The return of one big-gun MID comes as another is sidelined by a shoulder injury, while another positional switch raises question marks over a Fantasy-relevant DPP back.
Here's what the Round 23 NRL Telstra Premiership team lists mean from a Fantasy point of view.
NRL Fantasy teams analysis: Round 23
Storm v Broncos, Thursday at AAMI Park
Storm: Fantasy-relevant DPP forward Trent Loiero returns to action after being rested in Round 23 and will start at lock. Cameron Munster had a big game back last week and racked up 64 points, while popular EDG Eliesa Katoa continued to perform with a 57 that leaves his season average at 54.8.
Broncos: Payne Haas is back after spending time in hospital last week with an infected cut on his leg. He's a candidate for captaincy who is projected to hit 74 against the Storm. A bunch of cheapies performed well for Michael Maguire's men last week, with Ezra Mam (64 points), Selwyn Cobbo (63 points) and Deine Mariner (61 points) all available for under $500k this week. Xavier Willison is a sell after breaking his arm last week, with the DPP forward not expected back until Finals Week 3.
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Knights v Panthers, Friday at McDonald Jones Stadium
Knights: Bradman Best is named to return from a knee injury and is a potential point of difference option at CTR. Kai Pearce-Paul is in good form, boasting a last three game average of 64.3, and currently sits in just over six percent of teams. Jake Arthur (HLF, $312k) comes into the halves. In his only other NRL game this year he managed 37 points in a 65-minute stint.
Panthers: The shoulder injury that restricted gun MID Isaah Yeo to just 52 minutes and 34 points last week has him sidelined. There is no timeline on when he might return at this stage, but Yeo is probably too expensive to carry this week if you have a do-or-die clash. Despite only managing a fairly typical (by his standards) 61 points last week, Nathan Cleary ended up being the pick of the bunch in terms of the popular captaincy options. Lindsay Smith continues to perform better than his ownership numbers (2,8 percent of teams) would suggest, with a 61 last week taking his season average to 53.1 and L3 average to 62.
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Raiders v Sea Eagles, Friday at GIO Stadium
Raiders: CTR Matthew Timoko continued his impressive late-season run with 61 points in the loss to the Dragons, while MID Joseph Tapine managed his first score over 60 since way back in Round 16. It was an otherwise disappointing week for owners of Green Machine players, with popular picks like Jamal Fogarty (28 points) and Hudson Young (44 points) performing well below their season averages.
Sea Eagles: Tom Trbojevic returns to fullback this week, which actually isn't good news for his Fantasy prospects. 'Turbo' really found his feet from a Fantasy point of view after moving to the centres recently, with a couple of 60+ scores which just weren't there at the start of the year. But if you own him, he's a hold. A 17 for Reuben Garrick in Round 22 was the latest disappointment in what has been a steep decline for the DPP back since he moved out to the wing. He's still owned by 23.8 percent of teams, but if you have trades left you should really be looking to get rid of him this week.
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Dragons v Sharks, Saturday at Jubilee Stadium
Dragons: Despite the Red V securing a huge upset win over the ladder leaders last week, there wasn't much to like about them from a Fantasy point of view, with Damien Cook (59) their only player who managed over 50. Popular money maker Lyhkan King-Togia kept things going with a 37.
Sharks: A 58 for Blayke Brailey continued his strong run of form through the back end of the season, and the $762k HOK is now owned by a touch over 10 percent of teams. Nicho Hynes continues to do enough to be a hold for those who have picked him up, but it's surprising to see him sitting in over 12 percent of teams given how many other good HLF options are out there.
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Dolphins v Roosters, Saturday at Suncorp Stadium
Dolphins: Herbie Farnworth is a sell after suffering a hamstring injury last week which will keep him out for at least a month. Remarkably the CTR managed to score 45 points despite only playing 18 minutes, and had he remained fit there's a good chance he was heading towards a triple-digit score. Kurt Donoghoe (HLF/HOK, $655k) is in good form and is a point of different option while he's starting at lock. Jeremy Marshall-King also has a 68, 76 and 64 in his last four-game collection. The only issue is that the other game was a 23.
Roosters: After a really nice run through the middle part of the season James Tedesco has fallen off a cliff in a Fantasy sense and now has three straight games with totals under 45. Connor Watson, who sits in 15 percent of teams, has his first 60+ since back in Round 16. The Roosters' two most-popular Fantasy players, Mark Nawaqanitawase and Robert Toia, had modest scores of 35 and 37 respectively, and both are struggling to hit decent scores on the run home.
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Bulldogs v Warriors, Saturday at Accor Stadium
Bulldogs: Jacob Kiraz's stint at fullback doesn't look like being great for his Fantasy scores, with a try-scoring performance in the position last week still delivering only 40 points. EDG Jacob Preston was easily their best in terms of metrics against the Wests Tigers, with a 65 that put him 18 points ahead of their next best scorer. Lachlan Galvin (6.68 percent ownership) is named to start despite battling ankle and hand injuries right now.
Warriors: Kurt Capewell impressed with a 61 in his return to the forward pack last week. He's named in the second row again, and with his price having plummeted during his stint out in the centres, when he also picked up DPP status as a CTR, he looks a good cash down option who might even be able to do a job in your backline. With Wayde Egan now ruled out by a shoulder injury, Sam Healey (HOK, $282k) starts at hooker again after scoring 50 there last week. With Jacob Laban (leg) now out of the picture, popular EDG Leka Halasima looks a good bet to command big minutes for the remainder of the season.
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Titans v Rabbitohs, Sunday at Cbus Super Stadium
Titans: Jayden Campbell is currently sitting in just under a quarter of all Fantasy teams and will likely jump above that by the time Round 23 kicks off, thanks to his excellent run of recent form which included a round-high 103 last week. HOK Sam Verrills is coming off consecutive scores in the 60s and currently sits in less than one percent of teams.
Rabbitohs: Latrell Mitchell could return to action after being included in the wider reserves this week. Both Peter Mamouzelos and Brandon Smith return from injury on the bench and are Draft league considerations this week, but not of interest in Classic. Despite picking up DPP status as a centre, starting back-rower Euan Aitken doesn't look like hitting the type of scores that would make him an attractive pick up.
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Eels v Cowboys, Sunday at CommBank Stadium
Eels: Round 22 was a very average week for Eels players on the Fantasy front, with none of them managing to hit 50. Popular cheapie Joash Papalii mustered up only 20 after hitting 43 a week earlier. He's at best a looping option this week and should not be in scoring 17s if it can be helped.
Cowboys: Jaxon Pudue moves back to the centres, which is likely to help his Fantasy scores. However, he's still not someone who should be in starts 17s, despite still being owned by a whopping 18 percent of coaches. DPP back Braidon Burns had another big game, with a try helping him to 59. Popular WFB Scott Drinkwater is way too inconsistent this season, with last week's 25 a major let down for coaches.
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