Fantasy NRL: Time to bench Corey Parker

Parker sits in fifth place in our front row rankings but is playing fewer minutes of late and posted a season-low 39 points last week. Photo / Getty

After another exciting round of Dream Team Fantasy NRL, I'm going to keep things simple in my advice for the upcoming round of play.

Below is a list of players to target and bench, specifically for Round Eight, based on players' fantasy track record and their matchup this weekend.

Front Rowers

Target:
Aaron Woods, Tigers
Woods has quietly accumulated enough points to sit 12th overall in the front row rankings. He faces the Dragons this weekend who continue to leak masses of fantasy points each week.

Bench:
Corey Parker, Broncos
Yes, Parker sits in fifth place in our front row rankings but is playing fewer minutes of late and posted a season-low 39 points last week. He faces the points-suffocating Rabbitohs tonight and could struggle again.

Back rowers

Target:
Paul Gallen, Sharks
Gallen made a surprise return to the Sharks last weekend and immediately came up with an outstanding 50 points. Expect more of the same going forward but keep in mind he'll play State of Origin over the coming months.
Bench:
Anthony Watmough, Sea Eagles
Watmough left last week's fixture with an elbow injury that severely dampened his production for the round. He has been named this week but, with the injury cloud and Origin approaching, someone like James Graham could be a better short-term bet.

Halves

Target:
James Maloney, Roosters
As predicted in last week's column, Maloney came up with the goods against the Sharks. This week he plays another soft opponent in the Dragons - expect another big score.
Bench:
Ben Hunt, Broncos
This could be a risky prediction, as Hunt has been on a tear of late, but his side face the stingy Rabbitohs tonight and I'd expect him to score at the lower end of his season results - between 20-25 points.

Backs

Target:
Pat Richards, Tigers
Many Dream Team players are already on the Richards bandwagon but this week's matchup against the Titans looks to be a dream, so jump on board if you haven't already.
Bench:
Mitch Aubusson, Roosters
Despite racking up the second most points of any back so far in 2014, Aubusson is an unpredictable beast. The Roosters constantly shuffle his position between the back row, centre and wing and often start him from the bench. This week he's back to the bench and so his ceiling is certainly limited.

On the bench:
Kieran Foran, Sea Eagles (out 5 weeks)
Sam Thaiday, Broncos (out 1-2 weeks)
Ben Roberts, Storm (out 3 weeks)
Thomas Leuluia, Warriors (out indefinitely)
James Gavet, Tigers (out 5 weeks)
Mitch Aubusson, Roosters (benched)
Kyle Feldt, Cowboys (dropped)