Week One: Andrew's Team

THE ORCADIANS - Facebook S14

FR Keven Mealamu (NZL) - $1,140,000
FR Gurthro Steenkamp (SAF) - $750,500

LK Tom Donnelly (NZL) - $740,950
LK Sam Whitelock (NZL) - $510,500

LF Pierre Spies (SAF) - $1,170,000
LF Kieran Read (NZL) - $905,750

HV Dan Carter (NZL) - $1,275,000
HV Morne Steyn (SAF) - $1,190,000

CT Ma'a Nonu (NZL) - $1,190,000
CT Conrad Smith (NZL) - $1,140,500

OB Cory Jane (NZL) - $1,105,500
OB Joe Rokocoko (NZL) - $1,130,950

Team Value: $12,241,650
Cash in Bank: $58,350

With money tight, I had to make some sacrifices in this opening round. Unable to choose both hookers, I picked Mealamu over Smit as the Kiwi still has the edge, at least where Testrugby point scoring is concerned. Gurthro Steenkamp and Tony Woodcock seemed like the best choices among the props and in the end I chose the former (even if he does resemble a Turkish prison guard who enjoys raping the inmates) because he was marginally cheaper and I expect the Boks to have the upper hand come scrumtime.

Locks are notoriously the lowest scoring position in TR and so I made some compromises here. Tom Donnelly was by far the cheapest of the starting locks, and though he's certain to have a hard day at the office, I'd wager money that he'll still earn more than Bakkies. Bench-warming Sam Whitelock gets the other spot. He's likely to get a wee bit of game time and earn a handful of points but he's really just there as a makeweight.

My frugailty thus far allowed me to afford one of the tournament's "must have" players - Pierre Spies. Second only to Carter as the best average point scorer in 2009, and the most valuable loosie in this year's S14 by some margin, his price is sure to rise and if I didn't buy him now, I'd likely not be able to do so until after the bye in round 5. In the other slot, I picked Kieran Read, taking advantage of the fact that he's been criminally under-priced - nearly $250,000 cheaper than Thomson and Kaino, which doesn't seem right, does it?

There was little decision making to be done for my halves - Carter and Steyn - enough said.

Despite returning from injury, Nonu still seems the best bet as the biggest earner among the centres. It was a toss up between Conrad Smith and Jaque Fourie for the other berth - there's usually very little to separate them as far as point scoring goes. Fourie's probably the only Springbok back worth having - Kirchner and Olivier are too lightweight for this level and I'd be surprised if either of the wings see much of the ball - but I have a gut feeling that Smith might just shine in this game or the next.

In the backs, I chose Rokocoko and Jane. Rokocoko's indifferent form of late aside, he has the potential at least to score some serious points and Jane's another player who seems a relative steal, and I expect him to be battling O'Connor as the best scoring back of the competition.

Good luck, everyone! Let battle commence...

Week One: Kynan's Team

NO POOFTAHS - Facebook S14

FR Kevin Mealamu (NZL) - $1,140,000
FR Owen Franks (NZL) - $630,000

LK Tom Donnelly (NZL) - $740,950
LK Sam Whitelock (NZL) - $510,500

LF Francois Louw (SAF) - $820,000
LF Kieran Read (NZL) - $905,750

HV Dan Carter (NZL) - $1,275,000
HV Morne Steyn (SAF) - $1,190,000

CT Ma'a Nonu (NZL) - $1,190,000
CT Jaque Fourie (SAF) - $1,170,000

OB Joe Rokocoko (NZL) - $1,130,950
OB Cory Jane (NZL) - $1,105,500

Team Value: $11,808,650
Cash in Bank: $191,350

Wow! Pricey this year. I could hardly assemble a squad of starters... in fact, I couldn't. I also seem to have picked a lot of Kiwi's... though I do believe they are going to squeak by in the first test, so perhaps that is the correct move. Even in losing, they seem to score more than South Africans on a whole... probably the bias of the NZ based fantasy game.

I've been forced to select a prop up front, which is always a points disaster... but I have confidence that Franks will carry the ball enough to at least soften the damage.

