Three huge games wrap up Round 24 on Sunday, and the AFL have done their best to have three competitive and important games to conclude the regular AFL season. The Bulldogs and the Giants will head to MARS for what should be a cracking contest in Ballarat. The Dogs can still miss the top eight so they need to win, while the Giants are gunning for a top four spot. The Blues will be desperate as they take on St Kilda at Marvel, with a win locking them up a finals spot. Finally the Dockers will be hoping results have gone their way to make this a live contest against Port Adelaide. There is a chance it could be a dead rubber which may affect the way it's played for fantasy scoring.
Draftstars continue to offer massive prize pools with the Sunday main contest worth $50,000 along with their usual variety of alternate contests:
- AFL $50,000+ Sunday
- AFL $5,000+ Sunday High Roller ($150 Entry)
- AFL $3,000+ Sunday Mini ($2 Entry)
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.
Betting Markets
Western Bulldogs ($1.48) vs GWS Giants ($2.60)
Line: Western Bulldogs -13.5
Points: 160.5
Carlton ($2.10) vs St Kilda ($1.72)
Line: St Kilda -4.5
Points: 166.5
Fremantle ($1.84) vs Port Adelaide ($1.96)
Line: Fremantle -1.5
Points: 160.5
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Additionally, we have a full AFL Betting Previews for all three games where we provide our best bet for the game as well as a great value Same Game Multi!
Weather
Ballarat - Scattered thunderstorms, 17 degrees.
Melbourne - Scattered thunderstorms, 21 degrees.
Perth - Cloudy, 19 degrees.
Could be some storms across Victoria which might affect the game in Ballarat. Keep an eye on the radars closer to the bounce. The other game in Melbourne is under the roof at Marvel so no issues with weather there.
Where to Attack?
As always, we’ll attack the opposition defenders and outside players against the Saints who press back and allow easy touches out of their forward half. The Blues have a number of seagulls who could be in for a big day.
There’s some leaky rucks on this slate. Virtually every team, with perhaps the exception of the Blues, are vulnerable to giving away fantasy points to the opposition ruck.
There’s not a lot of other big trends to watch for here, and with three relatively closely matched games, it’s also hard to suggest stacking strategies. Much may depend on how live the last game is between Port and Freo. If the Blues have already won, then this becomes a dead rubber which may result in some loose play and high scoring, particular for the Power.
Game script: Blues defenders and wings, Power stacks if a dead rubber
VALUE PLAYS
Cooper Lord ($6,000) is one of a number of $6k options that you can gamble on for this slate. The Blues themselves have quite a few, so if he cops the sub vest, you can pivot pretty easily. Lord looked good on debut last week with 15 touches and a score of 51. Has racked up touches in the VFL recently and should be in the mix again to get enough opportunity to hit value.
Sam Taylor ($6,290) is far too cheap for a player of his calibre. Has a season average of 50.3 with a high score of 91 which would be fantastic at this price point. Will have his hands full with the Bulldogs towering forwards but should bring a solid floor at the very least.
Caleb Daniel ($9,490) has had a poor season but he got a full game last week against the Roos and knocked out an 87 with 25 disposals which is more like the Daniel of old. Will be a tougher matchup this week, and it remains to be seen if Daniel will be dumped with the sub vest again, but if he can back up that form, then he’s in play at that price.
MID PRICED PLAYS
Adam Saad ($10,680) might be due for an upswing here with the most favourable matchup in the league for his outside defensive run. Averaging 71.2 for the season, but does have a 96 earlier in the season against Richmond who have a similar defensive profile to the Saints. Look for Saad to rebound hard here.
Jesse Hogan ($11,860) is heading for his first career Coleman Medal after a wonderful season. Conditions in Ballarat may not suit the big marking forwards, so watch for the weather on the day, but Hogan has shown he has the best hands in the league at clunking marks against any opponent in any weather. If you like the Giants to get on top then Hogan is in play if he can continue his recent form of 114, 84 and 110 in the last three weeks.
Blake Acres ($12,620) flies under the radar a little in the Carlton midfield but he has been rock solid all season and is becoming one of the best wingmen in the league. Gets an ideal matchup against the Saints who leak massive numbers to outside runners and he should link up well with the Blues defenders. Averages 87.9 for the season, but more importantly, has five tons (and a couple of 99s) so we’re looking for him to ton-up again here.
PREMIUM PLAYS
Nic Newman ($15,810) is my favourite premium player on this slate as we again prey on the Saints. His recent form has been superb with 119, 116, 145 and 100 over the last month and he does have a massive ceiling with three 140+ matches this season. Should feast in the backline and go large for us once again.
Suggested Draftstars Team
Cheat Sheets
