TCT SuperCoach: Your Weekly Guide to Surviving the Season

(League Code: 704791)

Round 4 brought plenty of upsets and lots of high scores, especially in the CTW position, with eight separate players in the position posting 100+ scores. For many, this week was quite a tough round in terms of getting a full team, simply due to the number of injuries and suspensions accrued from Round 3, coupled with the bye for the Bunnies.

Congratulations to Terry’s team, wollies warriors, topping the TCT league this week with an outstanding 1,492 points. Michael’s team, THUNDERMACHINE, continues his dominance from last week, leading the TCT league after four rounds.

My Team

This week, I scored 1,190 points. In a week that had not a lot going in my favour, using a boost just to get a full team this week, and then losing Setu Tu right before kick-off, I was fairly happy with my score. It’s no extraordinary feat compared to the top scores of this week, but I was happy with how it fared.

I ended up trading in Jackson Ford for Payne Haas. I was initially trading in Jackson Ford for Keaon Koloamatangi, but as the week went on, I kept hearing more and more worrying information about Payne Haas’ injury. Most notably, the impact that an AC joint injury can have on a player’s SuperCoach scoring, which was directly shown with Payne Haas in 2022 when he suffered this exact injury.

I also traded out Trey Mooney for Joe Chan, as well as Keano Kini for Reece Walsh, and I was fairly happy with these trades.

I ended up putting the VC on Reece Walsh for 95 points. However, that wasn’t enough for me to loop given how much damage I thought Nathan Cleary could do to Parra, which I ended up being right about. 117 points posted from Cleary with ease, and my best captaincy play so far this season.

Round 4 Review

Let’s break down the key SuperCoach takeaways from Round 4:

Premium Guns

Thomas Jenkins (CTW – $782.5k – 122 points):

Milky Jenkins does it again! If someone told me before the season started that, by the end of Round 4, Jenkins would be averaging 109 points, be the 5^th most expensive player in the game, and still have a breakeven of -3, I would have laughed you off, but that’s where we’re at. I just can’t justify buying him at this price, but full credit if you have him already. He’s a winger that relies on tryscoring, and he’s doing a damn good job at it, but for him to sustain this, he’ll need to score 60 tries by the end of this season. I just can’t see him doing this.

Nathan Cleary (HFB – $834.9k – 117 points):

Four try assists with ease for Cleary. Most of his assists were off the boot, so he unfortunately missed out on a lot of linebreak assists, which would have seen his score go beyond 150+. Panthers are an absolute juggernaut and, as always, Cleary is a beneficiary of this. A must-have if you don’t have him.

Nathan Cleary

Jahrome Hughes (HFB – $715.2k – 105 points):

Back-to-back 100+ scores by Jahrome Hughes, who is somewhat going under the radar with an average of 86.5. In only 9% of teams but has a bit of a tough draw coming up against the Panthers, Warriors, and Raiders in his next three games. I’ll be keeping an eye on him, especially when the Origin period gets closer.

Nicholas Hynes (HFB – $740.2k – 100 points):

Take out a poor performance against the insane defence of the Panthers, and Nicho is averaging 104 points. I really want him in my team as soon as possible, but I’m not able to do so this week. Unfortunately, he then has the bye in Round 7, so I’ll assess my options next week, but I really like what I’m seeing from Nicho.

Jayden Campbell (HFB – $711.4k – 97 points):

Back-to-back 97 points for JC. Another great performance, and he’s shaping up as a serious option at the HFB position at still only 1% owned.

Mid-Range Movers

William Warbrick (CTW – $560.3k – 135 points):

The biggest score of the week was delivered by Warbrick’s four-try performance. He’s a try-scoring winger, and he could be a quick little cash grab if needed. However, beware, he has a tough match-up against the Panthers this week, as well as games against the Warriors and Raiders following this.

Arama Hau (FRF/2RF – $421.6k – 116 points):

Hau good! He’s played 80 minutes every week so far for the Titans, with his lowest score being 55 points. On top of his good base, he managed two tries against the Dragons, which saw him gain $105.9k this week alone. With a -42 breakeven, I wouldn’t say those who don’t have him have missed the boat, but there may be better trades to make.

Hau good!

Alex Twal (FRF/2RF – $548.6k – 97 points):

Not normally a SuperCoach star, but Alex Twal is seeing increased minutes, making more offloads, and really benefitting from the new SuperCoach system of scoring. Averaging 77.7, he could be a very interesting pick-up at only 2% owned with dual positioning.

