They're back! Nathan Cleary and Payne Haas head up a healthy list of Fantasy-relevant injury returns for Round 8, in what will be welcome news for coaches.
Those two add to the list of potential replacements available for the likes of Kalyn Ponga and Jamal Fogarty, while there's cheapies named to start for the Knights, Eels and Raiders.
NRL Fantasy teams analysis: Round 8
Warriors v Titans, Thursday at Go Media Stadium
Warriors: Even in a well beaten side last week Shaun Johnson continued his excellent Fantasy form, with a 67 against the Dragons taking his season average to 62.9. Tohu Harris and Addin Fonua-Blake both remain good MID options who scored 62 last week. Kurt Capewell is out which opens up an opportunity for $230k rookie Jacob Laban to make his first career start on ANZAC Day, although he’s got a tough break even of 33 to try and reach.
Titans: AJ Brimson had some lovely touches back in the No.1 jersey last week but still only managed 38 points, which included scoring a try. Jaimin Jolliffe (MID, $634k) is quietly emerging as an underpriced prospect on the back of a 50 in Round 8, which followed a 75 the week prior. Tanah Boyd is back in the mix and comes off a 63 in Round 7.
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Dragons v Roosters, Thursday at Allianz Stadium
Dragons: Zac Lomax can’t stop scoring tries right now and is right on the edge of entering the elite WFB conversation, particularly if the Dragons can keep scoring plenty of tries to give him goalkicking points. Another strong performance from Tom Eisenhuth (EDG/MID, $572k) last week saw him score 57 and set himself up for another price rise in Round 8.
Roosters: Terrell May’s minutes dropped from his usual 50+ to just 30 last week and as a result he had his second-worst score of the year with 32. It’s the second time in three weeks that his minutes have been drastically cut and while he’s probably a hold this week to see if it was just a move to give him a rest, he'll be an immediate sell if it happens again on ANZAC Day. Angus Crichton dropped off a little last week but continues to make nice cash and has a break even of 12. Dom Young returns from suspension on the wing and has a break even of 77 thanks to his last-up -12, which came after he was sent off for a dangerous tackle.
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Storm v Rabbitohs, Thursday at AAMI Park
Storm: $767k HLF Jahrome Hughes is on fire lately and has a last-three game average of 61.7. Still owned by only 5 percent of teams, he’s a POD option in that position if you want to go a different direction. EDG players Eliesa Katoa and Shawn Blore are scoring really well right now and are both top five scorers in their position based on last three game average.
Rabbitohs: Jye Gray (WFB, $244k) will jump in price again after hitting 39 in his NRL debut a fortnight ago, while Jacob Gagai - who despite not playing since Round 1 is in 23.5 percent of all teams - finally gets another run on the wing. HOK Damien Cook has a starting role again after being overlooked completely in Round 6 and instead playing reserve grade.
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Sea Eagles v Eels, Friday at 4 Pines Park
Sea Eagles: Matt Lodge exceeded expectations in his first game back from a layoff with an ACL injury by scoring just over a point per minute in a 43-minute stint. If he can score that regularly then he’s good value at $475k, but there’s still some talent to come back into the Manly pack. Tom Trbojevic will be a popular replacement for Kalyn Ponga this week and has averaged 54.7 in his past three games.
Eels: Brendan Hands is back on the bench this week, which means owners of Joey Lussick can probably cut their losses and sell him now, on the back of an underwhelming 28 in Round 7. Highly-rated rookie Ethan Sanders will debut in the halves, but he’s probably not a viable money maker given he’s running out of weeks until Mitchell Moses will be back from injury. Bryce Cartwright is out and his spot is taken by Ryan Matterson.
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Wests Tigers v Broncos, Saturday at Campbelltown Sports Stadium
Wests Tigers: John Bateman moves from the edge to lock and his workload is set to go up a few notches, which might make him a whole lot more relevant in Fantasy. As it is he's been pretty good in the second row, averaging 49 when you remove his injury-impacted 39 a couple of weeks back, and if he can jump into the 50s he’s good value. It also means Sam Fainu (MID/EDG, $435k), who is in 4.5 percent of teams, just became even more valuable, with a starting role likely to mean he plays at least an hour this week. Solomon Alaimalo, who has scored three tries in six NSW Cup games this year, gets a run on the wing in place of the injured Junior Tupou.
Broncos: Payne Haas returns from the knee injury which has kept him out of action since Round 2. It puts another available player in the elite pool, but it might mean a bit of a drop off for Patrick Carrigan who has been brilliant without Hass in the side, average 66.4 through those five games. Popular cheapie Brendan Piakura also returns to action, but Selwyn Cobbo and Ezra Mam are both out. Deine Mariner is named to play after time out with a back injury, while Jock Madden gets another run as Mam's replacement in the halves.
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Cowboys v Panthers, Saturday at Queensland Country Bank Stadium
Cowboys: A couple of changes to the side, but none of them particularly Fantasy relevant. Griffin Neame (MID, $410k) comes into the starting 13, which could result in an uptick in his scoring, but probably not enough to suddenly make him a buy. Tom Chester is averaging 37.7 per game and looks a decent cut-price player given his DPP status as both a WFB and CTR.
Panthers: Nathan Cleary returns after sitting out a month with a hamstring injury, much to the relief of those who opted to hold him through that period. If you didn’t, but you want him back, you might be able to wait a week as he has a break even of 75 which will be hard to hit. High-performing WFB Dylan Edwards, who has a last-three game average of 62, is named despite leaving the game early with injury last week.
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Dolphins v Knights, Sunday at Suncorp Stadium
Dolphins: Trai Fuller rewarded those who got on him last week with a 57 in a dazzling attacking display. If you haven’t already got him, he’s an awkwardly positioned player with no job security beyond the next month right now and a $453k price tag that means he’s not really a cash cow either. Jack Bostock (WFB, $482k) had a breakout game last week with a three-try showing that delivered 63 points, while Max Plath was excellent too and had 72.
Knights: David Armstrong gets first crack at fullback following news of Kalyn Ponga's long-term footy injury. His form in NSW Cup this year, where he's been used as both a fullback and winger, would have seen him average just under 47 Fantasy points per game. Jayden Brailey punched out his first 80-minute performance since returning from injury last week and had a season-high score of 42.
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Raiders v Sharks, Sunday at GIO Stadium
Raiders: There's a new potential cash cow in the game after Kaeo Weekes was named to replace the injury Jamal Fogarty at halfback. Fogarty won't play for the next three months, so if Weekes can keep the role then he's a nice pickup at just $252k, with the benefit of also having DPP status as both a HLF and WFB. Simi Sasagi (HLF/CTR, $296k) has a starting back row role again this week.
Sharks: The absence of Braydon Trindall (not selected) likely only strengthens the prospects of Nicho Hynes this week, with the $925k HLF likely to handle even more of the playmaking duties alongside Daniel Atkinson. Another couple of price rises await Kayal Iro (CTR, $366k), with his break even set at 1 and a projected score of 36 this week.
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