Fan Team Owners Get Chance To Make First Major Tactical Decision

Fan Team Owners are facing up to the reality of their new found responsibility with the first major tactical decision of their managerial careers as they vote on who to retain and who to jettison from the SLT Cheetahs.

With the all-important draft just around the corner in August, the heat is on to take pole position in the race to secure a winning team for the 2022 Championship Series.

Fan Team Owners can take part in the opening round of draft decisions now as they vote on whether to retain any athletes from the 2021 edition of the SLT Cheetahs.

Each team has the option to retain one male and one female athlete. If they choose not to retain then they get a First Pick option ahead of the full draft.

In the men’s field the decision is likely to be Jonny Brownlee or not. With Alex Yee, Hayden Wilde and Vincent Luis surely being retained elsewhere, and Brownlee being a legend of the sport who continues to perform at the very highest level, surely it’s a no-brainer. But then maybe some Fan Team Owners would prefer a gamble on an up and coming prospect.

The women’s is more complicated, but here, too, there is sound logic in retaining. In this case it would be Leonie Periault given she is the only athlete currently announced that raced for the Cheetahs last year.

The French star is a remarkably consistent performer. Though she has not won a Super League race, she has been there or thereabouts so often. Last year she was a third round draft pick – a sign of just how underrated she is – and yet finished seventh in the overall standings, ahead of Cassandre Beaugrand.

Another thing to be taken into consideration is just who else is available. Giving up Periault may seem a great idea, but when you consider the other athletes likely to be retained it could backfire in fairly spectacular fashion. Imagine giving her up to another team and getting somebody who performs worse.

It’s tough, but these are the kind of decisions Team Owners have to take.