the rugby championship 2016 statistical report · only lost two matches, against south africa in...

THE RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP 2016 STATISTICAL REPORT WORLD RUGBYTM GAME ANALYSIS


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RESULTS AND STANDINGS

P = Played W = Won D = Draw L = Lost PF = Points For PA = Points Against

PD = Points Difference TB = Try Bonus For LB = Losing Bonus PTS = Points

P W D L PF PA PD TB LB PTS

New Zealand 6 6 0 0 262 84 +178 6 0 30

Australia 6 3 0 3 119 147 −28 1 0 13

South Africa 6 2 0 4 117 180 −63 0 2 10

Argentina 6 1 0 5 129 216 −87 0 1 5

Australia 8-42 New Zealand

South Africa 30-23 Argentina

New Zealand 29-9 Australia

Argentina 26-24 South Africa

New Zealand 57-22 Argentina

Australia 23-17 South Africa

New Zealand 41-13 South Africa

Australia 36-20 Argentina

South Africa 18-10 Australia

Argentina 17-36 New Zealand

South Africa 15-57 New Zealand

Argentina 21-33 Australia

RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP 2016 STATISTICAL REPORT WORLD RUGBYTM GAME ANALYSIS

3

COMMENTARY

In the years when the four teams in The Rugby Championship play each other twice, the maximum number of

table points that can be obtained by a team is 30. This demands six wins in six matches and a try bonus point

in each one. Such an exceptional performance was achieved by New Zealand this year, the extent of which

meant that the second placed team – Australia – finished 17 points behind, with the winner of the Championship

being decided after the fourth of six rounds. Since The Rugby Championship began in 2012, New Zealand have

only lost two matches, against South Africa in 2014 and Australia in 2015. The following table shows the

Championship winner and the win percentage since 2012.

This overwhelming domination of the 2016 Championship was achieved against teams ranking third, fourth and

ninth in the World Rugby Rankings. New Zealand scored 38 tries, and the fewest scored in any game was four.

In their six matches they scored four, five, six, six, eight and nine tries respectively.

Such a performance was not only a confirmation of their position as the world’s number one ranked team but a

reflection of the extent of their superiority over all other teams.

At the conclusion of The Rugby Championship, they had won their last 17 matches – equalling the

tier one team record and one shy of Lithuania’s record of 18 consecutive test victories.

Of their last 70 matches, they had won 65, drawing two and losing just three.

CHAMPIONSHIP WINNER WIN %

2012

New Zealand 6/6 = 100%

2013


2014


2015

Australia 3/3 = 100%

2016




NEW ZEALAND

Some of the reasons for New Zealand’s success over the years, if not decades, can be found from the

analysis of this year’s Championship. It showed that they had the:

a) Best attack

They scored 38 tries, which was more than the other three teams put together

The top five try scorers in the tournament were all New Zealand players

They scored six times more tries than penalty goals against an overall international ratio of one

to one

In each match they scored four or more tries, averaging over six per game

They won 50 per cent of their matches by more than 31 points

The closest margin was 19 points

b) Best defence

They conceded just five tries in their six matches, with no tries conceded in two

Australia managed to score just one try in two games against them – a similar try count to South

Africa

It took their opponents over 19 minutes of possession to score a try. New Zealand scored a try

every two minutes 42 seconds

They did not concede a single try from open play possession – all five conceded tries came

from the set pieces of lineout (four) and scrum (one)

Their opponents saw relatively little activity inside New Zealand’s 22 metre line – in six matches

New Zealand had to defend a total of 92 ruck/mauls within their own 22m. South Africa had to

defend 62 per cent more and Australia 42 per cent more.

c) Best set piece

They won 91 per cent of their throw-ins

They won more lineout steals than any other team

They had the most successful scrum, winning 93 per cent of their put-ins

They conceded the fewest penalties on their own scrum and had the least penalised scrum


