon game in Sydney. Fitzgibbon should have a big game.
Warriors - with Price expected to be out, maybe Russell Packer would step up. But with the way they have been going, I wouldn't be making any Warriors my captain this week.

Wests v NQ
Farah(3) - (74)(86) - with Gallen and Brett Stewart still injured, Farah has the higest average of people actually playing this week. Good score last time against NQ, Sunday arfo game. Should score well.
JT(17) - (55)(38) - who knows? Normally plays quite well after Origin, so he might go big, 38 against Wests last time worries me though.

Eels v Storm
Hindmarsh(4) - (95)(n/a) - performed well as my skipper last week, and I would expect another good score this week. Solid.
Also, what about Jarrod Hayne. I love this bloke - I told Michael Hagan at Origin on Weds night that he should make Hayne club captain - he said he'd think about it. Always a doubt about Origin players playing the next week, so if you plan on taking a punt and going with him as skipper, make sure you have a good VC locked in.
Storm - nothing.

Based on the above, the top 5 for this week is:
1 - Farah
2 - Hindmarsh
3 - Stagg
4 - Fitzgibbon
5 - Tupou

I've left Laffranchi out, and no doubt he will carve up now just to show me.

KinG's Trade Talk - Round 19

Potential Trades

Ins

Anthony Tupou

- Now here is a man who has been a solid performer all season long, so why the sudden interest?

- Well despite averaging 75.67 for the last 3 games, his value is an absolute steal, his value is on the verge of going over the 300k mark !

- Value $299,900

- Last 3 game average 75.67 points

The Verdict

- Considering his season average (70.44) he is an absolute steal, for his current price.

Outs

Adam Blair

- Ever since Manu Sika has come back into the team, Adam Blair stats have taken a dive down south

- He has dropped in value by $50k over the last 3 weeks

- Value $204,300

- Last 3 game average 37 points

The Verdict

- Sure he averages 53.80 points for the season and that’s a decent amount for your interchange, but I just don’t think its worth having him anymore, his 3 game average tells a very different story.

David Fa’alogo

- I rate David Fa’alogo, he is a consistent performer on the field although he has been a bit overpriced the whole season, so why sell him?

- Well he has had to 30 point performances in his last two games which brings his 3 game average to 46.33 points
- As a consequence of his last two performances one can anticipate his value to fall another 20-30k this week

- Value $260,600

- Last 3 game average 46.33 points

The Verdict

- If I rate a player than why should I sell him? Well the answer is simple due to his last two performances his value will continue to slide, after the two 30 point games are out of his rolling average, he will be a decent buy back for around the low 200k mark. Sell him now, and buy Anthony Tupou !

Cap Space Booster

Junior Tia-Kilifi

- He backed up his debut match with a decent performance, sure it wasn’t as good as his debut but he managed to get 15 hitups
- Given the performance of his first two games, his value is certain to increase this
- Value $105,400

- Last 3 game average N/A, 2 Game average 48.5

The Verdict

- If anyone wants a cap boost of about 25-35 k, Junior is your man, his been named in this weeks starting line-up so his value with definitely be heading up North. Like I said last week, don’t keep him for too long as there are no guarantess on how many more games he will be playing for the remainder of the season

That’s a wrap for this weeks trade talk, tune in next Thursday morning.
My Bad for the late post this week, just been shocked with the Origin 3 Result.

Until then peace out !

One.

Don’t forget to post your comments or any trade related questions!

Who said that Origin had gone soft?

So QLD lost the game, who cares? The result was not important in the big scheme of things. What mattered most was what occurred in the last five minutes of the game. It all started with a Geyer vs. Lewis like standoff between Price and White. Price got knocked the f$%k out and then it was onnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!

Coming from Victoria I was yet to experience the sort of physicality that origin was famous for. Last night I witnessed what Origin games must have been like during the years I spent living as a Mexican. There was a sense of hatred which has been hidden for the past 10 or so years, they played with passion and most importantly absolute hatred for the men on the opposite side of the border.

