Keeper provides commissioner with different methods for mitigating the impact of the early and mid-season bye rounds. One of the most popular options for the early bye rounds is to "Apply Opening Round Points" (or "Opening Round Stats" in category leagues).
How does "Apply Opening Round Points" setting work
Firstly, you don't need to do anything until Round 2, 3 or 4 when players who played in Opening Round have their bye.
During these rounds, if you want to use a player's score from Opening Round, you just need to have moved the player in your lineup by the time the first game of the round starts.
Once the first game starts on Thursday night, these players will become locked and will be unable to be moved.
Just think of it like if they were playing in the Thursday night game - they have a score and therefore are locked into place, no matter what lockout settings you use.
Example:
- Isaac Heeney of the Swans played in Opening Round, and scored 104 points vs the Hawks.
- In Round 3 the Swans have their bye. You can choose whether you want to use his 104 points by including him in your starting lineup or emergencies, or leave him on the bench where he won't score.
- When the first game of Round 3 starts at 7:30pm Thu AEDT (ESS vs PTA), he will be locked in lineups can no longer be moved.
Do I need to lock in players before their Round 0 game starts?
No. Given the complexity this would cause when combined with trades and waivers, Keeper doesn't support locking of players ahead of time. Your league is welcome to implement your own agreements on this and Pro and Ultimate Leagues can edit match results to reflect things if required.
Can I captain a player and get double points?
Yes. Players from Opening Round are treated like any other player who play on Thursday night and their score will double if you've named them captain.
Does this mean I'll know stats & scores ahead of time?
Yes. You'll know how players in Opening Round performed and be able to choose whether or not to use these scores in your lineup. However they need to be locked in by the time the first game is played, reducing the ability to "double dip" after seeing if they outscored other players who play in that round.
Can I pick up a player who scores well in Opening Round and use their score?
Yes. If your league allows transactions you are free to trade or add players once their Opening Round stats are known.
To provide more equitable access to any free agents who score well during Opening Round, consider putting all players on waivers prior to Opening Round starting by going to Settings > Edit Waiver Dates.
What about Gold Coast and Essendon players?
The won't earn points as they didn't play in Opening Round. Suggestions have been made to use averages or some other measure, but unfortunately given the short turnaround time from the rescheduling of the opening round matches we haven't been able to build the required tools to account for them.
If this causes contention in your league, we suggest one of the following options:
- Opt for "Best X" scoring instead, or disable bye round adjustments completely.
- If you're in a Pro or Ultimate league, you can use the Edit Match Result tool to adjust team totals at the end of the round to manually factor in player averages, or any other values you'd like to use instead.
With more time next season we aim to have better options available should similar curveballs arise.