Round 14 saw the return of the king, Nathan Cleary, who once again stamped his authority on the NRL with a strong 79-point showing rewarding those who kept the faith. Olakau’atu and Tapine rose to the occasion with 89 and 94 points respectively, presenting themselves as pod options for coaches. Meanwhile, Matt Burton saw his fourth 65+ point score on the trot, which means bad news for coaches who haven’t got him.
BUY, BUY, BUY
Brian To’o
Brian To’o was the breakout WFB of 2021. His ability to bust tackles, run large amounts of metres, and score the occasional try led to an average of 58.6 in the year. Yet fast forward to 2022 and To’o is a shadow of what he once was. Despite still doing enough to force his way into the Blues squad, his first 6 outings failed to see him break 50 points once. To’o has been affected by the reduction to points for tackle busts in 2022, yet that doesn’t explain the massive reduction in his running metres costing coaches 6 points a game, and the lack of tries in 2022 in a still dominant Panthers outfit. However Round 14 finally saw a return to the To’o of old, with 2 tries, 11 tackle busts and 268 metres. It is worth noting, that this was against a struggling Knights outfit, and it remains to be seen whether he will repeat it against some of the top teams. Yet for me at 550K, To’o is worth the risk if there is even a chance he returns to the form of old, BUY!
Ezra Mam
Mam continued his scoring ways with another strong performance and has made the coaches who scooped him up very happy, with a 47-point outing that has seen him rise 61K this week. Yet fear not, coaches that haven’t picked him up can still join the Mam train as he looks set to make coaches even more cash. Furthermore, Mam plays the Round 17 bye round, and so is a buy for coaches.
Ones to Watch
Jason Taumalolo
Ever since his injury-riddled 8-point outing against the Storm, Taumalolo has been in sublime form. His last two outings have seen him run for an average of 70 minutes and 67.5 points. Both outings have also seen him run for over 200 metres, seen only one other time throughout the season. Furthermore, his price of 573K and a low breakeven mean that he is a steal for any potential coaches. The concern is whether he once again gets reduced minutes with the return of some of the Origin stars at the Cowboys. Wait a week before jumping on.
Ronald Volkman
The much-hyped rookie has dislodged Chanel Harris-Tavita and looks to tear apart the NRL. At basement price, one to look at as a cash-out to allow for the rest of your side to be upgraded.
DROP
Jackson Hastings
Since his return from injury in Round 6, Hastings scored 5 successive 50+ scores. However, another injury has hampered his ability to score. His last three rounds have seen a reduction in tackle busts, kicking metres, and an increase in missed tackles. A high breakeven means he is set to lose even more cash. Consolidate your gains, he isn’t worth holding for the bye round, look elsewhere.
Payne Haas
Has a high breakeven and looks set to nurse another AC joint injury. One to sell as he is managed throughout the Origin period and leaks cash.