Credit to NSW they finally turned up to play, be it against a QLD team missing Petero, Israel, Nate “Poo” Myles and Ben Hannant.

So what was the outcome of the brutal 90 minutes at Suncorp last night for Dream Team?
Injuries and suspensions!

Here we go….

Manly winger David Williams is nursing a suspected fractured cheekbone after he was kicked in the head by Maroons halfback Johnathan Thurston in an incident which eventually led to an eight-point try being awarded.

Johnathan was slapped with a dangerous conduct charge, but will be free to play for North Queensland this weekend after accepting the early guilty plea.

Waterhouse was also charged for his hit which floored Maroon prop Steve Price with one minute left in the contest, the Panthers backrower facing a one week suspension for a contrary conduct charge.

Price was knocked unconscious during the incident, which was sparked by a flurry of punches between Price and NSW prop Brett White, and he would be in some doubt for the Warriors game against the Roosters on Sunday.

Melbourne duo Cameron Smith (shoulder) and Greg Inglis (corked leg) would also be in some doubt to back up, as would the Cowboys' Willie Tonga who strained his hamstring in the first half.

Darren Lockyer and Sam Thaiday will miss playing for the Broncos this Friday. The skipper is expected to miss up to three weeks. Will this mean that $86k priced Ben Hunt will get a run? I hope so...

The Broncos are also sweating on injury updates for two other State of Origin stars, Justin Hodges and Karmichael Hunt who will notify coach Ivan Henjak of there availability on Friday morning.

NSW utility Craig Wing copped a knock to his jaw and will continue to be monitored ahead of Friday night's game against Brisbane at Suncorp Stadium.

Wenin out.

The weekend that was!

Sorry about the lack of posting this week. Everyone seems to be busy, busy, busy.

Plus the motivation just isn't there when it's not a league weekend!

Anyway, I promoise to be all over it next week.

Here is a link to Foxsports.com.au's round 18 review.

http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,25779442-5018866,00.html

Cheers, Wenin.

Late Mail - Round 18

SOUTH SYDNEY'S tumultuous time of late has settled slightly, at least in terms of on-field personnel. Both the Rabbitohs, facing a sixth straight loss, and Penrith are expected to be as named for their clash at ANZ Stadium tonight.

Garret Crossman, named as Souths' 18th man, remains some chance of playing, while the Panthers' standby players, Sam McKendry and Andrew Emelio, should drop out of their squad.

Newcastle's Adam MacDougall trained yesterday and is likely to play against Canberra tomorrow despite his knee troubles. Steve Simpson also trained after recovering from the flu.

Coach Brian Smith rested Chris Houston, Isaac De Gois and Matt Hilder from training yesterday, although they are all expected to play. Cory Paterson and Scott Dureau are expected to drop out of the extended squad. The Raiders are expected to be "1 to 17", with Glen Turner dropping out of the squad even though he is likely to travel.

Bulldogs coach Kevin Moore said he was undecided about who would replace suspended winger Bryson Goodwin and bench forward Greg Eastwood. Heka Nanai and Tim Winitana are options for the wing spot, while Moore said Jamal Idris (elbow) was unlikely to return.

As for Eastwood's spot, he said Lee Te Maari was also unlikely to play due to a knee injury.

"I'll know [the final squad] when they run on the field," Moore quipped.

The Warriors should be as named, but coach Ivan Cleary still named Ukuma Ta'ai as 18th man as a precaution.

Despite Manly officials maintaining centre Jamie Lyon (ankle) would be given until game day to prove his fitness, he is not expected to play against St George Illawarra on Sunday at WIN Stadium.

"It's in the hands of the medical team," football manager Steve Gigg said. "The decision won't be reached until Sunday and it will be based on what the medical team and Jamie say.

"It would be great for him to play, but if he aggravated it it could stuff him up for a few more weeks and that could have an impact on us."

Kieran Foran is expected to replace the suspended Heath L'Estrange.