5

This combination of best attack, defence, and set piece, allied to the requirement that each one of their

players possesses all of rugby’s core skills, were illustrated in how effective and capable New Zealand were

in:

Scoring from every source of possession – Ten tries came from lineouts, 10 from opponents’

kicks, eight from turnovers, six from scrums, two from restarts and two from tap penalties

Scoring from every part of the pitch – They scored more tries from possession gained inside

their own half than the other three teams combined. They also scored more tries from

possession gained inside their opponents’ 22 than the other three teams combined

Such success also reflects an approach to the game that is based on pace and effective distribution

They passed at a higher rate than any other team

Their forwards made a higher proportion of the team’s passes than any other team’s

Their front row were more likely to pass the ball than any other team’s front row, as were their

locks and back rows

They rucked at a higher rate than any other team

There were, however, certain aspects of the game which were less positive:

They had the least success in kicks at goal

They conceded proportionately more penalties than their opponents

Only one team received more yellow cards

Nevertheless, when a successful overall game plan produces more than six tries per game and restricts the

opposition to less than one, this had little impact and was no impediment to a team whose performances once

again confirmed their position as the world’s leading rugby nation.

The other three teams in the Championship felt the brunt of New Zealand’s domination. Some of their

performance data is shown on the following page and further details of their individual performances are shown

in the following detailed report.



AUSTRALIA – won 50 per cent of their matches

Alongside New Zealand, they were the only team to score more tries than penalty goals

They had the second-best defence

Most of their tries came from open play possession, with no tries scored from scrums

Overall, their opponents obtained 30 per cent more possession. They only had more possession

in the two matches against South Africa

Two thirds of their restarts were contestable.

Their lineout was the least successful – they conceded the most steals while winning the least

They had the least successful scrum despite winning the most scrum penalties since they

conceded three turnovers and five penalties/free-kicks

Almost 50 per cent of their scrums ended in a penalty or free-kick

They conceded the most penalties/free-kicks averaging 13 per match

They received the most yellow cards (six)

SOUTH AFRICA – won two of their six matches

They scored the fewest number of tries (eight). In two of matches they did not score a try

