EXV predictions thread.

[Ziplock]

Another late night review Zip......well done man  8)

......hey have you posted your new Z haircut yet?

yeah, it's on the FB

Haha, Zip it doesnt matter how much you complain, dog and whine the trades won't be changed ::)

I'm just getting the message across so next time people listen to me when trades are obviously one sided.

[elephants]

Shame there are 14 more opinions in this comp besides yours.

[Holz]

Shame there are 14 more opinions in this comp besides yours.

You mean 13 ele

[Justin Bieber]

Shame there are 14 more opinions in this comp besides yours.

You mean 13 ele

Fark counts as one lol

[elephants]

Shame there are 14 more opinions in this comp besides yours.

You mean 13 ele

You get my point ;)

[Ziplock]

Shame there are 14 more opinions in this comp besides yours.

You mean 13 ele

nope, your point is now invalid.

[Ziplock]

I think it's now about time for another top 8 team... I hope everyone's excited, because this one's pretty interesting :P

[Justin Bieber]

I think it's now about time for another top 8 team... I hope everyone's excited, because this one's pretty interesting :P

You should fap more.. Lol.

[Ziplock]

Team: Russian Roulettes
Coach: Nostradamus
Predicted Ranking and Average Score: 2nd, 1554

Scoring Breakdown including captain bonus:
Back   Waters   95
Back   Hurn   80
Back   Yarran   85
Back   Burgoyne   80
Mid   Swan   260
Mid   Ablett   125
Mid   Grffen   105
Mid   ROK   95
Ruck   Bellchambers   84
Fwd   Tippett   80
Fwd   Chapman   100
Fwd   J Riewoldt   92
Fwd   Varcoe   78
Util   Moloney   93
Util   Greene   102

Analysis:
A very impressive midfield, and overall team... It's very easy to see why I've rated Russia a top 2 side. Ftr, I have taken into account Tippett's 12 week suspension: I'm tipping him to explode this year, subsequently that 80 is already supplemented by the assumption a poorer player will have to take his spot.

Back:

That's a pretty strong backline. Waters has establish that, if fit, he's a quality dter. Hurn is 25, and imo, 80 is easily within reach. We all know Yarrans potential, and under malthouse, I reckon he's finally going to his his stride. Burgoyne is old, and he might be beyond it, that being said, I'm personally calling a bit of a last hurrah from some of the hawks oldies.

the biggest concern with this line is its cover- Burgoyne, Yarran and Waters aren't exactly known for their durability, and beyond the best 4, it's a bit thin. Spurr should have ok JS- but poor scoring potential. For Norths sake, I hope Hansen finally shows his ability, but at 25 next year, he's definitely running out of time. Pears sucks. Obrien is average, at best, and Cameron untried and unproven. There's not a substantial amount of future there, and definitely short on reliable cover.

Mids:
The best two dreamteamers in history make up for the short comings of almost any team. Swan and Ablett are machines- if they both fire at the same time, we're talking about nearly 600 points, just from two players. That's pretty insane. Griffen I rate to have a little break out here, although, it could be substantial... ROK is a machine, playing GWS twice, he could definitely fire up big.

The cover is ok, both for the short and long term- Hodge when fit is a 100+ player, Lower is a 80+, Hill has reasonable potential, same with howlett and broadbent. Bell, Mitchell and Hunter should be pretty solid for the future as well. It's a pretty well rounded line, green will be a machine for the next decade, and moloney I'm tipping to bounce back as well.

Rucks:
Definitely hurt a little bit from the loss of tippets dpp, but Kreuzer + Bellchambers should provide immediate reasonable scoring + rucks for a future- good line.

Fwds:
I've already spoken about my rating on tippett. Chappy is a 100 odd player pretty easily, and I think being fed a bit more ball, jvoldt can push 90+. The 4th forward is definitely the place where this team falls off a bit- atm, varcoe, motlop, dickson, reid, gunston, kerridge are just not good enough to really fill this spot in a premiership challenging team. All that being said, I'd be willing to put money on that at least one of these players will go 80+ this year, and there's always the chance any of them could ever go 90+.

The cover in general in this line is superb- youthful, talented, reasonable scoring. It's a very good line.

Strengths:
I'm going to say the forward line- even though the 4th forward lets it down quite a lot, the general youth of this line, yet its scoring power, is very, very impressive. Not only is it going to be probably one of the best forward lines this year, it will probably stay one of the best for many to come. Excellent line up. And you cant not rate a midfield that has ablett and swan. Tippett will probably get ruck eligibility back this year as well, which means the ruckline will also be quite solid.

Weaknesses:
Since I've rated the other 3 lines, it's going to have to be the backline, once again. Not, as for most teams, because of the poor scoring, but rather, just the lack of reasonable cover. I'd spend this draft fixing this line up as best as possible... I'd be tempted to use both the top national and rookie draft picks Russia gets on the defence tbh, although one more talented midfielder wouldn't go amiss.

How to win the flag:
It's definitely in reach for Russia this year, can they go back to back? What they really need to bring it home is no injuries in the backline, either that, or someone like Hansen, Pears, to step up to an 80+ player. With a fully fit team though, I'd say all they need to really cause holz to sweat, is someone like gunston to break out to a high 90s player- completely plausible.

come grandfinal day, anyone can win it, as we'ved seen many times in both the AFL and fantasy games. That being said, in this case, I'd say the top 4-5 are a notch above everyone else...  but Russia, and Serbia are also, at this stage, a notch above them as well. Best of luck to nostra- honestly, I think it comes down to his backline this year.

[Justin Bieber]

Yarron, ave of 85... Really? You trolling Zip?

[picker_man]

Yarron, ave of 85... Really? You trolling Zip?

They are his predictions.... but yeah lately alot i dont agree with. Jb's team was way under imo!!!

[Ziplock]

Yarron, ave of 85... Really? You trolling Zip?

we'll see :P

[Adamant]

I'm not sure about Waters averaging 95. He is an absolute gun, but he will start the season underdone which will probably hamper his scoring.

Even tbetta from DT Talk reckons he'll only average 86, and he's an Eagles supporter. :o Beau Waters - Deck Of DT 2013.

I hope he does smash it for my Asians team though. :) Great work once again Zip.

[Ziplock]

if he can stay fit, 95 is more than achievable for him- honestly, he could push for closer to 100.

Remember, euros finishes before round 20, so he only needs to stay on the park until then :P

the off seasons injury is a bit concerning... but from memory we dont play round 1 (do we play round 2?), so it should give him a chance to get back into it. I'll back him in- 27 is prime DTing age, and eagles should be significantly stronger this year as well.

[Ziplock]

You'll also notice that I'm pretty generous to most players- basically, unless I feel pretty positive a player isnt going to increase their average, I'll normally put their average up a handful of points.