While Bulldogs fans were buoyed by the Club’s hard-fought victory over the Blues on Sunday, Toyota AFL Dream Teamers also had much to smile about as five Dogs showed fantasy football form in cracking the 100 point mark.
Hard-edged defender Liam Picken topped the individual rankings accumulating 124 Dream Team (DT) points through his 25 possessions, 9 mark, 9 tackle performance.
Not known as a prolific Dream Team scorer, Picken’s $319,500 price tag could prove value if the tackling machine continues to find plenty of the ball through the middle of the ground.
Versatility is important to many a Dream Team coach, and Will Minson’s ($365,500) 4 goals, 17 hitouts and 20 possession showed just that. Drifting forward at opportune moments, Minson finished the match with 116 DT points and is proving worthy of consideration as a moderately priced ruck option.
Ryan Griffen ($486,500) again proved a ball magnet, collecting 33 disposals and 7 marks for 114 DT points.
Griffen’s strong preseason form suggests he’ll be likely to build on a consistent 2011 in which he averaged 98.36 DT points.
Veterans Daniel Giansiracusa (105 DT points, $436,800) and Ryan Hargrave (105 DT Points, $232,700) were the remaining Bulldogs to top the Dream Team ton.
Benefitting from the Bulldogs’ high-possession game, Giansiracusa took 10 marks along with 22 disposals while only kicking the single goal.
Meanwhile Hargave was dominant across half-back and was the launching pad of multiple forward pushes. On the comeback trail from an injury marred 2011, Hargave’s 27 disposals, 11 marks and 105 DT point has earmarked the defender as one of the best value Dream Team picks of 2012.
With a very modest $232,700, Hargave appears a lock for many Dream Team coaches after he earlier scored 94 DT points in NAB Cup Round 1.
NAB Cup Round 1 top-scorer Matthew Boyd narrowly missed his second-consecutive 100 point game, falling one-short point shy of the mark.