Ask any fantasy coach to list some of their favourite sights where they glance at their teams, a considerable amount will note their bona fide stars performing when it counts – and that is just what unfolded during Sunday's proceedings. Two individual performers in Luke Hodge and Joel Selwood, who are league renowned for their toughness and leadership, stood head and shoulders above their peers and delivered a performance for Brownlow books.

Hodge collected 44 disposals – a game high and just one short of the all-time Hawthorn disposal record – along with two goals and seven marks. His fantasy score of 159 has established him as the prominent Ultimate Footy defender. Selwood, on the other hand, was the characteristic Selwood against the Suns. He was the difference that saw his Cats secure their first win, gathering 38 disposals and six tackles on his way to 137 fantasy points.

If you owned either of these champions, chances are your fantasy match-up went in your favour as a result of Sunday's proceedings.

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While Sunday bore fruit for some Ultimate Footy coaches, it wasn't all rosy down at Simonds Stadium. Former fantasy superstar and Brownlow medallist Jimmy Bartel had his afternoon end prematurely, after injuring his knee in a collision with stand-in Gold Coast captain Michael Rischitelli. Bartel immediately left the field and did not return, stranded on just 8 fantasy points. Savvy Ultimate Footy coaches may have seen the activation of their emergency player under the revised rules for 2015, but with Bartel set to spend a month on the sidelines, it's a bitter pill to swallow.

Earlier on the weekend a fellow fantasy forward in Jack Ziebell also left the game during the first quarter on 7 fantasy points. He was taken to hospital with a suspected bruised lung, and while he's subsequently been discharged, he remains a long shot to play in round four.

Injuries are part and parcel of this game, but it's hard to recover from two fantasy stars going down early.

Ridiculous

The coming of age of Fremantle's Lachie Neale was the arguably the highlight of round three. A demolition derby was lopsided from the outset and the perfect stage for Neale to announce himself as an elite fantasy midfielder. Now in his fourth year, Neale was declared best on field after he amassed 42 disposals, collecting his second Ross Glendenning Medal – 162 fantasy points, the highest score of the round, was the end result. Neale reached 58 by quarter-time, and 99 by the main break. Despite his small stature, Neale can seamlessly hold his own against the bigger bodies in the Fremantle engine room. Neale is the perfect candidate for a breakout and an induction in the league's pre-eminent fantasy stars, and his monstrous 162 is the ideal initiation.

Regrettable

Everyone in the footy landscape has a fervent admiration of 'The Bont', however after he was announced as a late withdrawal before the Bulldogs' game, fantasy coaches everywhere were left in dire straits, unable to resurrect the misfortune.

In just his second season, Bontempelli had entered 2015 as one of the most hyped players in the league, a standing that was fully warranted in the opening two rounds of the season. Recording fantasy scores of 104 and 133 already this year, Bontempelli was one of the best-averaging forwards in Ultimate Footy, and was heading to the fantasy-friendly spaces of Aurora Stadium. Calf soreness was the cause of his omission, a Regrettable feeling for many coaches.

Article supplied by Footy Prophet – football analysis with a fantasy focus. Footy Prophet is fantasy football.