Damned if you do, damned if you don't

Oh, Jared Waerea-Hargreaves. We could have had something special together. I drafted you in the third round, ahead of the likes of Shaun Johnson, Aiden Tolman and Boyd Cordner, I thought it was the start of a long and fruitful partnership.

And now, just six weeks into the season, I’ve shipped you off to Brad Walter’s team in exchange for Gavin Cooper. Gavin Cooper! He was drafted in the eighth round! But his production has been excellent, I needed a back-rower, and with James Graham and Tinirau Arona on my roster, I simply didn’t have a spot for you any more.

This just goes to show, ladies and gentlemen, that you can’t be afraid to trade away your superstars. And of course, the moment our trade went through JWH had his highest-scoring game of the season. I can’t win.

The big three

Robbie Farah: The entire state of NSW, particularly the Tigers-supporting contingent, gasped collectively as after another masterful performance from the incumbent hooker was drawing to a close, he succumbed to a freakish elbow injury, which will rule him out at least until after the first State of Origin match. Heartbreak for Robbie, his teammates, his fans and fantasy owners. I Hope he recovers quickly.

Daniel Tupou: The lanky Roosters winger grabbed a try and ran all day, clocking over 240m. But, unfortunately for Roosters fans, they were on the wrong end of the scoreline. But if you’re a Tupou owner without a tricolour inclination, then this week was a profitable one for you.

David Mead:  Mead ran for just as many metres as Tupou, but in a winning effort for the Gold Coast on Friday night in the "local" derby against the Broncos, he also grabbed a try and, in fact , the stat lines of Mead and Tupou are eerily similar.

Thanks for nothing

Adam Reynolds: The horrific conditions out west were never going to favour playmakers in terms of Ultimate League points and, indeed, despite the Rabbitohs grinding out an 18-2 victory over Penrith, the win came on the back of excellent defence and powerful running by the forwards. Reynolds had very little to do and even had a rare conversion miss – though from the sidelines in that weather, I think we can give him a pass.

Pleasant surprises

David Shillington: A big day of metres for the Raiders veteran, and although it was another disappointing loss for Canberra, he can hold his head up high with 140m running, more than 20 tackles and a couple of offloads.

Chris Houston: This one was doubly surprising as Houston wasn’t even named to play – but he did, and scored very well. It wasn’t flashy, just a meat and potatoes day for the workhorse forward. But his very high tackle count and few surging runs were enough to net his owners a substantial score.