They attempted more penalty goals than any other team

They were the only team to drop goals

Seventy per cent of restarts were kicked long

Fifty per cent of tries conceded started from inside their opposition’s own half

Two thirds of their passing movements contained only one pass

Their front row and second row were the least likely to pass the ball

They were the highest kicking team

ARGENTINA – won one match

They had the most successful kick at goal rate

They obtained more possession than their opponents in all six matches

They made more rucks than any other team but had the lowest rucking rate

They created the fewest rucks inside their opponents’ 22m

They kicked less than any other team but conceded seven tries from kick returns

They were the most successful in recovering contestable restarts

On opponents’ scrums they won the most penalties but also conceded the most

They were the least penalised team


7

OVERALL SUMMARY

THE RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP

2016 12 matches


2015 6 matches


2014 12 matches


2013 12 matches

SCORING

AVG. POINTS PER MATCH 52 50 43 52

AVG. TRIES PER MATCH 5.8 5.5 4.2 5.5

TRY SCORING RATE 5m 31 6m 15 8m 00 6m 00

AVG. PENALTY GOALS PER MATCH 4.6 4.5 5.3 5.5

KICK SUCCESS % 72% 78% 70% 74%

TOTAL DROP GOALS 2 1 3 -

TRY SCORING

% OF TRIES FROM OWN HALF 34% 15% 38% 33%

% OF TRIES FROM INSIDE OPP 22M 39% 46% 34% 43%

% OF TRIES FROM LINEOUT 33% 43% 48% 44%

% OF TRIES FROM SCRUM 14% 18% 18% 8%

% OF TRIES FROM TURNOVER 20% 12% 18% 21%

% OF TRIES FROM KICKS 21% 6% 8% 18%

GENERAL PLAY

AVG. BALL IN PLAY PER MATCH 40% 43% 42% 40%

AVG. PASSES PER MATCH 277 305 272 235

AVG. RUCK/MAULS PER MATCH 156 170 166 146

RUCK/MAUL SUCCESS 93% 94% 94% 93%

AVG. KICKS PER MATCH 40 35 44 47

SET PIECE

AVG. LINEOUTS PER MATCH 25 22 26 28

LINEOUT SUCCESS 88% 90% 85% 84%

CONTESTED LINEOUTS 49% 51% 52% 56%

AVG. SCRUMS PER MATCH 14 14 12 14

SCRUM SUCCESS 88% 88% 85% 80%

SCRUM BALL OUT 67% 72% 62% 60%

CONTESTABLE 50M RESTART SUCCESS

22% 18% 20% 33%

DISCIPLINE

AVG. PKS/FKS PER MATCH 23 24 23 22

TOTAL CARDS 15 6 + 0 8 + 0 19 +1

TOTAL TMO REFERRALS 11 31 34



TEAM SUMMARY

ARGENTINA

AUSTRALIA

NEW ZEALAND

SOUTH AFRICA

SCORING 2016 2015 2016 2015 2016 2015 2016 2015

TOTAL POINTS SCORED 22 64 20 85 44 85 20 65

TOTAL POINTS CONCEDED 36 98 25 48 14 65 30 88

TOTAL TRIES SCORED 11 6 13 10 38 10 8 7

TOTAL TRIES CONCEDED 27 12 16 4 5 7 22 10

TRY SCORING RATE 10m 14 7m 49 6m 43 5m 53 2m 42 4m 48 10m 30 7m 28

TRY CONCEDING RATE 2m 54 4m 00 7m 08 12m 57 19m 02 7m 51 4m 30 5m 08

TOTAL PENTY GOALS SCORED 18 7 12 7 6 7 19 6

TOTAL PEN GOALS CONCEDED 13 8 13 8 17 6 12 5

POINTS FROM TRIES 43% 47% 55% 59% 73% 59% 34% 54%

KICKS AT GOAL SUCCESS 82% 75% 72% 64% 66% 67% 72% 80%

DROP GOAL SUCCESS RATE 0 / 2 1 of 4 0 / 0 - 0 / 0 - 2 / 4 -

GENERAL PLAY

AVG. POSSESSION 18m 46 15m 39 14m 33 19m 36 17m 06 16m 03 14m 00 17m 26

AVG. PASSES 147 131 119 172 180 171 106 137

AVG. RUCK/MAULS 95 75 71 102 82 75 63 86

RUCK/MAUL RETENTION 93% 93% 90% 94% 93% 92% 93% 95%

AVG. KICKS 24 15 19 18 19 18 17 18

SET PIECE

OWN LINEOUT SUCCESS 88% 92% 79% 87% 93% 100% 91% 86%

OWN SCRUM SUCCESS 88% 80% 81% 94% 93% 96% 90% 81%

OWN CONTESTABLE 50M RESTART SUCCESS

1 in 2.9 3 in 18 1 in 5.5 1 in 2 1 in 11 2 in 9 1 in 5.5 1 in 11

DISCIPLINE

PENALTIES & F/KS FOR 54% 45% 44% 50% 49% 49% 53% 57%

PENALTIES & F/KS AGAINST 46% 55% 56% 50% 51% 51% 47% 43%

YELLOW/RED CARDS 2 1 6 3 4 2 3 0


9

MATCH FACTS

SCORING

The winning team scored the most tries in nine or 75 per cent of matches

The winning team won with less possession in seven matches

There were only two matches when the winning team was behind at half-time

There was only four matches which had a scoring margin of 10 points or fewer

There was a try every five minutes 31 seconds with 56 per cent of points coming from tries