Jeremy Smith is a slim chance of returning from an ankle injury for the Dragons. St George Illawarra coach Wayne Bennett is yet to finalise his bench after naming both Nathan Fien and Mathew Head. There are also fears Matt Prior, who was not named, has glandular fever.

Mat Rogers (ribs) and Mark Minichiello (ankle and knee) are almost certain to return for Gold Coast against Parramatta on Monday night, while co-captain Luke Bailey (arm) will visit a specialist today before he is cleared to play. The Eels are expected to be as named.

KinG Trade Talk for Round 18

Potential Trades

Ins
Anthony Laffranchi
- Needless to say in round 17 he finally showed why he was the outright most expensive player at the start of the season.
- Could be the start of some serious form
- Value $348,300
- Last 3 game average 87 points

The Verdict
- Sure he is a bit expensive but then again he is averaging 87 points and is worth every penny, not to mention this is almost the cheapest he has been all season long


Justin Hodges
- With the loss of Big Izzy ($227,400) to the Broncos, I’m expecting big things from Hodges, he came back with a solid performance over the weekend and is ready to explode
- Sure he may get injured the next game he plays but every game he plays he racks up decent points mostly from hitups,
- When he scores a try expect him to get at least 70 points
- Value $261,200
- Last 3 game average 56 points

The Verdict
- Controversial upgrade? Maybe! He makes a world of difference for the Broncos when he is playing, expect him to give a whole heap of points from all runs and hitups, plus the occasional try will result in some serious DT points. He would make for an ideal replacement for Big Izzy. Expecting big things from Hodges


Outs
Benji Marshall
- His recent fantasy form has been as unpredictable as his team
- Tigers drop 50+ points yet Benji gets only 32, that’s just not on !
- Value $223,000
- Last 3 game average 39 points

The Verdict
- Time to free up $230k, as its simply not worth having a playa worth that much average 39 points a game for 3 games in a row. The sale of Benji could free up some much needed cap space for Dream Teamers looking to make potential trades.


Zeb Taia
- His mid season fantasy fall has gone, he is consistently scoring 20 points less
- His value will continue downward, with a bye coming up, it’s time to cash in !
- Value $316,000
- Last 3 game average 65.67 points

The Verdict
- What is wrong with averaging 65.67 points? Well honestly nothing so why trade him? Well his rolling average is on the decline and may fall further with a bye coming up its time to just cash in, plus refer to comments on Anthony Laffranchi


Cap Space Booster

Junior Tia-Kilifi
- His finally got a run last week and had an impressive performance, with 19 hit-ups and a try to give a total score of 66
- Given his first games performance, he will surely increase in value in the following two weeks if he can get game time the week after origin
- Value $105,400
- Last 3 game average N/A, 1 Game average 66
The Verdict
- What’s the point of buying him now? Well the obvious to boost your damn cap space! Keep him for the first 3 games after which his value will increase by at least 35k and sell him straight away as we prepare for the Dream Team finals. If he follows Kevin Locke’s path we are in for a good boost in value.


That’s a wrap for this weeks trade talk, tune in next Thursday morning.
Until then peace out !
One.

Don’t forget to post your comments or any trade related questions!

Nick's Captains - Round 18

Well, let's just put last week behind us, and move on hey. It's fair to say that the success of Nick's Captains in its first week was limited, and that there were a number of massive scores from players who didn't feature in Nick's Captains. These included Soward (142), Laffranchi (132), Fitzgibbon (129), Price (115) and Jennings (105) just to name a few.

The Nick's Captains top 5 from last week scored as follows:
1 - Waterhouse (76)
2 - Hindmarsh (77)
3 - JT (62)
4 - Tupou (59)
5 - Farah (111)

There are a large number of players out this week, due to either Origin commitments or being on a bye weekend. This is also a week whereby none of the teams who are playing have played each other previously this season.
The analysis of the players this week is as follows:
Name(rank based on avg p/round) - (avg last 3)

Heeeeerrrrrreeeeeeeee we go:

Rabbitohs v Panthers
Nothing here - Waterhouse and Jennings are both out due to Origin commitments, and the Rabbitohs are just a joke at the moment. This game is a non-event for all DT'er's.

