Last week there was the perfect storm in a lot of forward lines.  It caused me to do some munching.   It wasnt pretty let me tell you!

However, now that we enter a period where there are league matches where we only have one team affected this week (Hawthorn), a team that is rarely represented in top 22s next week (Port), you would expect a calm period where teams could solidify scores and be more strongly placed.

That is, if you dont take into account the impact of freak events, such as the Ablett injury or lack thereof, and the Boomer injury...or again lack thereof.

There are a lot of shadows that we can think about jumping out the way of.   Im not sure Id jump if I had either player, even though if youre in the mix for overall it will be a short term hit to the scoring capabilities if either player misses a game.   For what its worth, I tip Ablett out for 1, Boomer out for 2, and probably neither should be traded if youre light on.

For the Best Buys, All Australians, and Im sure a rollicking good discussion to come, read on after the break.

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Best Buys:

D: Shaw and Scotland look solid for those who dont have them.   Broughton with no bye is a player with huge scoring potential, and is probably a worthwhile investment trade for Lower to sure up the D7.  Interestingly in defence it appears you get rated, then your opponents take notice of you with a forward tag, then your score drops.   Fisher copped the Chad last week, and it showed.   Im not sure what this means for the future.   You might have to think outside the box to find your future defensive high scorer.   Though I dont agree with Sainters thought of Ben Reid, it does show the level of attention to detail you need to find the diamond in the rough that will propel your team onwards in the next few weeks.

Do I have one?   Silvagni is probably the best lowish-priced one.

M: Bartel at 348k.  Thanks for coming.  Montagna for those who want no more bye impact looms at 382.   Boyd seems the best priced of the premiums.   Moloney at 444 is probably slightly overs, but from my knowledge of the Melbourne draw to come, and the lack of byes, could be the smoky you need.

R: Goldstein and McEvoy are now firmly 500k+.   This to me is further illustration that rucks are way over rated in Champion Data scores, and need a reset next season.   Griffin is the best of the cheaper options, but Sandilands is aiming to return next week.   Complications all over the place.   You could do worse than Sam Jacobs or Nic Naitanui as a trade from Zac Smith who could probably churn out 100s given the ruck inflation going on.   Angus Graham averages 81.  Nuff said.

F: When going for a Best Buy here, Im thinking no byes to come, Im thinking guys who can go huge, who can get the job done in the rounds to come.   This means at the top of the list must be Pavlich.   Now of course most of you have him, so then you have to think of the players who not all that many teams have.   These guys are the points of difference on the run home.   You can go with any of the following decent options:  Kennedy, Le Cras, Green and Davis.   All nicely nestled in that 380-440 zone which is the high-risk, high-reward area.   I see all 4 running home with 10+ on their current averages.

Downgrade targets: Talia is a good forward-back flexi option.   Callinan will open a link up and may provide coverage in future, just not this week.   TBH not sold on the rest.

Now for the All-Australians:

Season:

D: Fisher, Scotland, Goddard, Deledio, Shaw, Newman, Gibbs (Enright, Suckling, Birchall)
M: Pendlebury, Ablett, Swan, Murphy, Dal Santo, Griffen (Boyd, Priddis, Judd)
R: Cox, Goldstein (Sandilands, McEvoy)
F: Pavlich, Franklin, Fyfe, OKeefe, Johnson, Roughead, Harvey (Chapman, Goodes, Rioli/Cloke)

Last 3 Matches Played:

D:  Goddard, Scotland, Broughton, S Martin, Bock, Gibbs, Enright (Shaw, Taylor, Johncock)
M: Dal Santo, Hodge, Griffen, Pendlebury, Judd, Swan (Thomas, Hartlett, Mitchell)
R: Goldstein, McEvoy (Griffin, Jolly)
F: Pavlich, Cloke, Fyfe, OKeefe, Watts, Goodes, Giansiracusa, Gray (Chapman, Davis, Green)

Until next week, happy trading (or not if youve used em all)