daily fantasy sports articles

Two cracking NRL matchups on tap for Friday night, and what better way to get involved in NRL fantasy than with Draftstars! 

In the first game, the Eels and Sharks will both be looking for their first win of the season. With both teams making the top 4 last season, an 0-2 start would make things difficult for whichever team doesn’t manage the victory here.

Then, two teams looking to move to 2-0 after wins last week, with the Cowboys travelling to Brisbane to take on the Broncos. These teams have a history of high scoring affairs, which bodes well for our Draftstars line-ups!

Draftstars has numerous contests, with the biggest being a $20,000 prize pool in the Broncos vs Cowboys contest. Don’t forget the $10,000 Eels vs Sharks contest and there’s also a $6,000 contest involving both Friday Night matchups. Whatever your style, there’s a contest for you this Friday night, so let’s dive in and find some value selections.

Team News

The Eels have made just the one change this week, with Bailey Simonsson returning on the wing, in place of Isaac Lumelume. 

The Sharks continue without halfback Nicho Hynes, whilst also losing bench forwards Wade Graham (suspension), and Jack Williams (concussion). The pair are replaced by Royce Hunt and Connor Tracey on the bench. Hunt is in some doubt, with young prop Thomas Hazelton a chance to make just his second start if Hunt is ruled out.

The Broncos have made a change at the back, with Reece Walsh named to make his Broncos debut at fullback. This pushes Selwyn Cobbo back to the wing, and Jesse Arthars to the reserves. No other changes are expected.

The Cowboys have named the same 17 as last week and I expect no changes.

Betting Markets

Parramatta Eels ($1.50) vs Cronulla Sharks ($2.60)

Total Points Line – 40.5 points

Brisbane Broncos ($1.80) vs Nth Qld Cowboys ($2.00)

Total Points Line – 41.5 points

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Overview

The Sharks and the Eels faced off once in the 2022 season, and oddly enough it was also in round 2. In a cracking game of footy, the Sharks prevailed 18-16, scoring 4 tries to 2, whilst making 10 line breaks to 3. Nicho Hynes was instrumental, having a hand in almost all the Sharks attacking plays. Unfortunately for the Sharks, Hynes will not be out there this week, and despite having a good replacement in Braydon Trindall, the Sharks may struggle to stay in this one. With the Eels having home ground advantage, I like them to get the job done in the early game on Friday.

In the Queensland derby, I really like the underdog to cause a minor upset in this one. The Cowboys managed two wins over the Broncos last year, winning 38-12 at Suncorp in round 3, before another easy 40-26 victory in round 16 at home. Despite the impressive victory over the Panthers last week, I believe the Broncos have been overrated by the market, and see the wrong team favoured in this matchup.

Love It – J’maine Hopgood - $13,860

I think the Eels lock is the easiest selection all week. Hopgood was an absolute beast last week, playing the full 84 minutes in the middle, making 57 tackles, running for 172 metres, and throwing 5 offloads, ending the game with 73.2 points. After that performance last week, Hopgood’s price has risen a measly $20, and is an absolute must have in your forward pack in this slate. Given the minimal changes made to the squad, I see no reason for Hopgood to not once again play big minutes, and score big points.

Love It – Payne Haas - $21,080

Yes, you’re paying a premium for the Broncos big man, but wow is he good. Last week against arguably the best forward pack in the NRL, Haas ran for 207 metres, broke 7 tackles, produced 1 offload, whilst making 27 tackles and playing 65 minutes. I see no reason as to why Haas won’t continue playing these big minutes, and if he manages to get those minutes, why he can’t keep punching out massive scores. No, Haas is probably not affordable if you’re taking a HH gun, but if you can save a little salary in this area and you want someone who is reliably going to score you 60+, Haas is your guy.

Love It – Reece Robson - $20,890

I also love Adam Reynolds in this slate, but I’m giving the nod to Robson here. The Cowboys’ rake has quietly turned into one of the top hookers in the game. Robson is an 80-minute hooker week in, week out, who does it all from a fantasy standpoint. He makes his tackles, he’s not afraid to dart out of dummy half, and he’s creative around the ruck. Last week, he managed 49 tackles, 80 running metres, a line break, try assist, and a tackle break, for a grand total of 77.1 points. With a really solid base, Robson has the chance to separate you from the pack with a really big score in the Queensland derby.

Hate It – Mitch Moses - $22,270

We had Moses in this list last week, and he managed 60.7 points, which was by no means a poor performance, but in general Moses looked a little off. His score was padded by a massive night with the boot, kicking for nearly 800 metres in general play. Apart from his kicking game, he offered little in attack for the Eels, who to be fair were playing a very good Storm defence. Fast forward a week, and Moses is now close to $2,500 more expensive than last week, and again will be taking on a solid defensive unit in the Sharks. Like I said last week, I don’t expect Moses to fully tank, but I also don’t see him getting that score you need from this massive hit to your budget. I prefer to use the money elsewhere, until Moses shows me his head is in the game.

Hate It – Scott Drinkwater - $17,630

Drinkwater is the most expensive OB in this slate, and with two tries last week I can sort of understand it. Drinkwater had a career year in 2022, and has won the fullback spot at the Cowboys after starting last year on the bench. Yet I have my reservations. Drinkwater needs attacking stats to justify this price tag, and last week showed that even when he gets the attacking stats, his scores can still be below average. As mentioned above, Drinkwater had two tries last week, and yet still only managed 40.2 points. More a ball player than a metre eater, if the Broncos defence can look like it did last week, Drinkwater will struggle to break this game open with his ball playing.

Who Knows – Jeremiah Nanai - $16,160

Nanai was another revelation for the Cowboys in season 2022, with the rangy backrower scoring 17 tries in his debut season on his way to the Dally M Rookie of the year award. But if we look back to his scoring in DFS, Nanai was very much a rocks and diamonds type performer. Last week, Nanai had a rocks week, scoring only 21.2 points on the back of 26 tackles and only 42 running metres. Now, despite this, Nanai could be a serious option this week, and one that could take you to the cash. In two games against the Broncos last year, Nanai scored 4 tries, and I wouldn’t put it past him to score at least one this weekend. Boom or bust, and an intriguing prospect for this slate.

Draftstars Suggested Lineup

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