If you have any questions on something not covered here, or just want some specific advice for your team, I will again be participating in the Zeebox Live Fantasy A-League chat on Friday at around 2pm Eastern, so click the link at the appropriate time and join the discussion! Otherwise you can use the comments section at the bottom of the page or contact me on Twitter. You can find the full list of squads for this round here.
Newcastle Jets v Melbourne Victory
Victory unavailable: Adrian Leijer (suspended), Nick Ansell, Jason Geria, Connor Pain, Scott Galloway (Young Socceroos), Pablo Contreras, Mark Milligan (injured)
Captaincy options: James Troisi, Archie Thompson, Mitch Nichols
With the goals having dried up for Adam Taggart and Andrew Hoole dropped from the starting XI, the Jets aren't offering much for fantasy coaches at the moment. Of course, both of these players are off to the AFC Under 22 Championships, so they should be traded out anyway. Probably the only remaining option at the Jets is Sam Gallaway - but I wouldn't be expecting many points from him with the Jets squad so depleted. Jacob Pepper is a cheaper player you can keep on your bench as cover - don't expect more than 2 points from him. Josh Mitchell will probably come in for the suspended Kew Jailens, but expect him to drop out of the squad next week. Nathan Burns will be absent next week as he flies to Korea to sort out his playing future; this may be the last game he plays for the Jets.
It's likely most coaches will be captaining either a Victory or Wanderers player this round, so for the Melbourne team your best bets are their attackers. Archie Thompson looks set to return this week, though it will be off the Bunnings, at least on Friday night. Gui Finkler finally started, however post game Muscat said he was always going to be unable to last 90 minutes, suggesting he may struggle for significant game time over the two games. Mitch Nichols has quickly become a major concern, with his substitution at half time and allegations from Muscat that the potential move to Japan is affecting his form. It'll be interesting to see who starts on Friday night; at least we will have this information before lock out, so we can make a judgement based on that. If not for this I would think Nichols would be a strong captaincy candidate. James Troisi may be the safest option, given he is flexible enough to play either at #10 or on a wing. With Adrian Leijer suspended (for two games), Nick Ansell, Jason Geria and Scott Galloway (plus Connor Pain) away with the Young Socceroos, expect a makeshift Victory defence for this game and the next - though Pablo Contreras is fit again and will start. Though included in the squad, Mark Milligan will miss the Friday night game with a knee problem.
Perth Glory v Melbourne Heart
Heart unavailable: Orlando Engelaar, Jonatan Germano (injured), Stefan Mauk, David Vrankovic (Young Socceroos)
Captaincy options: (None)
Perth are another team not offering us much at the moment. Cheap options Riley Woodcock and Matthew Davies may both soon find themselves under threat with news that Josh Risdon is playing again (for the youth team) and William Gallas surely not too further off. Gallas' return may see Jack Clisby move to left back, replacing Woodcock. Alternatively, Michael Thwaite could move into midfield; something else to monitor should you have Woodcock. Chris Harold has done well in the past two rounds, however do not expect this output to continue once Shane Smeltz is ready to start (he'll be coming off the bench this week), forcing Harold back to a wing, and possibly then back to the Bunnings when Ryo Nagai is fit. Sidnei has been underwhelming since his return from injury, which may have been a blessing in disguise for fantasy coaches.
While the Heart continue to be ordinary on the park, their players are not much use to fantasy coaches. Orlando Engelaar and Jonatan Germano are not far off returning, but I would not expect either to become fantasy options. Dylan Macallister returns from injury this week but I certainly would not be trading him in.
Brisbane Roar v Adelaide United
United unavailable: Cassio, Cirio, Fabio Ferreira, Jacob Melling (injured), John Hall, Ryan Kitto, Jake Barker-Daish (Young Socceroos), Antony Golec (travelling to China), Osama Malik (suspended)
Captaincy options: Besart Berisha?
The absence of Besart Berisha over the last two rounds has resulted in some interesting changes at Brisbane. Most noticeably, Thomas Broich has moved from left wing to false nine, resulting in his best returns of the season. The inclusion of Berisha however suggests Broich returns to the left wing this week, so expect his point production to return to its pre-Round 12 level. Berisha may be considered a captaincy option if we hear he's fit enough to start - he of course has form against Adelaide, including scoring both of Brisbane's goals at Coopers earlier this season. Should Dimi Petratos continue in place of Ivan Franjic on the right wing, he may be worth considering; still, I would not expect the same output of the previous two rounds. Franjic's move back to right back is a concern as it hurts his scoring potential, and therefore instead of being a must have out of position option, he's instead a massively overpriced full back. I'd at least hold onto him for this week though as there's a decent chance of a clean sheet against a depleted Adelaide. Hopefully he'll return to the right wing though. Kwame Yeboah has completed his move to Borussia Monchengladbach so if you still have him for some reason, he has to be traded. Shane Stefanutto finally returns this week from his ongoing hamstring issues.
