Talk about a purple patch – quite literally.
Perth Glory forward Jacob Dowse is proving an invaluable asset for head coach Ruben Zadkovich of late – the 22-year-old arriving off the bench with three assists in successive games which turned one loss into a draw, and one draw into victory in a four-point swing for the finals aspirants.
And in the process, the young Glory prospect has put his hand up as an affordable fantasy asset.
These are the key headlines from the weekend’s fantasy action across the A-Leagues.
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Dowse came off the bench in the 91st minute of Glory’s Round 12 meeting with Sydney FC, and proceeded to whip in the centimetre-perfect delivery off the left flank for David Williams to head home a dramatic equaliser – scored in the 12th minute of extra time in what was the latest goal scored in the history of regular season A-League Men fixtures.
In Round 13, Dowse repeated the feat. Called upon off the bench with his side leading Melbourne Victory 1-0 at Macedonia Park on Saturday night, Glory went on to forfeit their lead before Dowse once again made his mark.
Star recruit Adam Taggart wrote the headlines with a brace which sent Glory to a 3-1 win – but Dowse was also at the double, with a pair of assists delivered in the exact same manner as his first against the Sky Blues, with venom off the left flank.
Dowse is now equal-fourth on the league’s assist leaderboard for the 2022-23 campaign. He features in the Fantasy Team of the Week with 15 points, backing up a 13-point haul in Round 12.
Not bad for a former NPL forward who recovered from three knee constructions before getting his chance at Perth, thanks to his former Broadmeadow Magic head coach Zadkovich.
Phoenix destroy Canberra and stun fantasy owners
Wellington Phoenix 5-0 Canberra United. It was the result nobody saw coming.
And as dismal a day out as it was for Canberra at Sky Stadium, it was similarly tough result for fantasy owners to digest as some of the most prized assets in the game flattered to deceive.
The five Canberra players with the highest ownership in the game combined for six points on Sunday afternoon.
Vesna Milivojevic – with the fourth-highest total points tally in the game – scored a -3 in the 5-0 defeat. Michelle Heyman scored 0, Grace Maher didn’t make the trip to New Zealand, Nickoletta Flannery scored two points and Grace Jale – in 16.2% of teams for Round 11 – scored seven.
Meanwhile, Wellington’s top-five scorers on Sunday afternoon rewarded the low percentage of fantasy teams with enormous hauls.
Betsy Hassett (in 3.1% of teams) score 29 points. Michaela Foster (0.9% owned) score 24, Brianna Edwards (6.9%) score 20, whilst Milly Clegg (0.6%) bagged 18 points and Marisa van der Meer (1.9%) scored 13.
It was utter domination from the ‘Nix, with Edwards, Foster, Hassett and Clegg making the Team of the Week.
Scintillating Chidiac takes the fantasy crown ahead of Big Blue
A 31-point haul across a Round 11 double-game week saw Melbourne Victory star Alex Chidiac usurp Western United striker Hannah Keane as the current top fantasy scorer.
The Matildas midfielder has 129 points to her name through 10 games this season.
After a quiet start to the campaign, Chidiac has caught fire of late; she surpassed the 10-point mark just twice across her first five appearances this season, but has followed that up with four successive hauls of above 10 points (19, 14, 19, 31).
It’s the kind of form which has increased Chidiac’s fantasy value by $200K, elevating the Victory #10 into the conversation for Player of the Season.
A 31-point haul in Round 11 was the fourth-highest single-round tally of the season – and it could have been far greater had this goal of the season contender dropped over the goal line:
Chidiac and Victory are next in action on Thursday afternoon in a midweek Big Blue with Sydney FC, in the battle between fourth (Victory) and third (Sky Blues).
