Dream Team 101

How does it work?

You select 22 actual AFL players for your personal squad.

Then, their real performances each round translate into points and a dream team score. Real statistics such as kicks, marks and goals have Dream Team value, and go into your players’ weekly totals.

Your team total is ranked against your mates’ team within your own league, and against everyone else playing in Toyota AFL Dream Team. Not only will you see who’s the best at picking a Dream Team in your league, you’ll see how you stack up against the rest of the world.

The basics

Team selection

Once registered you will need to select your Dream Team. Just like in the real-life season, the Toyota AFL Dream Team competition allows you to select your top 30 players, within their assigned positions. You have a salary cap of $7.7 million, and have to follow the player limitations in each position bracket. Most Dream Team experts spend a long time getting the perfect mix of expensive stars and cheaper players at the start of the season.

In Toyota AFL Dream Team, all players are available to all participants! If you have the salary cap and position space, you can draft whoever you want. But choose carefully as trading will be limited during the season. You simply need to select your starting line-up of 22 (7 backs, 6 centres, 2 rucks, 7 forwards), and name up to 3 emergencies in order to compete. Your starting 22 is automatically pre-arranged in the correct starting 22 format. All you need to do is substitute between the correct positions to ensure your best 22 are in the starting line-up.

This is your test of skill against hundreds of thousands of other participants - who can pick the best-performing 30-player Dream Team?

There are many options available when editing your team, which are as follows:

Substitutions

In between rounds, you can substitute players OUT of your starting 22 and then, select their replacement from the two Reserves in the matching position. If one of your forwards is injured or down on form, you can bench him and bring one of your substitutes on.

Trades

You can make unlimited trades on your initial team entry. Once the round starts, your team is locked and you can’t make any changes.

From the end of Round one onwards, you will then be able to trade up to two players on the conclusion of EACH ROUND, however, you will only have a total of 20 trades for the entire season. It is your decision as to when and how you use them but be sure to choose carefully.

Captain and Vice Captain

Your Captain scores double points. You can also select a Vice Captain - your Vice Captain will score double points ONLY if your Captain is a late withdrawal or doesn't play.

Emergencies

Select up to three emergencies. Emergencies from your Reserves List will replace up to three non-scoring players in your starting line-up.

Team & Player Value

Player pricing also plays a part in team selection and trading, and your overall team value. Each player's price will vary based on their most current performance from round to round. Players exceeding expectations will go up, boosting your team’s value. This extra money goes into your salary cap, so it actually helps you bring in more expensive players via trade too.

Leagues

In addition to the overall Competition, your team is also entered in a Private League, where you are ranked and compete against your mates, or a small group of other participants in the competition.

You can create or join, and be a part of up to three mini-Leagues with your single team entry. You can create and monitor your own league with friends, join a second league that you've been invited to by work colleagues, and play against family members independently!

Your League will have its own "fixture", where your team is matched up against another different team each round (just like the real AFL competition). You will score a Win and 4 points towards your League Ladder if you get more fantasy points than the team you have been matched up with and play against. Your League has its own Ladder, where you are ranked based on your win/loss record.

Everyone who is registered prior to Round 4 will play each other team in their league once (rounds 4-18). Rounds 19-22 will comprise of a top 8 finals series, based around the real AFL finals system, to find the overall League Champion. The bottom 8 will also play off for the League's minor premiership. All of the 3 leagues that you may choose to participate in will work in the same way and everyone will continue to score points for their team in the final 4 rounds and remain a part of the overall competition, irrespective of their position in the Leagues.

Universally, your team will also be ranked against everyone playing Toyota AFL Dream Team, as well as other participants in your state and club supported, to find the best Dream Teams in the Season 2009 competition.

Sub competitions

The first 130,000 players to join Toyota AFL Dream Team are automatically entered into the Eliminator. The Eliminator is a tennis tournament-style head to head draw, where you are pitted one-on-one against someone else each week in a knock out competition.

If your team scores more than your opponent, you progress to the next round. If you score less, you’re eliminated. There is an additional prize for the Eliminator winner.

Points scoring

Your Toyota AFL Dream Team is awarded points based on the real performances of the real players in each game, throughout the 22-round AFL home-and-away competition.

Points scored by your team are based on the performance of the starting line-up of your 22 players for each round, including up to 3 selected emergencies to replace any of you starting 22 in matching positions who do not play.

The selected players in your team score points as follows:

Kick: 3 points

Handball: 2 points

Mark: 3 points

Tackle: 4 points

Free Kick For: 1 point

Free Kick Against: -3 points

Hitout: 1 point

Goal: 6 points

Behind: 1 point

Fill out the form below to register!