AFL Supercoach 2026: Data analyst Harry West's full team reveal 


<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Why I Never Build My Team Line By Line</strong></h3>



<p>Everyone builds defenders first. Then mids, rucks, forwards. I don&#8217;t. </p>



<p>The game is about value and how quickly you can build it &#8211; so I start with the picks that matter most when you aren&#8217;t budget-conscious. </p>



<p>Rookies first. Underpriced keepers second. Gaps last. </p>



<p>Here&#8217;s how my 2026 side is taking shape.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Step 1: Nail the Rookies</strong></h3>



<p>Your rookies dictate everything &#8211; which lines have depth, how many premiums you can afford, how fast you build value. </p>



<p>Get them wrong, and you&#8217;re chasing the rookies you missed while everyone else is fixing up their mid-pricers.</p>



<p><img decoding="async" src="blob:https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/b0e4400b-8298-4d6a-bee6-d8d6f1be7a13" width="548.9478499542544" height="452.5171265162466"></p>



<p>Grlj ($172k) and Lindsay ($122.5k) lock in on-field in defence. </p>



<p>Slightly nervous about Grlj, but there is bench cover if I get it wrong. </p>



<p>Lindsay should play Round 1 and his elite kicking points to solid SuperCoach scoring. </p>



<p>Serong ($119.9k) is that cover on the bench &#8211; keep an eye on his role at the Swans.</p>



<p>Smith ($119.9k) is locked on field in the mids. </p>



<p>Genuinely baffled why some teams don&#8217;t have him. First name on your list.</p>



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<p>Phillipou ($168.4k) found the footy all pre-season and isn&#8217;t going anywhere. </p>



<p>Robertson ($119.9k) posted 94 SC points in the pre-season game &#8211; mature body, safe on-field option in a line that doesn&#8217;t offer many cheap alternatives. </p>



<p>Marshall ($147.9k) is on the bench and could sneak on the field yet.</p>



<p>McAndrew ($119.9k) currently sits in the Flex. He has to be on the field somewhere &#8211; the question is where. </p>



<p>Play him at R2, and if he loses his spot, you&#8217;re looking at a full restructure, potentially two costly trades to fix. </p>



<p>Play him in the Flex, and you&#8217;re locked into a second ruck I&#8217;m not confident in. </p>



<p>Risk vs reward toss-up for now, but Flex feels the safer home heading into Round 1.</p>



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<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="576" src="http://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Email-Gareth.w@cecal.org_.au-Phone-9559-4013-1-1-1024x576.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-2404006" srcset="https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Email-Gareth.w@cecal.org_.au-Phone-9559-4013-1-1-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Email-Gareth.w@cecal.org_.au-Phone-9559-4013-1-1-300x169.jpg 300w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Email-Gareth.w@cecal.org_.au-Phone-9559-4013-1-1-768x432.jpg 768w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Email-Gareth.w@cecal.org_.au-Phone-9559-4013-1-1-640x360.jpg 640w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Email-Gareth.w@cecal.org_.au-Phone-9559-4013-1-1-1200x675.jpg 1200w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Email-Gareth.w@cecal.org_.au-Phone-9559-4013-1-1-800x450.jpg 800w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Email-Gareth.w@cecal.org_.au-Phone-9559-4013-1-1.jpg 1280w" sizes="(max-width: 639px) 98vw, (max-width: 1199px) 64vw, 770px" /></figure>



<p>The rest of the bench fills with the best of a promising crop. </p>



<p>Jaques just needs to hold his spot at the Dogs. </p>



<p>Blamires wasn&#8217;t on my radar two weeks ago, but looked sharp after being signed late &#8211; we know the Roos half-backs can score. </p>



<p>Sharp posted a respectable 63 against a grand-final-bound Saints side. </p>



<p>Lombard plays for a quality side at a cheap price. They&#8217;re all in.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Step 2: The Locked Keepers</strong></h3>



<p>With the rookies set, I know exactly what&#8217;s left and which lines need premium coverage. </p>



<p>These don&#8217;t move regardless of Round 0.</p>



<a id='AutwvKBYTpd2a7ASXOgwfA' class='gie-single' href='https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/2263653735' target='_blank' style='color:#a7a7a7;text-decoration:none;font-weight:normal !important;border:none;display:inline-block;' rel="noopener">Embed from Getty Images</a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'AutwvKBYTpd2a7ASXOgwfA',sig:'eaVzXgsPwe5R4mXoP5OZxLo8vmIjT2hgA-lO2hgudw0=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2263653735',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});</script><script src='//embed-cdn.gettyimages.com/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async></script>



<p><strong>Butters ($654.8k)</strong> has been in my side since the game opened. </p>



<p>Port face North Melbourne, West Coast, Essendon, and Richmond in the first month &#8211; there&#8217;s a world where he&#8217;s averaging 140 over that stretch. Lock him in.</p>



<p><strong>Gulden ($566.6k)</strong> had an injury-interrupted 2025 and still scored well. </p>



<p>With a full pre-season and potential CBAs on offer, the ceiling here is enormous.</p>



<p><strong>Rozee ($568.5k)</strong> stays alongside Butters. Both are slightly underpriced, and both have no early bye. </p>



<p>Happy to be safe with Port numbers.</p>



<p><strong>English ($600.9k)</strong> gets the R1 spot over Grundy, Xerri, and Jackson. </p>



<p>The ruck rule changes suit him perfectly. </p>



<p>He looked incredible in the pre-season game, and his 2023 form shows what he&#8217;s capable of when everything clicks. </p>



