With the home-and-away season drawing to an end, the Scout says big games and missing players make it a tough weekend for fantasy football managers.
It doesn-t take a genius to tell you to can any Jets or Phoenix players you have left in your squad for this weekend-s matches and truth be told, only Jeremy Brockie might be worth keeping of all the players on either team as he chases the Golden Boot in Round 27, but what else have I taken from the situation?
It-s a big question and this week presents nothing but trouble with an international weekend claiming the likes of Archie Thompson, Marco Rojas, Mark Milligan, Mat Ryan, Eugene Galekovic, Michael McGlinchey, Michael Thwaite, Shane Smeltz and even more.
Take a look at that list and it represents three of the top five players of the season being rubbed out, only Danny McBreen and Dario Vidosic remain standing, but with all that is going on right now in the league nothing is certain.
Melbourne are missing their big three, Adelaide have copped the proverbial football in the groin with the loss of Marcelo Carrusca, the Mariners are out of touch but at least the club has bought some time, Perth, Melbourne Heart and Brisbane are all desperate, while Sydney and the Wanderers are playing out a derby it doesn-t make for easy Fantasy football decisions.
So what to do? Well, on the big occasions the big players traditionally stand up to be counted, and now is the time to have them in your team.
Alessandro del Piero, Shinji Ono and Besart Berisha all have the happy knack of scoring goals when they matter most and would have to be considered for roles this week, while in the midfield it might be time for the likes of Dario Vidosic, Thomas Broich, Youssouf Hersi and Aaron Mooy to deliver.
The message look for performers who like the big stage and place them in your team and hope for the best, because with so much pressure on these are the men most likely to be able to withstand the heat.
Buy: Thomas Broich The German has shown signs of life in recent weeks and as the Roar have improved so has he, against a Heart side who have struggled on the road he might just score a lot of points.
Sell: Paul Ifill One good week doesn-t make him a consistent enough scorer and for 180k you might as well move the Barbadian on from your team for someone who is actually playing.
Team of the Week: The highest-scoring, cheapest team in a valid formation (It may not actually be possible to select this team.
Formation: 4-3-3 | Total points = 230
Mat Ryan (CCM 14), Trent Sainsbury (CCM 14), Zac Anderson (CCM 14), Mark Milligan (MV 20), Iacopo La Rocca (c) (WSW 60), Jeremy Brockie (WP 20), Marcelo Carrusca (AU 16), Aaron Mooy (14), Stein Huysegems (WP 16), Paul Ifill (WP 16), Labinot Haliti (WSW 26)
With just two rounds to go the Budgie Smugglers have a slimmed-down 36 point lead over their nearest rivals the Eungai Eels who cut 22 points from the lead the previous week, while the biggest movers in the top 20 were the TSB Wanderers who jumped nine places to 11th.
The TSB Wanderers will also be the recipients of a $100 VISA Moneycard after topping the round with 164 points. Congrats to them.
