Before rounds 6, 12 and 18, the gang at Champion Data add some new DPP into the game. After the round, the first list of names and positions will be released. Historically, players need at least 35% to be considered for a new position allocation and at least four games. So let’s see which players are locked, close or have no chance of getting DPP.

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ADD DEFENDER

Harry Sheezel

He’s the #1 forward in the game and is one of the easiest positional gains ever. Harry Sheeezel has had one of the greatest starts we’ve ever seen from a first-year player. The more interesting conversation is when we should start viewing him as a ‘premium’ in our teams for the season. The beauty of this move is it now releases the pressure for coaches at D6.

Jack Ziebell

Jack Ziebell played exclusively as a defender like his teammate above in 2023. This role is identical to the one he held back in 2021, where he is taking kick in’s, controlling the play, and he became an important player in fantasy coaches’ success. Much like that year, he’s started as a midprice option delivering enough to be considered a premium on the current trends. A great early-season riser that’s about to become a DEF/FWD. 

Lachie Whitfield

In the offseason, Adam Kingsley telegraphed multiple role moves for the Giants established stars; one was for Lachie Whitfield to get back to his distributing role across halfback. We’ve seen him play in this role for the entirety of the season.

He is ripe for the picking! Not just because he’s getting DEF status allocated alongside his midfield eligibility, but against the Bombers, he started to get his old scoring game going and began to look like his former premium self. With many chasing the value of Tom Stewart or looking to get up and into Jordan Dawson, James Sicily or Nick Daicos, some astute owners might be getting a bargain should Whitfield be able to return to his 100+ averaging scoring in this role.

Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera

I love what NVM is doing at St Kilda and can see him becoming one of my favourite players. He rarely makes a poor decision and has the skills to back up his elite footy IQ. So it’s no surprise to see Ross Lyon move him into the back six and allow his skillset to propel his side forward out of the defensive half. His relevance is mostly in drafts, but for current owners, he’ll become a helpful boost in your backline stocks. If he’s sitting in the player pool, he’ll be well worth picking up if you can ahead of his likely DPP addition.

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Cam Guthrie

Flying under the radar in the DPP conversation is Geelong premiership player Cam Guthrie. The absence of Mitch Duncan and Tom Stewart has meant that the Cats coaching staff have flipped the magnets around and made some structural moves. One of those has been with Cam joining his brother Zach across halfback.

The return of Duncan & Stewart might tip him back into the midfield unit, but if he’s done enough to jag DEF status, this could be a brilliant addition. Last week against the Hawks, he saw a move back towards the midfield tile. He’s got multiple years of averaging over 100, and given his price point, he might be someone to grab immediately.

Lachie Ash

Another Giants ‘Lachie’ finds himself in the DPP discourse. Lachie Ash has the speed for days, and alongside Whitfield, he’s part of the revamped rebounding core of GWS under Adam Kingsley. He’s had a few good weeks recently and would be a handy gain in draft leagues. I’d be surprised if he’s not awarded DEF/MID status. 

Kane Farrell

This one is more draft and daily fantasy relevant, but Kane Farrell should pick up defender status. Late in 2022 and throughout this preseason, we saw the pear happily using him across halfback. This role has resulted through the season proper as Port have looked to shake up their back six. Depending on the depth of your draft league, he could become a helpful onfield option while, at worst, providing some bench depth. 

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ADD MIDFIELD

Will Day

So far, one of the season’s picks has been with Will Day as a midprice option in our backlines. The former halfback flanker has displayed his skills, competitiveness & workrate as he’s moved into an inside midfield role under the new-look Hawthorn midfield. He’s trending towards scoring enough to be someone we could consider holding for the season. Still, regardless of that discussion, the addition of midfield status and transition to a DEF/MID is a certainty. Lock it in!

Josh Rachele

One of the most exciting young players in the league is Josh Rachele. The Crows star is spending an increasing number of attendances at centre bounces, where he’s regularly at 30%-50% across the match. The club are trying to maximise his impact to win clerances. He then slides forward and creates chaos alongside Izak Rankine for opposition defenders. Like Will Day above and any other midfield gains we do pick up, it’s more squad versatility than anything else that’s gained. He’s not highly owned in classic, but he’s had a monster four weeks for owners in the draft and daily fantasy. 