<p>Feels the safest ruck to me right now.</p>



<a id='wizoJPY9QVhe7NGtlNq-gQ' class='gie-single' href='https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/2231594610' target='_blank' style='color:#a7a7a7;text-decoration:none;font-weight:normal !important;border:none;display:inline-block;' rel="noopener">Embed from Getty Images</a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'wizoJPY9QVhe7NGtlNq-gQ',sig:'Wgj-Z9CKN-BDvdVE91AGa1ZOM5Rgm_uUUmq4thJ5uk0=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2231594610',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});</script><script src='//embed-cdn.gettyimages.com/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async></script>



<p><strong>Sheezel ($580.4k)</strong> &#8211; not a heap of upside at this price, but he&#8217;ll be a top-six forward by season&#8217;s end. </p>



<p>I don&#8217;t fancy being in the 27% that don&#8217;t have him.</p>



<p><strong>Flanders ($396.6k) </strong>is a lock lock lock. St Kilda are giving him the midfield role Gold Coast wouldn&#8217;t. Back it.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Step 3: The Gaps</strong></h3>



<p>With the foundation set, here&#8217;s where I&#8217;m landing on the remaining spots.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="899" height="740" src="https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/image-2.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-2404586" srcset="https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/image-2.jpg 899w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/image-2-300x247.jpg 300w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/image-2-768x632.jpg 768w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/image-2-640x527.jpg 640w" sizes="(max-width: 639px) 98vw, (max-width: 1199px) 64vw, 770px" /></figure>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Pretty locked:</strong></h5>



<p><strong>McKercher ($449.6k)</strong> scored incredibly when moved to his natural half-back role last year. </p>



<p>Fit and available, he&#8217;s in. Could end up a keeper. </p>



<p><strong>Blakiston ($295.5k)</strong> alongside him is a solo ruck play &#8211; just needs to hold the role long enough to build cash.</p>



<p><strong>Walsh ($543.9k)</strong> and <strong>Petracca ($522.3k)</strong> are my two Round 0 watches. </p>



<p>Walsh, because it&#8217;s been a while since we&#8217;ve seen him fit and all the signs are there &#8211; leave him out, and he pops off, I&#8217;ll regret it. </p>



<p>Petracca because he always lets me down, but his pre-season role is convincing me. </p>



<p>The R2 bye is still annoying on Walsh, though, and it&#8217;s cost me Daicos for now.</p>



<a id='wmcX1VPzS8J0NtH-rFrRyg' class='gie-single' href='https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/2219153062' target='_blank' style='color:#a7a7a7;text-decoration:none;font-weight:normal !important;border:none;display:inline-block;' rel="noopener">Embed from Getty Images</a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'wmcX1VPzS8J0NtH-rFrRyg',sig:'TX5VDc9q8FHHZz_n181b13ckCVvuz6qe7xj9cFW1w-g=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2219153062',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});</script><script src='//embed-cdn.gettyimages.com/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async></script>



<p><strong>Parish ($334.6k)</strong> is just cheap compared to what he can do. Hard not to get him. </p>



<p><strong>Steele ($510k)</strong> loves a tackle, and there&#8217;s opportunity in the Melbourne midfield. </p>



<p><strong>Young ($389k)</strong> is amazing value, but I&#8217;m not sold on the Freo game style and his market share of points.</p>



<p><strong>Jackson ($611.2k)</strong> is the one I&#8217;m least convinced on &#8211; Cox rucked more than expected in the pre-season game. </p>



<p>Don&#8217;t be surprised if he drops out before Round 1.</p>



<a id='h72hgue7QQVLjntBiKzuSw' class='gie-single' href='https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/2229328807' target='_blank' style='color:#a7a7a7;text-decoration:none;font-weight:normal !important;border:none;display:inline-block;' rel="noopener">Embed from Getty Images</a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'h72hgue7QQVLjntBiKzuSw',sig:'Egbl7Fi7Rd7BqNjkGPlaWfPrVFLA01Jd3LgHtZwL9MU=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2229328807',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});</script><script src='//embed-cdn.gettyimages.com/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async></script>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>50:50s:</strong></h5>



<p><strong>Rowston ($271.7k) vs Bruhn</strong>. Big opportunity at the Giants with their injury toll, but genuinely torn and weighing it up right until the lockout. </p>



<p><strong>Macdonald ($381.1k) vs Rachele</strong> is a straight coin toss on who keeps the role. </p>



<p><strong>Windsor ($283.3k) vs Rivers or Coleman</strong> &#8211; I had Rivers originally, Windsor saves coin with similar upside, but I don&#8217;t love the pick.</p>



<p><strong>Carroll ($119.9k)</strong> is a watch rather than a lock &#8211; loved his role at the Saints, but not sure how he translates to the real stuff. </p>



<p><strong>Reidy ($119.9k)</strong> I genuinely don&#8217;t love, if he scores poorly, I might be better off with a red dot for looping. </p>



<p>But if either fires in Round 0, they are straight in.</p>



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<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>The Play</strong></h3>



<p>Most managers finish their team and then wonder why their rookies are all in the wrong positions, or why they are stuck with a mid-pricer they don&#8217;t believe in. </p>



<p>Build it the right way, and those problems don&#8217;t exist.</p>



<p>Rookies first. Keepers second. Everything else fills the gaps. </p>



<p>The foundation is locked &#8211; 18 players, I&#8217;m not moving. </p>



<p>The remaining 13 take shape after Round 0.</p>



<p>Stop building line by line. You&#8217;ll thank yourself in Round 10.</p>


AFL Supercoach 2026: Data analyst Harry West’s full team reveal

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