Simi Sasagi (2RF/CTW – $528.6k – 97 points):

Take out a game in torrential rain against the Doggies, and Sasagi is averaging 84.3 without scoring a try. Currently only in 6% of teams and could be a great option at just over $500k if you want to jump ship from any of your CTW or 2RF cheapies who haven’t impressed. He’s keeping Matt Timoko out of the side for now; however, Sasagi’s versatility may be a detriment to his SuperCoach credentials.

Kulikefu Finefeuiaki (2RF – $621.2k – 99 points):

70 points in base stats, Finefeuiaki is going nuts this season! I should’ve brought him in a couple weeks ago, but that’s the beauty of hindsight. He’s already risen $170k, but I still think he’s a must-have if you don’t have him yet. I’ll be getting him in this week.

Players of Concern

James Tedesco (FLB – $754.7k – 46 points):

Teddy was very quiet, but I’m hoping this was due to the torrential conditions that we saw on Thursday night. He’s in my team, and I’ll be holding for now. He’s one of the best SuperCoach players of all time, so I’ll be banking on Teddy to turn this around. However, if he doesn’t improve soon, I’ll have to jump ship. He’s already started to leak a lot of cash, and this is going to continue for at least a couple more weeks.

James Tedesco

Brian To’o (CTW – $563.9k – 21 points):

Equal lowest score ever produced by To’o. Unfortunately for owners, this score was produced in a game that Panthers scored 48 points. The Panthers are in a position of luxury where they can not only reduce To’o’s yardage workload but also give him early baths. However, this doesn’t bode well for the 30,000 SuperCoach owners. After a spectacular try last week, he still only scored 53 against the Roosters. I’d be selling.

Moses Leo (CTW – $317.5k – 21 points):

Fortunately, I didn’t waste a trade to bring Moses Leo in after his 95 points in the demolition job of Parra in Round 1. Since that score, he’s averaging 34.3 points.

Team List Watch

• Campbell Graham returns to the wing.
• Nick Meaney returns, replacing Moses Leo, who is apparently showing delayed concussion symptoms.
• Jack Howarth is named despite a hip/groin injury last week.
• Great news with Tom Chester returning to the starting side after serving his one-match suspension.
• David Fale, the $235.6k cheapie, gets his opportunity, who replaces Setu Tu. Hopefully Setu Tu hasn’t lost his spot permanently with him being in over 100,000 SuperCoach teams.
• Lyhkan King-Togia gets his go at 5/8 after a worrying injury to Kyle Flanagan.
• Toby Couchman returns from concussion protocols.
• Payne Haas returns. Keep an eye on whether his AC joint injury impacts his scoring.
• Mitch Barnett is out for 4-6 weeks with a broken thumb. Great news for Jackson Ford owners.
• Trey Mooney returns from his one-match suspension.
• Roosters are on the bye.

My Trades

For now, my trades are as follows:

• Reed Mahoney >>> Brandon Smith
• Noah Martin >>> Kulikefu Finefeuiaki

Reed Mahoney needs to go ASAP, and that was one that I simply got wrong at the start of the season. Brandon Smith should be back soon, and I’d rather jump to him now and get the money from Reed before he loses even more coin.

As stated in my Mid-Range Movers, Finefeuiaki is a must-have. I’m not sure how much I like trading out Noah Martin, and I may trade out Ryan Couchman instead so that Martin can keep making money. However, I do fear that Martin may lose some minutes very soon with Timoko looming and the Raiders not winning. Either way, it’ll be out of those two 2RFs, as I simply need Finefeuiaki in the team before he becomes out of range.

Captaincy

At the moment, I’m thinking of placing the VC on Cleary against the Storm. The Panthers are simply too good at the moment, and I truly think they’ll put a score on the Storm, who haven’t looked great defensively. As for my captaincy, I’m thinking of going Walsh against the Titans, which is pretty self-explanatory. That said, the Titans’ defence isn’t quite the disaster it appeared to be in Round 1.

Although I won’t be going this way and don’t have some of these players, I can definitely see the appeal in captaining a few other options:

• Herbie Farnworth vs Sea Eagles
• Val Holmes vs Cowboys
• Nicho Hynes vs Warriors
• Adam Douehi vs Parra

I’m keen to hear your thoughts, trades, and captaincy calls – drop them below! Let’s see who nails Round 4. See you next week!

SC Adrian

If you liked this article, you might consider supporting The Cumberland Throw.