Squad Breakdown: Cowboys 2023 SuperCoach analysis


<p>1.&nbsp;Scott Drinkwater<br>2.&nbsp;Murray Taulagi<br>3.&nbsp;Peta Hiku<br>4.&nbsp;Valentine Holmes<br>5. Kyle Feldt<br>6.&nbsp;Tom Dearden<br>7.&nbsp;Chad Townsend<br>8.&nbsp;Jordan McLean<br>9. Reece Robson<br>10.&nbsp;Reuben Cotter<br>11. Jeremiah Nanai<br>12. Coen Hess<br>13.&nbsp;Jason Taumalolo</p>



<p>14. Jake Granville<br>15.&nbsp;James Tamou<br>16.&nbsp;Griffin Neame<br>17.&nbsp;Mitch Dunn</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Team News</strong></h2>



<p>This side picks itself, with Coen Hess tipped to move back to the second-row to start the season.</p>



<p>Luciano Leilua is unavailable due to an off-field incident, while Heilum Luki will return further into the season from an ACL injury.</p>



<p>The only debatable position is the utility bench spot, with Jake Granville likely to win the role.</p>



<p>Rookie fullback Tom Chester is also impressing up north and may come into contention in the similar role played by Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow last season.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Draw </strong></h2>



<p>Raiders (H), Broncos (A), Warriors (H), Titans (H), Bulldogs (A), Dolphins (H), Warriors (A), Knights (A), Sharks (A), Roosters (Suncorp, Magic Round).</p>



<p><strong>First five round strength of schedule rating (1 toughest, 10 easiest)</strong></p>



<p>8/10</p>



<p><strong>2023 gains</strong>&nbsp;–&nbsp;<em>Squad changes via NRL.com</em></p>



<p>Jack Gosiewski (Dragons), James Tamou (Wests Tigers), Gehamat Shibasaki (Mackay Cutters).</p>



<p><strong>2023 losses</strong></p>



<p>Connelly Lemuelu (Dolphins), Tom Gilbert (Dolphins), Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow (Dolphins), Ben Condon (Sea Eagles).</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Guns</strong></h2>



<p><strong>Scott Drinkwater $746,600</strong></p>



<p>Turbo and Teddy are a pretty popular round 1 fullback combination, but if you’re looking elsewhere then why not Drinky?</p>



<p>He rightly loses his dual FLB-5/8 positioning this season which is a shame, but with a 71 point average last season he’s shown he can match it with the elite of Supercoach at his best.</p>



<p>Despite belief he’s a rollercoaster Supercoach player, last season tells a bit of a different story.</p>



<p>He had five tonnes, with a top score of 119. He had one stinker, scoring 12 against Penrith in Penrith, but aside from that his lowest score was 36, hardly enough to consider him a rollercoaster.</p>



<p>So what does Drinky have that Teddy and Turbo don’t? The draw…</p>



<p>Not just the opening five rounds, but the Cowboys opening eight are outstanding, so there’s no reason why he can’t outscore the more popular pair.</p>



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<p><strong>Valentine Holmes $724,600</strong></p>



<p>Ah Val, he’s really polarised myself and many Supercoaches this pre-season.</p>



<p>If the Cowboys had a more difficult draw I’d happily avoid him at $724k based on a 69 point average last season.</p>



<p>Paying that amount of coin for a centre in round 1 seems mad to me, but kicking goals in a red-hot Cowboys outfit with a soft run, I just think I’m too scared not to own him.</p>



<p>The recent injury to Nicho Hynes may have freed up the funds to get him in, but he’s far from a lock.</p>



<p>Sure he had his highs last season, but he also had six scores of 41 or below, with a bottom score of 16.</p>



<p>A tough decision for many early on, that’s for sure.</p>



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<p><strong>Reece Robson $678,200</strong></p>



<p>Robson is a very fair play to start the year, however I believe the hooking position is stacked with better value buys early on.</p>



<p>I think Harry Grant is comfortably the number one player, so I’m happy to pay the extra $130k for his services.</p>