At lock, I'm hoping Sam Whitelock gets a bit of a run - hopefully at the expense of Thorn... but that's wishful thinking barring injury. Whitelock should be a good earner though, as explained in a previous post.

Halfbacks and centers pick themselves, though it was a bit of a struggle for me to choose between Olivier and Fourie... I'm not sure the ball will make it out as far as Fourie very often. I might rethink that at the last minute.

At the back, Kirchner is horrendously over-priced, and Muliaina is in dubious form, so it had to be the All Black wings... they'll at least touch the ball. SA wings are good only for chasing down the ball and tackling.

Tri-Nations 2009: Report Card

As you mull over who to choose for the 2010 tournament opener it's perhaps worth looking at who the top performers were last year. As ever, we'll look at the only stat that really counts - a player's average score across the whole competition.

TOP 5 FRONT ROWERS

Bismarck du Plessis (SAF) - 325
Andrew Hore (NZL) - 256
Tendai Mtawarira (SAF) - 173
John Smit (SAF) - 168
Keven Mealamu (NZL) - 167

TOP 5 LOCKS

Nathan Sharpe (AUS) - 232
Isaac Ross (NZL) - 203
Victor Matfield (SAF) - 188
James Horwill (AUS) - 153
Mark Chisholm (AUS) - 142

TOP 5 LOOSIES

Pierre Spies (SAF) - 334
Rocky Elsom (AUS) - 316
Richie McCaw (NZL) - 311
George Smith (AUS) - 216
Juan Smith (SAF) - 193

TOP 5 HALVES

Daniel Carter (NZL) - 427
Matt Giteau (AUS) - 315
Morne Steyn (SAF) - 301
Fourie du Preez (SAF) - 295
Stephen Donald (NZL) - 171

TOP 5 CENTRES

Ma'a Nonu (NZL) - 284
Jean De Villiers (SAF) - 228
Berrick Barnes (AUS) - 226
Conrad Smith (NZL) - 180
Jaque Fourie (SAF) - 178

TOP 5 BACKS

Sitiveni Sivivatu (NZL) - 302
Lachlan Turner (AUS) - 238
Drew Mitchell (AUS) - 234
Adam Ashley-Cooper (AUS) - 217
Joe Rokocoko (NZL) - 214

Despite some of these players being notable absentees this year, there are a few interesting trends worth noting.

As usual, the locks are the least productive position - with only one lock (Sharpe) scraping into the overall top 20. The highest earning players are predominantly loosies, halves and front rowers, so that's where you should spend the money.

Although the Springboks were the dominant force last year, Morne Steyn was the lowest scoring of the three fly-halves (and only a whisker better than his scrum half du Preez), so he might not be the points machine that certain bloggers are predicting.

This year's priciest back (over $100,000 more than the next most expensive), Bryan Habana didn't even make the top five last year and I'd be amazed to see him buck the trend. His price seems to be based on past glories and misplaced fan loyalty - he was around the 20th best performing back in this year's S14. You'd be much better buying Cory Jane or James O'Connor, who are a fraction of the cost and will almost certainly outscore Habana.

SA vs NZ: Team Announcements

Springboks – 15 Zane Kirchner, 14 Jean de Villiers, 13 Jaque Fourie, 12 Wynand Olivier, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Morne Steyn, 9 Ricky Januarie, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Francois Louw, 6 Schalk Burger, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 John Smit (c), 1 Gurthro Steenkamp.
Subs: 16 Chiliboy Ralepelle, 17 BJ Botha, 18 Andries Bekker, 19 Danie Rossouw, 20 Ruan Pienaar, 21 Butch James, 22 Gio Aplon.


All Blacks – 15 Mils Muliaina, 14 Cory Jane, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma’a Nonu, 11 Joe Rokocoko, 10 Dan Carter, 9 Jimmy Cowan, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw, 6 Jerome Kaino, 5 Tom Donnelly, 4 Brad Thorn, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Keven Mealamu, 1 Tony Woodcock.
Subs: 16 Corey Flynn, 17 Ben Franks, 18 Sam Whitelock, 19 Liam Messam, 20 Piri Weepu, 21 Aaron Cruden, 22 Richard Kahui.

