For years avid AFL fantasy coaches have been able to rely on the old reliable likes of Gary Ablett junior, Scott Pendlebury, Dane Swan, Patrick Dangerfield, Joel Selwood and Josh P Kennedy.
Although these greats still have plenty of dream team piggery to offer us, it’s about time we start looking at those young guns.
I’m talking about the next crop of fantasy jets, who will be looking to become locks in our sides in the not-too-distant future. Their potential to explode makes them genuine fantasy options in 2016.
Brandon Ellis (MID $568,000)
The hard-running Tiger is highly underrated in the fantasy world and after two and a half years of solid dream team performances to his name and 29 tons it is about time Ellis was considered alongside the top echelon of midfielders.
The 22-year-old averaged 102.7 in 2015, which included 13 tons and a season high score of 140. Perhaps the most amazing stat is the fact that Ellis has gone under 80 in just two of his past 28 matches.
At this stage of his career Ellis won’t be tagged often, with the likes of Brett Deledio, Trent Cotchin and Dustin Martin all being higher in the pecking order of Richmond players who need to be negated.
Ellis has a fantasy friendly game playing on the wing for the Tigers, often being unaccounted for and picking up a number of +6s across the half-back line. In 2015 he averaged 25.8 disposals (18.7 uncontested) and a handy 6.3 marks per game.
Ellis continues to improve and looks set for a decade-long career in the Tigers’ best 22, making the wing his own.
You can’t go wrong picking Ellis in 2016, with a minimum average of around 100 to be expected, and a potential 110 average on the cards.
Jack Macrae (MID $579,000)
Macrae was one of the most impressive fantasy midfielders in 2015, averaging 104.4 for the season and at one stage scoring eight successive 100s to average 117.75 between rounds 10-18.
Macrae had no third-year blues, backing up his second-year break out in 2014 where he averaged 104.3 in a strong Western Bulldogs midfield setup.
Macrae is a genuine accumulator, averaging 26.4 disposals a game, yet he puts in the extra effort for fantasy coaches with 5.6 tackles a game.
Due to the fact that he possesses elite endurance, the 21-year-old rarely sits on the bench, playing 86.5 per cent of game time this season. The more time on the field, the more points he scores.
Despite being dropped earlier in the season for not following team rules and being too ‘cute’ with his disposal, Macrae is a certain starter for the Bulldogs come Round 1.
Remarkably Macrae (579k) is cheaper than he was at the start of last season, yet with the likes of Rockliff, Fyfe, Ablett and Dangerfield all priced around the same mark, it will take some guts to select him.
Rory Laird (DEF $489,000)
With a lack of gun defence options this year and the dual position removal from the likes of Luke Hodge, David Mundy and Liam Picken, coaches will be sifting through a number of backline options.
At 22 years of age, Laird already looks set for a lengthy career in the world of fantasy football. After being snubbed in the National Draft, Laird was forced to do it all the hard way, being selected in the 2011 Rookie Draft before getting his chance to debut in 2013.
He has since become a regular at West Lakes, playing the “Mr Fix It” role across half-back for Adelaide.
Laird averaged 24.4 disposals a game for the Crows last season, ranking third at the club, having stints on the ball, across half-back and negating some of the game’s best small forwards.
He has elite ball use at 80 per cent efficiency and is often used as a link-up player, between defence and attack.
33 per cent of his games resulted in 100 points or more in 2015, with a season high of 123 and an average of 97.4 in his last seven games of the season.
Taylor Adams (MID $560,000)
Adams had a breakout year in 2015, playing 18 games and averaging 101.2 as a MID/FWD, finding himself inside the top six forwards at the end of the year.
Unfortunately for Fantasy coaches, Adams will not have dual position status this season due to the sheer amount of time he spent in the midfield last year, yet he is still a viable point of difference option nonetheless.
Adams tagged a fair bit in his early days at GWS and even a bit in 2014, yet his days as a negator seem numbered and he is now a solid cog in the Magpies’ midfield engine room.
He averaged a whopping 27.4 disposals a game last season, as well as 4.4 marks and 5 tackles a game. The 180cm pocket rocket loves winning his own contested footy and thrives underneath packs.
His ceiling is extremely high with six scores above 120 and a season high of 146 coming against his old Giants teammates (36 disposals, 7 tackles).
It’s hard to see Adams’ average decreasing from now on, meaning he could certainly reach the 110 mark this season.
Lachie Neale (MID $563,000)
After struggling to find any sense of consistency in his first season at Fremantle, the pint-sized Neale has developed in leaps and bounds in recent seasons to become a vital member of the Dockers’ midfield.
After finishing the 2014 season with scores of 94, 107, 124, 104 and 99, Neale started relatively slowly, before firing in the Round 3 Derby with a mammoth 162 (42 disposals).
From then Neale went on to score five tons in six weeks as many avid coaches began to hop on the 22-year-old as a mid-priced downgrade for the injured Gary Ablett.
In total, Neale scored twelve 100s in 2015 to average 101.4 for the season. His ceiling was extremely high with seven scores over 120, yet his bad games were horrendous with scores of 36 and 57 coming against Sydney and Richmond.
Neale averaged 27.5 disposals a game last season (seventh in the league), 11.6 of those being contested. He is a genuine contested ball-winner, yet has the ability to damage opposition teams on the outside with his link up play.
At $563,000 it’s fair to say the Neale will only be selected in a small number of teams prior to Round 1 and admittedly he is slightly overpriced.
The advantage for Neale is that he won’t be copping the tag anytime soon with gun midfielders Nathan Fyfe, David Mundy and Harley Bennell all higher in the pecking order.
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