Super Rugby Statistics After Week 3

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Defence patterns in Super Rugby this year are more aggressive than in 2010, putting more pressure on attackers.  As a result, attacking opportunities are harder to find.

This means that teams have to be more patient in attack, and that having a good counter-attack is even more important. Counter-attack and turnover ball present some of the best attacking opportunities.

One of the interesting trends so far in Super Rugby is that we’re seeing teams win games despite facing a large deficit in possession.

In Round 1 the Bulls beat the Lions with only 39 per cent of time in possession and 47 rucks and mauls, compared to 99 for the Lions.

In Round 2, the Rebels beat the Brumbies with only 35 per cent of time in possession and only 38 rucks and mauls, compared to 127 for the Brumbies.  The Waratahs also beat the Reds with only 41 per cent of time in possession and only 61 rucks and mauls, compared to 99 for the Reds.

This weekend the Blues, Sharks and Reds all won their games despite significant deficits in possession. The Blues only had 38 per cent time in possession and had 51 rucks and mauls, compared to 100 for the Lions; the Sharks and Force shared the time in possession but the Sharks had only 59 rucks and mauls compared to 87 for the Force; the Reds had only 30 per cent of the time in possession and only 40 rucks and mauls, compared to 123 for the Brumbies.

The following table shows ruck and maul statistics for each team after Round 3.  There is no correlation between the results in the win/loss column for the two highest ranked teams in terms of the amount of ball they are playing with, the Brumbies and the Lions. While they have both been involved in close games, with the amount of ball the Brumbies have had, their 1 from 3 record shows how ineffective their attack is at the moment.

The following tables show the defence statistics after Round 3 for all teams. On average, teams had to make 149 tackles per game in 2010, and after three rounds in 2011 the average is 148 tackles per game — except for the Brumbies, who are averaging 93 tackles per game, while the three teams they’ve faced have had to make an average of 220 tackles per game against the Brumbies!