NRL SuperCoach 2026: POD play of the week round 10

Point of difference selections (PODs), strategies and plays are a really important part of any SuperCoach player’s season, whether it is chasing H2H matchup wins or climbing the overall ranks week to week.

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It is always important not to make too many POD plays, but you will always need some to be successful — balance is key.

Each week when reviewing the NRL matches for a round, there will undoubtedly be POD players among the top dozen scores, as well as several POD plays such as benching a high-owned player or captaining someone few are considering.

This week, many players are scrambling to bring in Newcastle Knights players, with it looking likely that names like Dylan Lucas, Greg Marzhew and Kalyn Ponga will be out of POD territory by kickoff.

These are all strong options with the Knights boasting a favourable draw ahead, however it also presents an opportunity to find value elsewhere against the direction of the market.

This week’s POD play of the week is a CTW who will be lining up at fullback for the foreseeable future and is yet to explode… but looks ready to.

MORE: NRL SuperCoach 2026: POD play of the week round 8/9 and beyond

(Getty Images)

Tolutau Koula / CTW / $591,100 / 7% owned

When Koula was named to start at fullback for the Sea Eagles in place of injured superstar Tom Trbojevic, many jumped on expecting immediate success, but it hasn’t quite translated… yet.

His last two starts in the number one jersey have yielded solid but unspectacular scores of 53 and 63, though one of those matches came against a resurgent Panthers outfit in a low-scoring affair.

Despite what may seem like modest returns, there are two positives to take away from the past fortnight — the first being it prevented mass ownership of Koula from occurring, and the second being he managed those scores without crossing for a try.

Koula is a natural try-scorer and can go on prolonged scoring runs, with 2025 producing 17 tries, and during the final third of the season from Round 17 he had just one game without scoring a try.

A phenomenal strike rate he has shown throughout his career.

While much of his try-scoring success has come at centre and his sample size at fullback is limited, prior to this year he recorded scores of 79, 83, 125, 188 and 54 when starting at fullback throughout his career.

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That isn’t a huge sample, but it still equates to an average of 105.8 SuperCoach points per game when named at fullback prior to 2026, and more importantly shows he has a massive ceiling, highlighted by a huge 188-point performance.

Price and draw may be the two biggest factors when considering Koula as a POD option this week, with a sub-$600k price point presenting strong value and his upcoming fixtures looking even better.

This week he faces a heavily depleted Broncos side at home at 4 Pines Park, where Manly traditionally perform much better, and against a team that has shown a tendency to concede points to opposition fullbacks.

While Koula then travels to face the Tigers, they are coming off a heavy loss and dealing with key injuries, before he hits one of the standout matchups of the year the following round.

In Round 12, with half the league on a bye due to the Origin period starting, it becomes crucial to target the highest-scoring games — and Manly host the struggling Titans at 4 Pines.

It’s an ideal scenario, with Koula at home, in a major bye round, and up against one of the most favourable matchups for anyone, particularly with the Titans likely to be impacted by some Origin selections.

While Koula’s draw is a major focus over the next three weeks, he also covers the mini major bye round in Round 14 and only has one bye between now and Round 22 — exceptional coverage through the Origin period.

Not many will be targeting Koula this week, and with his ownership remaining firmly in POD territory, combined with his favourable draw and discounted price, he shapes as one of the more astute purchases for the upcoming period and beyond.

If you believe a try-scoring run is coming — and it usually does at some point — there may be no better time to jump on the flying Sea Eagle than right now.

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