Join us as JT puts on his general manager cap and selects his dream team going into round 9 of the NRL! He'll have the entire player pool to choose from, which should make selecting 3 winger/fullbacks, 2 centres, 2 halves, 2 edge forwards, 3 middle forwards and 1 hooker weekly easy right? Please note that the round rank is based on where the player ranks within their position. The same applies for the overall rank except the rank is calculated on the players average not total points. Well, let us know who you agree with and who else you might have selected down below on all of our social channels twitter, facebook, instagram, discord.
Winger/Fullbacks (WFB)
Dylan Edwards
Penrith Panthers (Average 60, Round 8 Rank – 25th, Overall Rank – 3rd)
Verses Wests Tigers at Carrington Park, Bathurst
Saturday at 7:35pm AEST
Edwards has been a letdown for GDS coaches over the last couple of weeks. With a juicy match up against the winless Wests Tigers this week, I think we will see him return to form. I have him scoring 55+ points this week.
Latrell Mitchell
South Sydney Rabbitohs (Average 64, Round 8 Rank – 1st, Overall Rank – 1st)
Verses Broncos at Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Friday at 8:00pm AEST
Last week I left Latrell out of my team, and he made me look silly. That won’t be happening this week! After last week’s performance, Latrell is an auto pick this week as he has shown how devastating he can be against good opposition. I have him scoring 55+ points.
James Tedesco
Sydney Roosters (Average 40, Round 8 Rank – 4th, Overall Rank – 16th)
Verses Warriors at Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland
Sunday at 2:00pm AEST
Teddy returned to form last week against the Dragons as he went on to score 55 points. I still don’t think his back to his best in fantasy terms but he showed me enough to get the start against an under strength Warriors outfit. It will be a tough trip across the ditch, but I have a feeling it might be the Teddy and Manu show on Sunday. I have him scoring 55+ points.
Centres (CTR)
Joseph Manu
Sydney Roosters (Average 39, Round 8 Rank – 1st, Overall Rank – 8th)
Verses Warriors at Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland
Sunday at 2:00pm AEST
Manu showed us his class against the Dragons on ANZAC Day as he went on to score 74 points. While he plays in the halves, he will continue to be one of the first picked for my team to beat. Sam Walker has been named in the reserves, but I still expect Manu to start. If there is a late change to the Roosters lineup, it might not be a bad idea for you to have Zac Lomax card in your squad as the Dragons play the last game of the round. I have him scoring 60+ points.
Dane Gagai
Newcastle Knights (Average 53, Round 8 Rank – 2nd, Overall Rank – 1st)
Verses Eels at CommBank Stadium, Sydney
Friday at 6:00pm AEST
Gagai was back to his tackle breaking best last week against the Cowboys as he went on to score 71 points. Both of the Knights centres were a handful for the Cowboys defence and I don’t see why they can’t be for the Eels. On top of the attacking upside that Gagai provides, he also has a very good base this season. Through metres gained and tackles, he averages 34 points a game just from these two stats. I have him scoring 45+ points.
Halves (HLF)
Nathan Cleary
Penrith Panthers (Average 68, Round 8 – 8th, Overall Rank – 2nd)
Verses Wests Tigers at Carrington Park, Bathurst
Saturday at 7:35pm AEST
Cleary has had back-to-back scores in the mid-fifties but up against the Wests Tigers this week we may see him ton up. Cleary remains set and forget. I have him scoring 65+ points.
Nicho Hynes
Cronulla Sharks (Average 80, Round 8 – 4th, Overall Rank – 1st)
Verses Cowboys at PointsBet Stadium, Sydney
Thursday at 7:50pm AEST
Same story as every week for Nico, he can’t be left out of my team to beat. Like Cleary, Hynes is set and forget. I have him scoring 65+ points.
Edge Forwards (EDG)
Briton Nikora
Cronulla Sharks (Average 56, Round 8 Rank – 5th, Overall Rank – 3rd)
Verses Cowboys at PointsBet Stadium, Sydney
Thursday at 7:50pm AEST
Nikora is having a fantastic season and he’s been close to breaking into my team to beat for some time. This week he just gets the nod ahead of Hosking as Nikora looks to be a lock for 80 minutes. Nikora is in great try scoring form and with the lines he runs off Hynes, he may just score another this week. So far this season he averages 44 points in base, and this is solid enough for an EDG. With the Cowboys struggling this season and the Sharks starting to show some form, I think this is a good match up for Nikora. Revenge may also be on the Sharks mind as they lost to the Cowboys at home in the finals last season. I have him scoring 55+ points.
David Fifita
Gold Coast Titans (Average 61, Round 8 Rank – 1st, Overall Rank – 1st)
Verses Sea Eagles at 4 Pines Park, Sydney
Saturday at 5:30pm AEST
Fifita is one of the in form EDGs at the moment and he’s making a really strong case for Maroon’s selection. Over the last four rounds he has averaged 65 points a game and in this form, Fifita can’t be left out of my side. I have him scoring 55+ points this week.
Middle Forwards (MID)
Cameron Murray
South Sydney Rabbitohs (Average 57, Round 8 Rank – 19th, Overall – 3rd)
Verses Broncos at Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Friday at 8:00pm AEST
Murray’s inconsistency has been frustrating this season but I still have to start him due to the upside he provides. I have him scoring 60+ points this week.
Patrick Carrigan
Brisbane Broncos (Average 50, Round 8 Rank – 7th, Overall Rank – 9th)
Verses Rabbitohs at Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Friday at 8:00pm AEST
With Haas out of action this week it was a tough decision who to play as my third MID and Carrigan just got the nod ahead of many other worthy candidates. Carrigan started off the season with a hiss and a roar but had started to fall down my rankings until this week. Without Haas, I believe the Broncos will need to have Carrigan on the field as much as they can if they are to get the win against an in-form Bunnies outfit. This is only a small sample size, but Carrigan played two games in 2022 when Haas wasn’t playing and across these games, he averaged 72 minutes and 60 points. I have him scoring 55+ points this week.
Isaah Yeo
Penrith Panthers (Average 62, Round 8 Rank – 4th, Overall Rank – 2nd)
Verses Wests Tigers at Carrington Park, Bathurst
Saturday at 7:35pm AEST
Yeo is one of the most consistent MIDs in the game. He hasn’t done anything special this season but on top of his great base he always offers a decent ceiling as he is a part of a very good team. I have him scoring 60+ points this week.
Hooker (HOK)
Damien Cook
South Sydney Rabbitohs (Average 55, Round 8 Rank – 9th, Overall Rank – 2nd)
Verses Broncos at Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Friday at 8:00pm AEST
Cook has been having an ok season but it looks like Grant has overtaken him as the best hooker in GDS fantasy. Cook is coming off his worst game of the year with a score of 40 points and this even included a try. You may be thinking, why is Cook making the team to beat! Other than the fantasy pedigree that he has shown over several years, Cook's selection this week is based on my narrative that the Broncos may struggle in the middle of the park without Haas. I believe Cook could find more room to run and if this is the case, we might see an uptick in attacking stats. I have him scoring 60+ points. Fringe players that just missed out on the starting 13:
Lachlan Miller WFB – Knights
Tom Trbojevic WFB – Sea Eagles
Stephen Crichton CTR – Panthers
Daly Cherry-Evans HLF – Sea Eagles
Zac Hosking EDG – Panthers
Ryan Matterson MID – Eels
Addin Fonua-Blake MID – Warriors
Brandon Smith HOK – Roosters