AFL Supercoach 2026: Bandit's Skippers - Round 5


<p>Last week was either chocolates or boiled lollies for many coaches. Well done if you had Max Gawn or Brodie Grundy leading the charge, who both went massive and would have given you a real leg up in a best 18 scoring week.&nbsp;</p>



<p>But now we head to Gather Round where there are some tricky matchups and nailing your VC and C this week could separate you from the pack. Let’s dive into the best options.</p>



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<p>Nick Daicos – L3 vs FREM: 169, 76, 130</p>



<p>Daicos’ record against Fremantle in recent times makes for impressive reading, but the late out last week with his calf complaint is the worry this week. Whether that impacts his ability to cover the ground or his role in the game we’ll wait and see.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Dayne Zorko – L3 vs NM: 166, 96, 110</p>



<p>The 166 last time out against the Kangaroos is the flashing light for me here. Zorko has been finding plenty of the ball in recent weeks but hasn’t been using it as cleanly as he’s capable of. Hopefully he can tidy that up against the Roos and post a big score.</p>



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<p>Max Gawn – L3 vs ESS: 145, 117, 103</p>



<p>Gawn was massive last week and gets a good match up here against Blakiston who probably would have conceded a three-figure score to Tim English last week had he not gone off with injury in the third term of that game. I’m riding with big Max this week.</p>



<p>Brodie Grundy – L3 vs GCS: 75, 158, 60</p>



<p>Grundy’s record against the Suns is mixed in recent games, but we saw last week Gawn take Witts to the cleaners in a ruck masterclass. Grundy is one of the best running ruckman in the AFL and if he decides he’s going to work off Witts like Gawn did and get involved around the ground, I think there’s a big score on offer.</p>



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<p>Marcus Bontempelli – L3 vs HAW: 101, 142, 122</p>



<p>Bont was at his absolute best last week against Essendon who just refused to have anyone go near the Bulldogs superstar. I’ll be interested to see how Hawthorn play him and if the Dogs struggle without Tim English in the ruck, but he’s still a safe C option this week.</p>



<p>Lachie Ash – L3 vs RICH: 110, 82, 84</p>



<p>Ash’s recent record against the Tigers doesn’t scream captaincy material, but Richmond have bled points to half back kickers to start the season and GWS have two of the best of them in Ash and his teammate Whitfield. Might be a decent left-field option.</p>



<p>Jack Sinclair – L3 vs PORT: 118, 143, 113</p>



<p>Sinclair is shaping as the must-have defender of 2026 and with that comes scores that we can rely on for captaincy purposes. I would prefer him to be a VC for us as I don’t have him on the same level as a Bont or Gawn type, but if you’re caught short this weekend after a poor VC score, I think he’s still a safe option.</p>


AFL Supercoach 2026: Bandit’s Skippers – Round 5

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