SuperCoach AFL: The Official Podcast · supercoach.com.au

DEFENDERS: Who to pick in SuperCoach 2026! | The Phantom's Lair

·47 min·3 clips

Connor Rozee and Nazai Wanganeen-Miller are already in more than 50% of SuperCoach teams.

1. SuperCoach AFL: The Official Podcast focuses on defenders for SuperCoach 2026 and frames the line as the first major positional analysis of the preseason. 2. Simeon Thomas Wilson, called Five Names, and Phantom lead the discussion because they are ranking defender options, asking role questions, and reacting to ownership data. 3. The episode asks which defenders should be targeted now versus later, with the core hook centered on top-six projections, ownership gaps, and mid-price value. 4. The hosts revisit last season's winning defensive structure and note Harry Sheezel, Lockie Whitfield, Max Holmes, Jaden Short, Zach Reid, Luke Trainor, Jackson Pryor, and James Leake in the starting and bench mix. 5. They use that team as a template to show that last year's winner relied on two elite premiums, one bargain premium, one mid-price pick, and several rookies. 6. Phantom names Nazai Wanganeen-Miller as the projected number one defender for 2026 and says his scoring should stay huge even with a permanent midfield role. 7. He puts Lockie Whitfield at number two, Jack Sinclair at number three, Connor Rozee at number four, Bailey Dale at number five, and Colby McKercher at number six. 8. The hosts then compare those rankings with ownership data, where Rozee is at 57%, Wanganeen-Miller at 56%, and Jordan Clark is the next highest premium at 10%. 9. That ownership gap leads into a debate about whether starting Naz is too expensive, especially with an early bye and a Round 2 meeting with GWS. 10. Simeon argues Rozee should be started because he is cheaper, has an early fixture, and is expected to play half-back with kick-in responsibility. 11. The episode also covers Josh Dacos as a possible midfielder-defender swing, with Phantom pointing to his 196 and 197-point games when he played more midfield minutes. 12. Phantom says Jordan Clark has settled around a 105 average and may not have much upside beyond that level, even if he remains a safe option. 13. Five Names flags Bailey Dale as a very low-owned pod and adds Lockie Ash, Jasper Fletcher, Archie Roberts, Trent Rivers, and Sam Banks as differential names. 14. The mid-price power rankings start with Colby McKercher at number one, followed by Tom McCarthy, Myles Bergman, Trent Rivers, Dan Houston, Sam Banks, Archie Roberts, and Nick Newman. 15. Bergman is discussed as a player who will play a lot of midfield for Port Adelaide, with Simeon saying he can still average around 100 and that the club may use him in an attacking role. 16. The hosts also note that Tom McCarthy had only half a season of AFL football but still averaged overnight, while West Coast reports describe his ball-winning and breakaway power as "insane." 17. The tone is conversational and argumentative, with the hosts interrupting each other, reading listener questions from Instagram and X, and pushing back on individual player calls. 18. The format mixes ranking lists, preseason role intel, ownership numbers, and short detours into draft strategy and the Code Sports preseason week. 19. Listeners who play SuperCoach Classic and want defender structure guidance will get the most out of this episode. 20. Listeners who want match recaps or non-SuperCoach AFL discussion can skip it.

As heard by us

A brisk defender preview that balances safe value with a few genuine pod cases.

Simeon Thomas Wilson returns with Five Names and The Chief for a defender preview that moves from premiums to mid-price options, bargains, traps, and rookies for Supercoach 2026.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

Build your 2026 defence with Clark, Dacos, Ash, and the trap list.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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