Knights v Raiders
Bronson(8) - (84) - The big man has been on fiiiiiaaarrrr (remember NBA Jam – he’s heating up!!!!) the last 2 weeks, racking up scores of 101 and 83. This could be another high scoring game, and with his penchant for a offload or 10, Bronson could go big again.
Campese(26) - (64) - When the Raiders score well, Terry scores well. So if you think they have what it takes to topple the Knights this week, then get on.
Taia (17) - (66) - Very consistent, with scores of 65, 66 and 66 the last 3 weeks. Doesn't go large enough to be considered captain material in my humble opinion.

Warriors v Dawgs
Stagg(4) - (77) - Stagg lives to tackle - there is nothing that he likes more. He defends in the middle though, and the Warriors do like to throw the ball around, so he might not make as many as normal - but in saying that, he might get into the spirit and start offloading. If you want a consistent captain, then he's your man.
Luck(20) - (63) – Luck is a DT slut – how else can you explain the ridiculously high number of tackles that he is 3rd/4th man into – he just wants more DT points!!!! Too bad he does nothing else – solid without being spectacular.

Dragons v Manly
Soward(30) - (75) - Has to be considered after his massive game last week - might be a bit harder to score against Manly than it was against the Roosters, although Manly will be missing their Origin stars.

GC v Eels
Hindmarsh(5) - (91) - Solid 77 last week. Expect a good score again. Nothing much else to say - solid.
Laffranchi(6) - (87) - Massive 132 last week – admittedly it was against the Raiders, but you would think he could do the same thing against the Eels this week, at home on the GC. You need to remember, this bloke cost $450k at the start of the year, so he has the ability to score massive DT points. Some might say he is a bargain at $348k – his lowest value of the year was $338k. The only other bloke to be that high all year long has been Gallen – and Ben Cousins.

Nick's Captains top 5 for the week:
1 - Laffranchi
2 - Bronson
3 - Stagg
4 - Hindmarsh
5 – Luck
This is a non-league round, but still, respond to the poll and let everyone know who you are locking in as captain. Last week we had 18 votes - let's got for 50 this week!!!

Players of the Week: Round 17

Whoa whoa whoa!! One or two decent performances this week or what?! I checked in on my score on the Monday and thought I would definitely have bragging rights in the league this week and get my mug up as DT'er of the week after massive performances from Laffranchi, Price et al... Then to my dismay I find out not only am I losing my league game in which the Yung Legends also have all my star performers, but everyone else in the league has busted out massive scores!! Ended up 4th overall which is not too shabby, but wasnt enough to take out the league game putting the final 8 position in jeopardy, will be a nailbiter of a finish.. Anyway I digress, lets look at some of our star performances this week!

1. Jamie Soward

"Whatever guys, I'm so rad I can do this with my eyes closed..."

Soward LOVES Dream team!

Try this for a stat sheet: 2 tries, 2 try assists, 5 conversions, 10 tackles, 4 offloads, 1 linebreak, 2 linebreak assists & 16 runs for 197m = 142 points! Slight improvement over his 23 last week...

Instrumental in the drubbing dealt out to the Roosters, Soward had the razzle-dazzle the Dragons needed as they crossed the line time and time again.


2. Anthony Laffranchi

"Move bitch, get out the way, get out the way, bitch get out the way.." No seriously, move.

Maybe Laffranchi logged in to fantasy last week and saw that his value had dropped by $87k over the course of the season. Taking it as a personal affront, he absolutely exploded this week.

Sneaking over the line for try time in the 24th minute, 1 try assist, 42 tackles, 2 offloads, 2 line breaks, 22 runs for 149m = 132 points!
Unfortunately his valiant effort wasnt enough to sneak the Titans ahead of the Raiders however he did manage to increase his value by $10k, I'm sure that will keep him happy!