Darcy Wilmot

The young Lion is listed as a defender but has been playing most of the season across Brisbane’s wings. So throw him the DEF/MID status. It’ll be handy having the likes of Wilmot, Day, Ginbey & to a lesser extent, the Chesser and Constable all being eligible to be flipped through the midfield or backlines as necessary.

Jordan Dawson

He has spent the past two weeks playing a heavy centre-bounce midfield role. But even with another week in the role, it’s too small of a sample size for him to gain midfield status. He’s moire likely to get it heading into round 12.

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ADD RUCK

Charlie Comben

I’m not sold that this DPP falls his way, but Charlie Comben has been the secondary ruck option behind Todd Goldstein. In addition, he spent a good chunk of round one as the lead ruck after Tristan Xerri went down injured. He’s got a few owners in SuperCoach, and the RUC/FWD DPP could be handy for them. However, he might be worth a look in deeper draft leagues or category leagues, especially with the volume of ruck injuries we’ve already seen this year. 

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ADD FORWARD

Christian Petracca

There’s been some hope in the community that CP5 would get MID/FWD status during the season. I was hoping for it too, but the data doesn’t indicate it’s coming. Despite spending sometime forward this week against West Coast and kicking multiple goals, he’d still attended an average of 71% of centre bounces over the first three games. There will need more than a full game inside forward 50 to move the DPP needle. Sorry!

Bailey Smith

Take this one to the bank. This time next week, we’ll have Bailey Smith eligible as a MID/FWD. He was a fraction away from having it in the preseason, but his MID/FWD split has been over 50% in the forward half. The resulting heavy forward time has seen a dint to his scoring, with one ton in AFLFantasy and an average of 88, while in SuperCoach, he’s going at 83 and has posted just one ton. In a few weeks, he’ll likely hit his basement and will rightly be someone many will target as part of upgrade season.

Jackson Macrae

A few weeks ago, I thought Jackson Macrae was a real shot at getting forward status added. He regularly attended only 40% of CBA’s, and the rest of the time was playing as a high half-forward for the Dogs. However, I wonder if he will gain forward status after last week. It’ll take a significant change from Luke Beveridge and potentially an exclusive forward role this week against Port Adelaide for him to get MID/FWD status. It’s still a chance, but it’s unlikely. 

Taylor Adams

Since Taylor Adams was traded to Collingwood, he’s been a staple part of the Magpies midfield when he’s been available for selection. However, in 2023 the vice-captain is yet to attend 50% of centre bounces in a single game. The move out of the midfield core has been largely due to the arrival of Tom Mitchell as he’s moved to the fifth rotation spot. As a result, he’s splitting his time between the midfield and the Pies forward half. The lack of midfield time has hurt his scoring, so even with a DPP addition, he’s not someone you’d be considering in classic. Although, in draft leagues, it’s a different discussion, I suspect he’ll move from coaches benches to become a fieldable forward and likely strengthen your overall scoring power. 

Cam Mackenzie

After attending sixteen centre bounces in round one, Cam Mackenzie has yet to attend a combined sixteen between rounds 2-4. The young Hawk has shown moments of brilliance in his first month of AFL. But he has started to play more as a half-forward as Day, Nash & Ward have increased their midfield presence. He’s one of the most highly owned cash cow midfielders, and the potential DPP would add some further forwardline depth & possibly add some increased life on our sides.

Zaine Cordy

I’ll be clear. This isn’t draft-relevant, daily fantasy relevant or classic-relevant. But Zaine should get FWD status added. So much has been made of the Saints lack of talls in the forward line, resulting in Cordy being moved forward. He’s not worth considering, but the DPP addition is warranted.

Ben Keays

Late last year, we saw Matthew Nicks deploy Ben Keays as part of the Crows forward line. The thought process was that Ben could use his endurance running to get up and down the ground and become an extra midfielder around the ground. While also using his defensive ability to hold the opposition’s best rebounder to account. The probable addition of MID/FWD means he moves from an ‘underperforming’ midfielder to likely a team’s second-best forward. A worthy DPP gain should the gang at Champion Data see fit.