<p>While the likes of Brandon Smith, Soni Luke and Tanah Boyd appear better value buys.</p>



<p>However, the masses of options at hooker does put Robson in POD territory, and he does have decent upside.</p>



<p>He averaged 64 points in 75 minutes last season.</p>



<p>One concern is the Cowboys soft draw, and Jake Granville’s likely appearance on the bench.</p>



<p>With the Cowboys spending plenty of time in QLD early on, if they get out to decent leads does he get an early shower?</p>



<p>Maybe he’s done enough damage by that point to score well, but I’m steering clear for the time being.</p>



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<p><strong>Jason Taumalalo $607,500</strong></p>



<p>It’d take a brave Supercoach to write off Lolo, but it does appear his heights of the past may be beyond him.</p>



<p>He averaged between 70-78 from 2018-20, but has regressed to 58 and 55 the past two seasons.</p>



<p>We know how destructive he can be, but as he gets older and seemingly deals with constant niggling injuries, his minutes have decreased gradually.</p>



<p>This has also been a ploy of Todd Payton since taking over at the Cowboys.</p>



<p>I think he’ll stay around the 55 minute mark, especially with Reuben Cotter putting his hand up for more time, so not for me despite looking great in the pre-season.</p>



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<p><strong>Jeremiah Nanai $659,400</strong></p>



<p>If you want an early flyer with genuine upside, go for Jeremiah Nanai.</p>



<p>However, he’s not for me.</p>



<p>He’s a genuine star, but in his 63 point average last season he scored 17 tries!</p>



<p>His base of 38 for a 2RF is pretty poor, so he’s extremely attack reliant to score well.</p>



<p>With his ability he can certainly continue to score tries and put on big Supercoach scores, but I’ll look elsewhere.</p>



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<p><strong>Reuben Cotter $623,400</strong></p>



<p>Cotter has been hot on my radar all pre-season, so I was very excited in a recent interview that he declared his desire to play as many minutes as possible, even as much as 80.</p>



<p>While I don’t think 80 will happen, I do think he could play around the 65 mark.</p>



<p>He was solid with a 57 point average in 59 minutes last season, but he was also carrying injuries that limited his output in the back half of last season. He pumped out 54 in base!</p>



<p>Prior to injury, he averaged 64.9 primarily as a bench forward.</p>



<p>He missed the next six games, then returned in less time where he averaged 50.3 points.</p>



<p>While we don’t exactly rely on attacking stats from middle forwards, I do think he’s good enough to improve on his one try and no try-assists last season.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Mid-Rangers</strong></h2>



<p><strong>Murray Taulagi $578,700</strong></p>



<p>For anyone not wanting to pay up for Val, perhaps the flying Australian winger is an option?</p>



<p>Taulagi is one who is try reliant, but so are most wingers. Taulagi averaged 55 last season.</p>



<p>His 25 base wasn’t the best, while he failed to crack a tonne last season which was my concern.</p>



<p>If it wasn’t for the Cowboys draw I probably wouldn’t even include him in the write-up, but if the Cowboys do fire as expected he could be the big Supercoach beneficiary.</p>



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<p><strong>Coen Hess $400,800</strong></p>



<p>Starting on the edge, Hess has caught the attention of plenty this pre-season.</p>



<p>However his minutes and job security (as a big minute edge) aren’t great, especially with numerous players potentially returning early in the season.</p>



<p>He’s priced on a 38 point average from 39 minutes last season, and even that was as a middle forward where his PPM increased.</p>



<p>The season prior, he averaged just 40 points from 52 minutes.</p>



<p>A few years back now he went on a try-scoring spree on an edge, where he averaged 58 points in 73 minutes and I think that’s in the back of people’s minds.</p>



<p>I don’t think he’s the same damaging edge player as he was then, so I’m not keen.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Cheapies</strong></h2>



<p><strong>Nil</strong></p>


Squad Breakdown: Cowboys 2023 SuperCoach analysis

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