Tri-Nations Bargains and Bolters

Well, looking at the Tri-Nations prices this year, I doubt anyone can assemble a team of starters. That all depends on team selection by the coaches, of course, but my gut feeling is SA will play it safe, just as New Zealand did. Which means... there'll be some props, scrumhalves and reserve locks fielded in most fantasy line-ups.

That being said, there are a couple bargains to be had.

Springboks

FR  Beast Mtawarira (SAF)  $850,000
Not sure that he'll start right off the bat, given that he has just returned to the SA setup after a xenophobic attack by the SA Sports Minister... but, when you can't afford two hookers (and you won't be able too unless you compromise severely elsewhere) Beast is a good substitute. He carries the ball a lot, gets through an enormous amount of tackles... he really is an additional loosie and should score as such.

LF  Francois Louw (SAF)  $820,000
Maybe the find of the season - like Brussow before him, Louw came out of nowhere and has become the form fetcher in world rugby. His scores weren't huge in the Super 14, but he's a solid earner, and pops up for a couple tries here and there too. I think his scores will rise with his prominence... the scorers always show bias to more famous players.

CT  Juan De Jongh (SAF)  $600,000
Look for him to feature against Australia, and maybe in the home leg. His try in the Super 14 final, and a replica in his test debut against Wales confirmed his class. In space, he has devastating speed and can step a mile off both feet. If you're struggling to field a team, pray an injury on Jaque Fourie so de Jongh can get a run.

OB  Gio Aplon (SAF)  $595,000
If the grossly overpriced and over-rated Kirchner has a bad game on Saturday, buy Aplon immediately. Like Shane Williams, he is unstoppable on the first tackle, and makes impossible breaks several times per game. I don't know why he isn't starting (that's an assumption - we haven't seen the Bok team announcement yet...) because he is certainly the most dangerous outside back in Africa right now.

All Blacks

FR  Owen Franks (NZL)  $630,000
Again, if you can't get a hooker, get Owen. He is cheap but one of the most mobile and hard-working front-rowers around. He pops up in unlikely places with ball in hand, and may even steal a few tries on the wing. He's a good bet for the stingy.

LK  Sam Whitelock (NZL)  $510,500
I think he's the cheapest man in the competition, and while not a starter, I back him to score as many points off the bench as Thorn or Donnelly. Lock is a good place to settle for second best... not that Whitelock is - look for him to be a starter by competitions end. Donnelly is living on borrowed time against the size and athleticism of Whitelock.

OB  Israel Dagg (NZL)  $600,000
Why Henry left his most dangerous back on the bench, only he'll ever know. But Mils can't last forever. Dagg will get a run... probably next week after Muliaina embarrasses himself Saturday (the man hasn't played a competitive game in months.) Like Aplon, Dagg glides into space like a possessed moray eel, and like Aplon, he's dirt cheap.

Australia

LF  David Pocock (AUS)  $930,000
His enormous workrate makes him a consistent earner. While he's not as flash as Spies or Elsom, he's all over the park, turning over ball and hitting the ruck like the crazy Boer he is... yes its true - Australia could never breed a true hard man (I'm still dubious of the origins of Elsom...)

HV  Will Genia (AUS)  $955,000
At a sub-million dollar price, Genia is a steal. He was a top earner in the Super 14, and if he can reclaim some of that form at international level, he's a good buy instead of one of the flyhalves... unless that flyhalf happens to be Morne Steyn, then pay what you must.

Horne is cheap, but I don't rate him as a big earner... I haven't seen him do much damage at international level, and up against the solid defense of Fourie or Smith... no chance.

Australia also have a host of cheap front-rowers, but there's no telling who will play. I expect their regulars to be fit come the start of the Tri-Nations, in which case the bargains will dry up.

Good luck!

Join the Tri-Nations Fantasy Game

It's that time of year again... the Tri-Nations, toughest rugby competition in the world. And with that comes the toughest Fantasy League in the world.

Join us for an all new competition by clicking on the image below:



Click on Tri Nations.
Register with email address and follow the prompts.
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Invitation Code: 145416
Division Password: super 14

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