For Adelaide, with so many players out - most of which weren't doing well anyway - there's not a lot on offer. Owners of Fabio Ferreira will be frustrated that he's injured yet again; really there aren't any other options in his price range with his level of scoring potential, so you may just have to hang onto him for now. Jeronimo will lead the line in absence of Bruce Djite, but of course he's never scored away from Adelaide in the A-League so I wouldn't be counting on him for points this week. New signing Ryan Griffiths looks set to play on the left wing; it remains to be seen how his arrival affects the playing time of Adelaide's other attackers - and how much he will be priced at in the game. The addition of Anthony Costa to the game gives coaches a bottom-priced forward at last, however don't expect him to see much game time at all. Really, if you are the sort of coach that plays short on the bench in order to get more cash on the field then he's something you'd look at, otherwise not. Jordan Elsey's loan to Kitchee is off but unless the Reds cop injuries in defence you wouldn't consider him, while Antony Golec is potentially on his way to China.
Western Sydney Wanderers v Sydney FC
Sydney unavailable: Hagi Gligor (Young Socceroos) Richard Garcia, Peter Triantis, Terry Antonis, Rhyan Grant, Joel Chianese (injured), Nick Carle, Tiago Calvano (suspended)
Captaincy options: Tomi Juric, Youssouf Hersi, Shinji Ono, Mark Bridge
The advantage the Victory captaincy options have over their Wanderers counterparts is that Muscat, unlike Popovich, does not employ a rotation policy. So while Tomi Juric - despite being totally ineffective last week - is a strong candidate, he may only play one of the two games. Therefore, there are probably many coaches out there who will avoid putting the armband on Wanderers players this round. Unfortunately, I can't say anything to put your mind at ease as I'm in the dark here as much as you are. Should the braver of you be willing to try a Wanderers player, in addition to Juric I think there may be points for Shinji Ono and Youssouf Hersi as well, and perhaps Mark Bridge, who has scored in both of his last two appearances (admittedly bracketing two absences). Jerome Polenz has only missed one game, however I'm not confident of a Wanderers clean sheet in either fixture plus he's still sitting on four yellow cards; one more against Sydney and he misses the Victory game.
Those who traded out Ranko Despotovic for Tomi Juric will be kicking themselves at the moment, with the striker again finding the net against Adelaide - that's four goals in seven games now. With Alessandro Del Piero's injury problems and ludicrous price tag he's probably Sydney's best option at the moment. Corey Gameiro scored off the bench but unless he is starting I would not be looking at him. Richard Garcia, who is injured this week, is massively overpriced for the amount of points you should expect from him. Sydney's defence - no clean sheet since Round 8 - is far too leaky to consider any of their defenders, with the two cheaper options in Marc Warren and Matt Jurman lacking any real job security.
Wellington Phoenix v Central Coast mariners
Mariners unavailable: Marcos Flores, Michael Neill, Tom Slater, Adam Kwasnik (injured)
Captaincy options: (none)
Despite injuries to key players, including losing Paul Ifill and Louis Fenton for the season, the Phoenix are absolutely flying at the moment - and no player more so than red-hot Stein Huysegems. With 29 points in the last 3 rounds, he is surely now on the radar of fantasy coaches. While I warn against chasing points (see Adam Taggart), should the Nix keep up their winning ways Huysegems will probably continue to notch goals - and they have three of the next four games at home. Andrew Durante may profit from some clean sheets during this time but he is awkwardly priced for a centre back, reliant on clean sheet points for fantasy relevancy. A better option may be cheapie Michael Boxall, should you think he will take the right back spot ahead of Leo Bertos. Jeremy Brockie is expected to start this game however you'd want him to find some form before bringing him in. Likewise, while Kenny Cunningham is cheap, his output leaves much to be desired.
The loss of Marcos Flores for the season and the departure of Michael McGlinchey to Japan leaves the Mariners with a problem at #10. The return of Tom Rogic is a dream option for the Mariners, but for the time being they may have to settle for Anthony Caceres. Should Caceres get and keep the playmaker role, he's definitely someone to consider given his cheap price and the dearth of midfielder options under $200k. For coaches looking for a Flores replacement, there are limited options - Troisi, Nichols (or Finkler), Broich being virtually your only real options at this point. Daniel McBreen's continued struggles in front of goal may mean it is time to trade him out, perhaps to Huysegems or Despotovic. Zac Anderson seems to be back in favour, though if you have Storm Roux and Liam Reddy already I wouldn't risk overloading on the Mariners in defence. At the time of writing this Bernie Ibini is yet to be added to the game but I would not be rushing to get him given he has not played much since moving to China. Nick Fitzgerald may play on the left of midfield with McGlinchey gone, however he is listed as a forward and therefore is a bad out of position option.