NRL Fantasy winners & losers: Round 12
It was a rough week for Fantasy coaches with late withdrawals and poor scores wreaking havoc – and the Origin period hasn't even started yet.
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Here are the winners and losers from NRL Fantasy from round 12.
Winners
Let's start with the good news: Cameron Smith is back with a bang. After last week's suspension Smith made up for lost time with a stunning 97 – his best score for at least a couple of seasons – with a try, 44 tackles, six tackle busts and three offloads in Melbourne's one-point win over the Cowboys.
It was also a big week for big winners Cronulla and South Sydney, with Sharks trio Valentine Holmes (82), Jesse Ramien (71) and Matt Moylan (67) having a field day in Sunday's romp over Newcastle while Rabbitohs Angus Crichton (71) and George Burgess (69) dominated Saturday's win over the Warriors.
James Tedesco (67) and Nathan Cleary (62) both locked up likely NSW Origin call-ups with impressive, try-scoring performances, while Eels prop Daniel Alvaro (62), Dragons hooker Cameron McInnes (61) and Broncos trio Anthony Milford (61), Tevita Pangai jnr (60) and Jayden Su'A (57) all impressed.
Tackle-busting Tiger Esan Marsters (59) proved once again to be that rare case of a centre who doesn't need tries to score well in Fantasy, while Damien Cook again proved a reliable captaincy option with 55 – even if he couldn't quite match the heights set by Smith.
Losers
Late withdrawals from Andrew Fifita (knee) and Ryan Matterson (concussion) stretched the depth of a lot of Fantasy sides this week, but the good news is both are expected back for round 13.
But there were poor scores across the board as well. Fantasy's most popular player Kalyn Ponga spent some time on the sidelines with a HIA test and finished on just 24 as the Knights were thumped by Cronulla, likewise Peta Hiku managed just 25 at five-eighth against the in-form Rabbitohs.
There were quiet scores for Johnathan Thurston (19), Jeremy Marshall-King (23), Jarrod Croker (23), Tohu Harris (30), James Maloney (30) and James Fisher-Harris (32), while a head knock for Raymond Faitala-Mariner restricted the Bulldogs second-rower to just 9 points in 25 minutes against the Tigers on Sunday.
NRL Fantasy Team of the Week
1. James Tedesco (67)
2. Valentine Holmes (82)
3. Jesse Ramien (71)
4. Esan Marsters (59)
5. Tom Trbojevic (53)
6. Matt Moylan (67)
7. Nathan Cleary (62)
8. George Burgess (69)
9. Cameron Smith (97)
10. Daniel Alvaro (63)
11. Angus Crichton (71)
12. Lachlan Fitzgibbon (59)
13. Tevita Pangai jnr (60)
14. Cameron McInnes (61)
15. Anthony Milford (61)
16. John Sutton (59)
17. Jazz Tevaga (59)
