AFL DFS: A Beginner's Guide to Aussie Rules Football

by DailyFantasyRankings Last Updated 2020-07-03 13:20:09

It’s a game that changes the rules more times than Lady Gaga’s wardrobe in concert and can be described as a cross between Soccer, Lacrosse, Gaelic Football and a little bit of American Football. Throw in terms such as Ruck, Footy, Incorrect Disposal and Banana then you are watching the unique sport of Australian Rules Football. It is Australia’s favourite sport and what is better yet…

It is a pretty awesome fantasy game!

The game is referred to as the AFL (Australian Football League) and the league consists of 18 league teams right across Australia. The league is now a 17 round competition (due to the pandemic) and 4 weeks of finals to determine a premiership team. The league used to be called the VFL (Victorian Football League) with 10 Melbourne based teams, but league expansion into other Australian cities such as Perth, Adelaide, Sydney and Brisbane created a national game. In each round of the AFL there are 9 games played per ‘round’ and they are played on 4 days of the week (Thursday-Sunday).

So what is the object of the game?

OK, let’s start with a visual presentation from the AFL. Watch the video below, it is a perfect introduction to the game.

Know the Positions

Ruckman

The Ruckman is your tallest player in your team (like the Center in Basketball) whose role is to win ‘ruck’ contests against the opposition Ruckman. Ruck contests occur at the center ‘ball-up’ (start of quarters and restarts of goals), when a ‘ball-up’ occurs in general play (the play stops due to the ball not be available to “play-on”) and at a boundary throw-in when the ball crosses the boundary line (the ball is “thrown-in” by the Boundary Umpire). Teams traditionally play just the 1 Ruckman in the team but teams can also call upon taller players in both defense and forward to play the role as “back-up ruckman” at Ruck contests. Ruckman have become athletic players that are now involved in midfield play and become one of the most important players on the team.

Defenders

As the name suggests, these players are defending the goal from the opposition by playing on an opposition forward. These players are trying to force the ball away from the goal by Marking the ball, tackling the opposition, spoiling kicks and finding midfielders up the field when in possession of the ball. The Key-Defenders are the last members of the team guarding the goal by essentially “sticking” next to their Key-Forward opponent. Whereas “loose defenders” are guarding space and predicting where the ball will enter into their opposition’s forward line. Just like Defenders in Football (Soccer) these players are not your superstars of the team but essential for a team’s success.

Midfielders

These players are the engine room for your team. With the ball going from one end to another and back again, these players possess the ball in high numbers. If the midfielders possess the ball then their objective is to find another midfielder or look to a forward towards goal. An “inside midfielder” is a player that is closer to the ball who is looking to dispossess the ball from the opposition via tackling or stealing passes. Whereas an “outsider midfielder” is looking to create space from their opponent by being the next player in a chain of possession. These players possess speed as they tend to run with the ball rather than kicking at their first opportunity. The game’s elite athletes play in the midfield and receive recognition from supporters and media alike.

Forwards

Forwards come in different sizes to combat the nature of opposition defence and game style. Key-Forwards are tall and athletic who mark the high ball and kick goals from all angles. Underneath the key-forwards are “crumbing” forwards who are smaller in size but quick and invasive to avoid tackling and kicking goals. Today you will find midfielders within the forward line to help the teams attack and rotate players through the middle of the ground.

Dean is joined by Andrew Jeffreys of the Daily Fantasy Rankings Podcast to break down the new Australian Football League for DFS contests! Check out their chat in our video below

So How Does AFL Fantasy Scoring Work?

Scoring

Goal: +6pts
Tackle: +4pts
Kick: +3pts
Mark: +3pts
Handball: +2pts
Hit Out: +1pt
Free Kick For: +1pt
Free Kick Against: -3pts

Lineup Requirements

Lineups will consist of 9 players. In single game slates, you must have at least 1 player from each team. In multi-game slates, a maximum of 5 players is allowed from one team.

The 9 roster positions are:

Forward – x2
Midfielder – x4
Defender – x2
Ruckman – x1

You will notice in player selection that certain players are given dual position roles as these players can play on different areas of the ground. These players can be useful for lineup construction due to their flexibility.

To elaborate on some scoring terms – A ‘Hit Out’ is awarded to the player (Ruckman) who wins the tap of the football in a ruck contest. Think of it as who won the opening tip in a basketball game and you receive a fantasy point. On average a Ruckman will win 30-35 Hit Outs per game. You will receive one point for a Free Kick For (the umpire awards a player a Free Kick if the other team infringes on a rule or you are ‘holding the ball’) and you lose 3 points if your player gives away a Free Kick. On average a team receives/gives away 18 Free Kicks a Game.

Team Lists

AFL Daily Fantasy is very similar to PGA and in some circumstances similar to League of Legends as we have received final team lists at 24 hours prior to the game. You could “almost” set and forget your lineups. I say almost however, as teams finalize their starting teams at 1 hour before the game. A small change can occur due to fitness of a player and a replacement player (called an emergency) can take the player’s place.

The injury reporting in the AFL is sound with a variety of beat reporting and information provided by clubs on the status of their players. However, the league does not mandate an injury reporting system similar to the NBA and NFL. Due to the nature of the game, if a player does have an injury it is most likely a player will not be named in the initial team list.

Weather Conditions

All grounds apart from one are outdoors and can be influenced by the weather. Inclement weather such as rain makes the ball harder to control which leads to lower scoreboards but higher tackling and ruck contests. If the game is wet or has the potential for rain during the game, look for your teams best tacklers as tackling will increase. Avoid Key forwards as marking a wet footy is difficult and leads to less opportunity to score. Wind can give teams an advantage if they have the wind behind their backs kicking towards goal. Kicking the ball into the wind is much harder and this leads to condensed scoring towards one end of the ground. There is one ground however that does not have these weather factors and that is Marvel Stadium in Melbourne. The ground has a retractable roof and is shut for the majority of matches.

Vegas Odds

Vegas provides some clues in terms of teams expectation of performance, especially in Head to Head, total points and spread markets. Like all other sports, expectation does not equal reality and upsets do occur in the league. However, teams that win games more often than not, gain more possessions and therefore gain more fantasy points. There are exceptions to the rule where in close scoring games a team can score more fantasy points in a loss.

Interchange

Having a player rostered on the interchange is not an issue. A team has 90 interchanges per game to rotate through and players are constantly on and off the ground, especially in the midfield. One stat to keep an eye on is TOG% (Time on the ground). Similar to time on the court in the NBA, you only score points if you are on the field. Inexperienced players and backup Ruckman do experience lower TOG% in comparison to their teammates. However with the change in amount of game time in 2020 (shorter 16 minute quarters from 20 minutes), the interchanges are more quicker than ever and players are spending more time on the ground.

Lineup Construction

With 44 players per game to choose from, there are no issues with duplication for teams, especially in multi game slates. However the player pool in the Ruck position is very narrow. Most fantasy players make a decision in this position 1st as this will dictate the amount of salary required in the remaining positions. Whilst this is not a hard or fast rule, investing in premium players in the midfield is a sound strategy in AFL DFS. Barring injury, or on a losing team or through a lack of form, the best players from each team also score the most fantasy points. Injuries to premium players open up value just like any other fantasy game.