3. Craig Fitzgibbon

Rounding out our list this week is a stellar performance from the Roosters captain. Responsible for all the points on the board is a Mr Craig Fitzgibbon aka the one in our top 3 that is not quite confident enough to play with his eyes closed.
Try-time? - Check, x2
Convert his own goals? No problems
Tackles - 38
Linebreaks - 2
Runs - 19 for 134m.

About the only thing that Fitzgibbon didnt accomplish was victory over the Dragons, but then Soward can play with his eyes closed so thats not really a surprise is it...

Until next week.

Origin Teams for Game 3

Team: Billy Slater, Darius Boyd, Greg Inglis, Justin Hodges, Willie Tonga, Darren Lockyer (capt), Johnathan Thurston, Steve Price, Cameron Smith, Matt Scott, Ashley Harrison, Sam Thaiday, Dallas Johnson.

Interchange: Karmichael Hunt, David Shillington, Neville Costigan, Michael Crocker, 18th man: Cooper Cronk

NSW Team:
Kurt Gidley, Jarryd Hayne, Michael Jennings, Josh Morris, David Williams, Trent Barrett, Brett Kimmorley, Josh Perry, Michael Ennis, Justin Poore, Ben Creagh, Trent Waterhouse, Anthony Watmough.

Bench: Craig Wing, Tom Learoyd Lahrs, Glenn Stewart, Brett White

Chk Chk BOOM! Wenins Reports from the Cross

Well another loss to Souths, another court case for Greg Bird and another dump taken on the dancefloor!

Just your typical weekend in NRL.

The nightclubs of the Northern Coast of NSW must all be fitted with toilets similar to that of the Stocky. I mean how else can you explain Nate Myles deciding to take a dump on the dance floor?

Nate must have also misplaced his room keys not long after watching the Disney retake of the Emperor's new Clothes. I mean how else can you explain his naked intrusion into a family's hotel room?

It appears that the general public have been left in the "dark" over the forced enrolment of all Rugby League players into the "Julian O'Neill School of how to behave in public". I mean seriously, WTF? Enough is enough, when are these "members of society" going to learn?

It was reported tonight that Nate Myles, whilst on the Northern Coast of NSW, defecated on a dance floor and then proceeded to enter a family's' hotel room naked. Later he was found, still missing clothing, passed out in a fire escape.

What are the consequences of this?

• Nate Myles - suspended for 6 weeks.


• Roosters - fined $50,ooo by the NRL for repeated offences.


• NRL - Just another dagger in the heart of League, how much deeper can it go?
  

I went to write my section of the blog this morning and thought bloody hell, I have nothing to report on, the boys have behaved themselves. Hmm no, wishful thinking I guess.

How much lower can these "role models" of League get? When will they start getting the picture that this is not how a person is to behave? It is time the League took a seriously hard stance on this. I think the possibility of lifetime expulsion from the game is not unreasonable.

Anyway that's my rant...until next week I guess.

Now onto the important stuff, what effect with this shitascraphe have on DT?

Well not only do I feel slightly ill but I am very annoyed, as I was seriously considering trading him into the Wenins the week after Origin. He was priced below $200k and was averaging 50 and had just scored 83 in round 16. So I guess it's back to the drawing board now!

Until next week, Wenin.

The weekend that was!

A deplorable South Sydney is searching for answers and a possible self imposed sin binning after their humiliating loss to the Tigers. The Tigers prevailed 54 -20 in an error riddled game. Robbie Farah ($352,700) may have just saved his origin spot with a man of the match performance with 6 try assists, 25 tackles, 1 line break etc etc, what can’t this man do?! for a delightful total of 95. Taniela Tuiaki ($212,200) must get a mention however. This beast of a man scored 3 tries as the Tigers, finishing with a total score of an estimated 115 and in the process made the South Sydney team look like school kids.

