Round 2 of the 2026 AFL season gets underway this Thursday night with another huge daily fantasy contest on offer from Draftstars with over $60,000 in guaranteed prize money in their main daily fantasy tournament.
For this matchup we see Hawthorn will host Sydney at the home of football, the MCG. This is already shaping up to be a critical game early in the season as Sydney have looked to be one of the form sides in the competition through their first two games, while the Hawks will be after a statement win. The Swans will be without two of their best players with Gulden and Heeney going down with injury last week, which will make things interesting for us daily fantasy players as we dive into this game!
Draftstars are offering a number of different contests to suit your style, some of these include:
AFL $60,000+ Swans vs Hawks at Draftstars
AFL $5,000+ Swans vs Hawks High Roller ($150 Entry) at Draftstars
AFL $3,000+ Swans vs Hawks Mini ($2 Entry) at Draftstars
AFL $2,000+ Swans vs Hawks Micro (50c Entry) at Draftstars
Also this season the AFL Star is back for 2026 with a massive $1 million prize pool! Win your way into the Final by winning a Golden Ticket in a range of qualifiers running every weekend!
If you're new to the Daily Fantasy Sports scene and want to join in on the fun, simply join Draftstars via this link!
AFL Daily Fantasy Lineup Tips: Round 2 – Hawks vs Swans
AFL Fantasy Round 2 - Thursday: Where to Attack?
As we have been hitting home lately a lot of these trends continue to go back into last season as we focus on the last 10 games played by each team. Sydney have continued to be one of the hardest teams to score fantasy points against from an offensive perspective, giving up below average points across the forward line (second fewest) and through the midfield (third fewest). Given the way they defend, where you can hit them is via the back line where they give up over 4 points per game to general defenders and wings/half backs.
The Hawks are another team that has been hard to score against in recent years, over this same time period they held forwards to one of the lowest fantasy point averages in the league and also clamp down solidly on designated kickers and attacking half backs. Where we are seeing them leak points is through inside midfielders and particularly in the ruck.
Game Script – Sydney midfielders and ruck, Hawks backs, lean Hawks forwards due to them being favourites
AFL Fantasy Round 2 – Thursday: Our Value Fantasy Picks
Nick Watson ($9,770) has started the season looking like this third year will be what has historically been known in fantasy circles as the 'break out season' for young players. Watson has averaged 91 fantasy points through two games and while this will be a much harder contest than the Bombers last week, what I love as a fantasy play is the role Watson has this year. He has been attending 21% of the Hawks centre bounces and getting up the ground much more than in his first two seasons which increases his floor score, making for a much safer value play.
Sam Butler ($6,760) has posted two fantasy scores of 46 and 50 this season, which are not bringing down the house, but at a near minimum price point they aren’t bad floor returns in a single game slate. He does get roles up and around the ground and even can sneak into a centre bounce or two if he is lucky. Love this as a pure safe value play that allows us to spend up elsewhere.
AFL Fantasy Round 2 – Thursday: Our Mid Price Fantasy Picks
Josh Battle ($10,950) will have a solid matchup this week as we noted at the top with the Swans giving up above average points to general defenders. I love stacking up Battle with other Hawk backs or even their wingers in this matchup given the trend of the where the Swans concede points. Battle has started the season running hot averaging 85 points per game.
Angus Sheldrick ($13,010) is where we start picking into the fact that the Swans will be without two of their star midfielders this week. Heeney has been attending 62% of the Swans centre bounces while Gulden has attended 48%. Therefore, there is a huge uptick in midfield time to go round the remaining Sydney team. Shedrick is the player that stands out if he can essentially just pickup more game time. Through two games he is averaging 78 fantasy points from just 62% TOG, I am certain if they use him more without their stars we will be looking at a 100+ point game this week.
AFL Fantasy Round 2 – Thursday: Our Premium Fantasy Picks
Brodie Grundy ($15,790) will be heading into one of the best matchups in the league for rucks against the Hawks. They have conceded the second most points to the position over the last 10 games at over 8 points per game above the league average. I also expect a bounce back game this week after a slow fantasy performance against the Lions in Round 1.
Chad Warner ($13,490) is simply another player who should see a big uptick in output with Heeney and Gulden out. So far this year he has only attended 40% of their Swans centre bounces, which will likely lift to at least 60% this week, and Warner should be looking to lead the midfield unit in their absence.
If you considering who else may get a bump in scoring, last year when Gulden was out Matt Roberts saw a 26 points per game uplift compared to his average with Gulden in the team, which makes sense given they both score on the outside.
Suggested Draftstars Lineup for AFL Fantasy Round 2 – Thursday
Weather Report for Thursday 19th March
21 degrees and partly cloudy, no rain
AFL Betting Markets Round 2 - Thursday
Odds: Hawthorn ($1.45) vs Sydney ($2.80)
Points: 186.5
Line: -15.5
Also, be sure to check out our full AFL Thursday Preview and Betting Tips. Our experts break down the game and highlight some key bets that you can follow!
