Ballr NRL SuperCoach Team List Tuesday podcast analysis NRL Round 19
The last minor bye round is here for NRL SuperCoach and it's going to be a nervous watch to see if our Origin players backup or leave scrounging for numbers.
Round 19 of NRL SuperCoach has thrown up one of the trickiest weeks of the season, according to the Ballr Team List Tuesday Podcast crew.
With Nathan Cleary on the bye and a string of tough matchups, hosts Jono, Danny Boy and Tubes worked through their captaincy and trade options for the final push into the run home.
SuperCoach Captaincy and VC options
With Cleary sidelined, the panel weighed up several contenders.
Nicho Hynes was largely on ice against a stingy Dolphins defence, while Herbie Farnworth was tipped as a strong vice-captaincy play on a dry Saturday track.
In the Roosters-Eels clash, James Tedesco and Mark Nawaqanitawase both drew interest, though the panel leaned toward using them as VC rather than full captain given it's the third game of the round.
Kalyn Ponga, backing up from Origin against a short-staffed Rabbitohs outfit, emerged as a Sunday favourite, while Tom Trbojevic was flagged as a high-risk, high-reward captaincy play against the Cowboys.
Storm fullback Sua Fa'alogo was also tipped as a safe captaincy alternative against the Titans for those chasing a Sunday score.
Jono settled on a Tedesco VC, Ponga C split as his likely play.
Trade targets for the run home
Broncos prop Xavier Willison was debated as an "expendable" bye-round pickup - he's averaged 81 points when playing 63+ minutes since Round 6, but the panel expects reduced minutes now Payne Haas and Pat Carrigan are fully fit.
At second row, Hudson Young ($767k) was rated a premium POD option ahead of Alex Twal, with the panel also spruiking Haumole Olakau'atu as one of the two best backrowers to own for the final stretch of the season.
Dylan Lucas, despite pushing 100 points on the weekend, was labelled a "missed the boat" option at $807k.
Tallis Duncan's shift to centre was viewed as a positive for his try-scoring upside this week, while Dolphins forward Kulikefu Finefeuiaki was seen as a solid but non-essential downgrade target given the Dolphins' Round 21 bye.
Dayne Jennings was also a topic of discussion being highly traded in this week, but SuperCoaches are reminded Alex Johnston is expected to return in two weeks to take the spot, while he could also become an AE nightmare if he retained a spot in the Rabbitohs 19 week-to-week.
Make sure you enjoy every moment of Round 19 thanks to the fantastic in-game experience of the updated Ballr NRL Match Centre, including the My Team feature to follow your scores, key team stats and a match timeline so you don't miss a thing!