Amateurs Fantasy Sports

FULLBACK

BLAKE TAAFFE

WFB $330K (24 BE)

If Taaffe wins the goal kicking over Burton and Crichton he could be worth a look, but frankly is play style doesn’t suit NRL Fantasy.

PROJECTION: 24-28 PPG

WINGER

JOSH ADDO-CARR

WFB $444K (32 BE)

If you are looking for a classic option, you should look elsewhere. If, however, you are looking for a solid boom/bust WFB selection in the draft format, you can do worse than the week winning potential that Addo-Carr offers late in your draft.

PROJECTION: 36-40 PPG

CENTRE

STEPHEN CRICHTON

WFB/CTR $620K (45 BE)

Crichton arrives from the three time premier Panthers to the rebuilding Bulldogs with the weight of expectation and potential, along with a heavy pay cheque. If Crichton picks up the goal kicking instead of Matt Burton and retains his centre dual position, he is a genuine chance to be the #1 overall centre assuming his attacking output doesn’t take too much of a dip with the team he is playing for becoming significantly worse.

PROJECTION: 45-49 PPG

WINGER

JACOB KIRAZ

WFB $556K (40 BE)

If Kiraz can find a permanent home at the right centre position for the Bulldogs, he may just find himself as a gun option, averaging over 47 fantasy points from his 6 starts. Unfortunately, we see him likely landing on the wing, which would likely see him fall from relevance in the classic format.

PROJECTION: 40-44 PPG

FIVE-EIGHTH

MATT BURTON

HLF $642K (46 BE)

We predicted big things for Burton in 2023, but a very poor Bulldogs side wasnt quite something we had on the cards. The talent is there, but with the introduction of Toby Sexton there is just enough base stats being eroded that any potential for high end fantasy performances are all but gone. For interest, Burton averaged 6 points less in games partnering Sexton in 2023, despite getting an additional 3.6 points per game in goal kicking.

PROJECTION: 36-40 PPG

HALFBACK

DREW HUTCHINSON

HLF $400K (29 BE)

Hutchinson looks set to displace Toby Sexton as the Bulldogs halfback in 2024, much to the delight of fantasy coaches. Hutchinson shows a strong base of around 27 points per game, with a strong kicking game and consistent attacking involvement. Assuming he is named there in round 1, wheels up!

PROJECTION: 40-44 PPG

PROP

MAX KING

MID $630K (46 BE)

A cash cow 2 years removed, King has likely reached the end of his fantasy relevance pending some significant shift in his minutes role, which seems unlikely with the arrival of Josh Curran and Kurt Mann.

PROJECTION: 45-49 PPG

PROP

SAM HUGHES

MID $250K (18 BE)

Hughes put some impressive numbers on the board from a PPM perspective in limited opportunities in 2023, and with the shortage in the middle in 2024 he looks a candidate for an expanded role some cash generation off the bench with the blessing of Bulldogs godfather Phil Gould.

PROJECTION: 31-35 PPG

LOCK

JAEMON SALMON

EDG $289K (21 BE)

Salmon looks set to win the lock role for the Bulldogs, providing a really nice cash maker for coaches in their number 18 jersey. Given his workrate, ideally we may prefer to not play Salmon on a weekly basis.

PROJECTION: 27-31 PPG

EDGE

VILIAME KIKAU

EDG $513K (37 BE)

Kikau missed the majority of the season in 2023 with a pec injury suffered at training early in the year, and returned when the season was over, at least for the Bulldogs. If they can get their attack firing, Kikau has shown he can produce from a fantasy perspective, with a combined average of 46.9 fantasy points in 60+ minute edge performances across 2021/22 for the Panthers. If he could replicate this production, he is an interesting option and a definite later target for draft players.

PROJECTION: 37-41 PPG

EDGE

JACOB PRESTON

EDG $704K (51 BE)

Preston was a great cash cow for coaches in 2023, but with Kikau and the other troops returning, we likely see a reduction in a combination of both minutes and workload, making him a “wait and see” option as a potential keeper later in the year if he takes a step forward, but for now he is a draft only selection (one of the best at his position).

PROJECTION: 52-56 PPG

LOCK

JOSH CURRAN

MID $501K (36 BE)

Curran looks set to be a bench impact forward, so unless that changes he seems to be a hard avoid.

PROJECTION: 22-26 PPG

PROP

KURT MANN

MID $435K (32 BE)

Likely to play a similar role at the Dogs as he did for the Knights, covering the lock minutes of Curran and providing outside back, halves and hooker cover, allowing the Dogs to avoid running a full scale utility.

PROJECTION: 21-25 PPG

PROP

LIAM KNIGHT

MID $385K (28 BE)

If Knight is able to lock down the permanent prop position, he will almost inevitably see an uptick in production based on his sub 30 average in 2023, but with a number of other players capable of pumping out minutes for the Dogs he is likely at least 5 mins per week short of enough value to make him worthwhile for fantasy coaches to start the season.

PROJECTION: 26-30 PPG

PROP

KURTIS MORRIN

MID $XXXK XX0 BE)

Doesn’t look to be relevant.

PROJECTION: 10-14 PPG

CENTRE

BRONSON XERRI

CTR $450K (33 BE)

Xerri set the NRL on fire in 2019, scoring 13 tries in 22 games at a very respectable fantasy average of 36.8 fantasy points. Unfortunately, he then was banned for 4 years for violating the NRLs anti-doping regulations. During his 22 game stint he displayed a very fantasy friendly game, averaging 125 metres, 4+ tackle busts, and a 60% try/linebreak rate in a middling Sharks team. With so long out of the game, it will be hard to know exactly how Xerri will perform, and frankly his range of outcomes is massive, anywhere from being found out early (we wouldn’t blame him) and playing reserve grade for the bulk of the year through to lighting the left edge on fire with Burton, Kikau and Addo-Carr and becoming a top 5 fantasy centre. God speed Bronson.

PROJECTION: 34-38 PPG