Compare the pair… Same age, same income, same starting balance…

All super advertisement gags aside, they say comparison is futile. What they don’t know is that this is AFL Fantasy so bugger that, it’s the name of the game to compare players and make potentially premiership winning decisions!

In this series of articles, I will put two players of interest head to head to see how they stack up against each other! Inevitably, as Fantasy coaches we are often faced the conundrum of “pick one”, whether that be due to salary cap squeeze, team structure, upcoming fixtures, etc.

For context, I will present multiple quickfire ✅ (Pros) and ⌦ (Cons) and from there try and split the two to come to a final verdict!

Match up #6 sees my favourite player of all time James ‘Sic Dawg’ Sicily go up against a bloke who is not even best player in his immediate family! Don’t miss out, read on to see who takes the cake!

Angus Brayshaw	Player	James Sicily
Melbourne	Club	Whorethorn
$878K	Price	$854K
DEF	Position	DEF
22	2022 Games Played	22
99.1	2022 Avg.	96.4
R14	Bye	R14

BRAYSHAW

✅ After playing predominantly as a defender for the first 19 rounds of 2022, we saw Bray find a home in the guts on the run home! As expected, this turned out to be very conducive from a fantasy perspective! Bray went on to average a neat 106 over the last month of the regular season, attending between 57 and 76% centre bounces!

✅ IF the midfield role stays, there’s every prospect that Bray is under-priced at $878K. He was initially thrust into the midfield when James Harmes went down with concussion in R19… Encouragingly, Bray’s CBAs didn’t go anywhere when Harmes returned in the finals. Petracca also slipped into more of a forward role given his attributes as a goal-kicking mid – only good signs for Bray maintaining his fantasy conducive role!

✅ Durability is a big tick with Brayshaw. Of the past four seasons he has only missed three games (all being in the Rona-affected 2020).

⌦ Small flag worth mentioning is Bray’s versatility may ultimately be his downfall from a fantasy perspective… Jayden Hunt (who made a home at half-back later in the season) has made his way to West Coast in the offseason, leaving a hole to fill. If Melbourne’s back six or seven stays healthy, I don’t think it’s an issue but we have seen Bray’s exploits as a solid mid-sized defender!

SICILY

✅ After missing 2021 in its entirety due to a serious knee injury, Sic Dawg came back and did not miss a beat! He was as consistent as they come, playing all 22 games, averaging 96.4 and only registered three scores under 80… Incredible return for a “mid-pricer”!

✅ Like a seagull to hot chips was Sic Dawg to a cheeky kick-in in 2022. In total, Sic played on 96% of the time and added 192 points alone from the kick-ins at an average of nine points per week! I can’t see the role going anywhere in 2023.

✅ After a mass cleanout in the off season, I don’t think there’s many bullish on the Hawks hopes in 2023… The good news? If they turn out to be as shit as we think they will, Sic will be working overtime in the back 50 and as a result enjoying plenty of touches and bulk cheap +3’s!

⌦ At $854K, coaches will argue if there is much upside here… We’ll be paying top dollar for Sic’s services this season and this will put a few off I imagine! He enters 2023 as the 5th most expensive defender.

VERDICT

Both selections of merit but I’m leaning toward Bray here. Assuming that midfield role remains he’s a good get at $878K and the numbers are too hard to ignore. Look out for the first round of DPPs at round 6… I wouldn’t be surprised if Bray becomes a DEF/MID, adding flexibility to our squads!

So there you have it folks, the sixth edition of ‘Fantasy Face-off’? What did you make of it – agree? disagree? Who else would you like to see go head-to-head over the preseason? Let me know in the comments! Thoughts, feedback and banter welcome!

Cheers legends,

Fantasy Fanatic #70