The 2024 AFL Premiership Season is officially underway, and two premiership contenders will look to make their mark on this campaign this Friday night!
2023 Grand Finalists Brisbane will host Carlton in a blockbuster Opening Round clash at the Gabba, fresh off an agonising defeat in last year’s big dance.
Draftstars certainly have a sense of occasion – they have put up a massive $100,000 main contest in addition to an array of other tantalising options.
- AFL $100,000+ Lions vs Blues
- AFL $10,000+ Lions vs Blues High Roller ($150 Entry)
- AFL $2,000+ Lions vs Blues Fiver
- AFL $3,000+ Lions vs Blues Mini ($2 Entry)
On top of Friday’s selection, Draftstars have announced a couple of exciting initiatives for this AFL season.
The AFL Star contest is back for 2024 and Draftstars are offering the biggest prize pool in Australian DFS history with a $1 million guaranteed final with $250,000 top prize! There are qualifiers and satellites running for every AFL match, while there will also be a sprinkling of qualifiers across other sports such as NRL and NBA.
Meanwhile the 1000 AFL Target contests are set to return to Draftstars for the first time since 2018. Enter the contest and hit the 1000-point barrier with your team to scoop the jackpot!
Betting Markets
Brisbane ($1.30) vs Carlton ($3.65) - Odds thanks to PlayUp
Points: 171.5
Line: Brisbane -22.5
If you’re looking to bet on the AFL this season, then you can bet with PlayUp by using the same account that you have at Draftstars. PlayUp are Australian owned and offer an strong range of AFL betting markets and offers, including Same Game Multis.
Addtionally, we have a full Blues vs Lions Betting Preview where we provide our best bet for the game as well as a great value Same Game Multi!
Weather
Warm conditions are expected on Friday night in Brisbane, with the possibility of a shower or two. With that in mind, the ball may be difficult to handle, suiting the contested types.
Where To Attack?
It’s hard to lock down too many trends at this point, as we’ve yet to see how teams structure up and go about their footy in 2024.
However, based on last year’s data, Carlton’s ruck Tom De Koning should perform well, while Brisbane’s outside runners and half-backs also get a boost.
Game Script – Lions forwards
VALUE
Jaspa Fletcher ($7,660) - Fletcher produced a promising debut campaign, putting up notable scores of 82, 77 and 76. At this price point, a return in that 70-80 range would be exceptional, and it’s made more likely by the fact that Carlton conceded bulk points to opposition wingmen in 2023.
MID PRICED
Darcy Wilmot ($10,170) – Like Fletcher, Wilmot also excelled in his first season of AFL footy, improving as the year went on. Highlighting Wilmot’s DFS credentials were scores of 90, 87, 85 and 84, strong returns for just over $10k. Wilmot is also a wingman, which bodes well for his scoring against Carlton on Friday night.
Tom De Koning ($10,710) will shoulder Carlton’s ruck load solo on Friday, without Marc Pittonet cramping his style. On average, TDK scored 20 points more per game without Pittonet in the side, yet his price does not reflect that. Furthermore, Brisbane struggled to contain opposition big men last season, so De Koning is primed for a big night at the office.
PREMIUM PLAYS
Josh Dunkley ($15,630) – Dunkley was a consistent contributor in his first season up north, averaging 104 DFS points. Now locked into a full-time midfield role, the ex-Bulldog should go up a level in 2024, and I’m expecting him to be one of the premier assets in DFS this year.
Keidean Coleman ($13,260) He may have had a sub-par season in 2023, but Coleman is set to breakout in 2024. Daniel Rich has retired, so Kiddy will be the prime mover in Brisbane’s backline. He is also fully fit, after struggling with injuries and lack of fitness in years past.
Suggested Draftstars Lineup
Cheat Sheet
2024 AFL Fantasy Data Round 0 - Downloadable file (.xlsx)
