AFL FANTASY ANALYSIS
After an injury interrupted 2017 Max Gawn returned to post an impressive 2018 season, he was heavily owned by fantasy coaches at Round 1 last season at a discount & he didn’t disappoint averaging 118.0pts from his opening 9 games. In his final 13 H&A games Gawn averaged 106.7pts, he averaged 91.3pts from 3 Finals appearances.
Gawn scored 100pts or more in 68.0% of games & 120pts or more from 32.0% of games in 2018, this was a significant improvement compared to 2017.
With Brodie Grundy likely to attract plenty of ownership at Round 1 next season, fantasy coaches will be left to ponder what to do at the No. 2 Ruck position.
The addition Braydon Preuss during the Trade Period is a concern but considering how badly Melbourne struggled in 2017 without Gawn he could be just a pure back-up, with the Demons likely to contend next season it makes sense to have made that move.
Finding an alternative to Gawn early next year won’t be an easy task for fantasy coaches, trying to save a trade and selecting him along with Grundy still could be an optimal play.
The decision on whether to select Gawn may come down to a salary squeeze, other positions may demand more coin to be spent.