Melbourne pulled off a miraculous escape in a game they did not deserve to win. They lost the battle for possession, with only 40 per cent of ball, conceded 1582m and missed over 50 tackles, although their scramble was outstanding.

In what was a poor game for DT guns, Cameron Smith ($263,400) looks set to possibly miss out on Origin 3 with a shoulder injury. However, he should be fine come round 19 (I’m praying). Dallas Johnson ($240,800) continued to be a tackling machine, with a game high 43, netting him around 66 points. For me, Dallas Johnson ($240,800) is one the best value forwards at the juicy price, averaging over 60 all year baby!! The Queensland Reds bound Will Chambers ($225,200) also impressed with 1 try, 28 tackles and 1 line break, netting him around 50 points.

The Knights on the other hand played a physical game, and very nearly executed the perfect game plan to beat the Storm. The Knights dominated possession and field position for most of the game, but could not score enough points to take advantage. Big man Hidler ($260,600) will amass around 61 points with nice collection of 37 tackles and 12 hitups.

THE class of Matt Bowen ($207,200) and Johnathan Thurston ($307,900) was the difference as the injury stricken Cowboys got home in a tough battle.
They lost Aaron Payne ($257,600) (12th minute), Luke O'Donnell ($329,700) (20th minute) and John Williams ($201,300) (53rd minute) and had to grind away for the first 50 minutes before scoring their first try. Scott Tronc ($252,200) was impressive DT’ers with 65 (14 hitups for 146m and 34 tackles) and Matt Scott ($232,400) (16 hitups for 116m and 21 tackles) will score around 60 points also and will leave the Origin supporters with plenty to ponder on Tuesday.

The Sharks tried hard and defended strongly but lacked the class of Gallen ($402,600) and Barrett ($224,200).Luke Douglas ($281,600) LOVES dream team he will score around 82 points (18 carries for 169m and 45 tackles), Kade Snowden ($283,100) has 73 points (14 runs for 124m and 45 tackles) and Reece Williams ($201,600) (14 runs for 108m and 45 tackles) scored around 75. All great scores from the big Shark forwards!!

Canberra skipped out to a massive lead at half time to see it nearly slip away in the second half but Terry Campese ($262,700) and Bronson Harrison ($307,000) GET ON!!, continued their stellar years with scores of 93 and 83 respectfully.
The Titans fought their way back into the game but like the Sharks, have been hit hard with injuries including Luke Bailey, Anthony Minichiello and Ashley Harrison, lost the battle in the middle third against the more physical Raiders.

Anthony Laffranchi ($338,300) YEAH MAYNE!!! He is really starting to show that he was worth his +$400k price tag at the start of the year with his recent form. He was the Titans best with a try, a try assist and 24 runs for 199m, he also amassed a massive 40 tackles. The big man from the close scored more than 130 and will go close to DT Talks player of the week.

Penrith and the Eels had all us DT’ers in raptures with their game producing close to 80 points. THE return of Michael Jennings ($230,100), who scored three tries (90 odd points) and threw the final pass for the winner, helped inspire the Panthers to victory. They scored and conceded some soft tries along the way, but they will be delighted to keep their top-eight chances alive.

Trent Waterhouse ($350,700) is soon becoming a Dream Team favourite, continuing his good form with 16 carries for 119m, 24 tackles for around 60 points.
Jarryd Hayne ($308,200) and Nathan "I SHOULD BE PLAYING ORIGIN" Hindmarsh ($324,200) continue their brilliant DT year with scores of 84 and 77 respectively.

Young pivot Daniel Mortimer ($160,600) is my new favourite player, I brought him in two weeks ago and the boy has proved me right! He may not win our player of the week but he is the best value player currently by far! The kid scored two tries (including one to get them in front after 70 minutes). He also provided two try assists, including throwing the final pass for Joel Reddy to open the scoring. He went a long way to helping me past 1000 points with a fantastic return of 93. You little ripper!!

And that's all for now, Yeah Mayne!