With salary caps set at $10 million and $13 million across the SuperCoach and AFL Fantasy platforms respectively, filling every position with a premium player is simply not possible.
In order to field a team that both keeps you under the cap and allows you to be competitive, selecting a smattering of rookies is essential.
Obviously, these young names won't make up the bulk of your weekly totals, but should you select the right ones early, your bottom line and your win/loss column will look healthy.
Although we don't know whether any of these names will break through the banner in round one just yet, their pre-season track work has piqued our interest.
These are each club's rated rookies that look primed for early debuts.
Geelong
Cooper Stephens (MID)
SuperCoach price - $123,900
AFL Fantasy price - $170,000
Although named as an emergency on a trio of occasions last season, Cooper Stephens has yet to debut for the hoops.
As an inside-midfielder, Stephens faces stiff opposition for an engine room slot. However, should Geelong's lengthy list of injuries continue to grow, there could well be a place for him yet.
Geelong: โCooper Stephens has done a lot of work with Joel & Cam Guthrie, in regards to his stoppage craft & looking to really improve that part of his game, which was already at a decent levelโ
Cats Assistant coach Matthew Knights#AFL | #AFLPreseason pic.twitter.com/BWFPiwGce2
— aflratings.com.au (@aflratings) February 18, 2021
Keep your finger on the pulse before scratching your trigger finger.
Nathan Krueger (FWD)
SuperCoach price - $123,900
AFL Fantasy price - $170,000
Krueger is another Cat that is yet to break through the banner, with injuries and form curtailing his progression.
The addition of Jeremy Cameron to the Cats forward line necessitated Krueger's commencement in training with the backline, but again like Stephens, it is ironically injuries that could see him crack a game.
At longer odds than most for a round one debut, focus on Geelong's official injury list before committing.