Thirty-four per cent of tries came from within the scoring team’s own half

Fifty four per-cent of tries contained two or fewer rucks and mauls

Forty-two per centof tries contained three or fewer passes

Sixty-nine per cent of tries were scored by backs

Conversion success was 76 per cent and penalty goal success was 70 per cent

OPEN PLAY

Ball in play time averaged 40 per cent or 32min 13secs

The passing rate was one pass every 7.0 seconds

One in five passing movements contained three or more passes

Eighteen per cent of all passes were made by forwards

The rucking rate was one ruck/maul every 12 seconds

The ruck retention rate was 93 per cent

The kicking rate was one every 49 seconds

SET PIECE

Lineout success rate was 88 per cent

The ball was stolen on 30 occasions

Scrum success rate was 88 per cent

There were four turnovers in 168 scrums

Forty-six per cent of restarts were contestable

DISCIPLINE

Seventy-two per cent of penalties/free-kicks went against defending team

Thirty-nine per cent of penalties were awarded at the tackle/ruck

There were 15 yellow cards, including five for dangerous charging and three for dangerous

tackles



1. SCORING

IMPACT OF TRIES AND PENALTY GOALS ON MATCH RESULTS

The winning team scored the most tries in nine or 75 per cent of matches.

In two matches the tries were equal (Australia v South Africa and Argentina v South Africa) and in one

match the winning team scored fewer tries (South Africa v Australia).

TRIES PER TEAM PER MATCH The following table shows the total number of tries scored per team per match. It can be seen that on three

occasions a team did not score a try in a match and on eight occasions a team scored four or more tries.

HALF-TIME LEADERS There were two matches when the winning team was losing at half-time.

WON > TRIES

WON = TRIES

WON <

TRIES

DRAW

LOST > TRIES

LOST = TRIES

LOST < TRIES

NZL 6 - - - - - -

AUS 2 1 - - 1 - 2

RSA 1 - 1 - - 2 2

ARG - 1 - - - - 5

0 TRIES 1 TRY 2 TRIES 3 TRIES 4+ TRIES

NZL - - - - 6

AUS 1 3 - - 2

RSA 2 2 1 1 -

ARG - 1 5 - -

HALF-TIME SCORE FULL-TIME SCORE

South Africa 10-13 Argentina South Africa 30-23 Argentina

Australia 13-14 South Africa Australia 23-17 South Africa


11

SCORING MARGINS The following table shows that there were four matches with a margin of 10 points or fewer.

The following table shows the winning and losing margins for each team.

POINTS SCORING AND CONCEDING The following table shows a breakdown of all points scored.

The following table shows the average points scored and conceded per team.

POINTS DIFFERENCE

NO OF MATCHES

CUMULATIVE

Draw - 0 drawn

1 – 5 1 1 was 5 points or less

6 – 10 3 4 were 10 points or less



31+ 3 3 were over 31 points

LOST BY

31 +

LOST BY

21 - 30

LOST BY

11 - 20

LOST BY

1 - 10 DRAW

WON BY

1 - 10

WON BY

11 - 20

WON BY

21 - 30

WON BY

31 +

NZL - - - - - - 2 1 3

AUS 1 - 1 1 - 1 2 - -

RSA 1 1 - 2 - 2 - - -

ARG 1 - 3 1 - 1 - - -

SCORING

TOTAL AVG % OF TOTAL

POINTS

POINTS 627 52

TRIES 70 5.8 56%

CONVERSIONS 53 4.4 17%

PENALTY GOALS 55 4.6 26%

DROP GOALS 2 0.2 1%

POINTS SCORED

POINTS CONCEDED

TOTAL AVG TOTAL AVG

NZL 262 44 84 14

ARG 129 22 216 36

AUS 119 20 147 25

RSA 117 20 180 30



The following tables show how points were scored by each team.

The following tables show how points were conceded by each team.

TIMING OF SCORES – TRIES AND PENALTY GOALS

The following table shows when tries and penalty goals were scored.

The following tables show the number of tries and penalty goals scored and conceded per half per team.

TRIES SCORED

PGS SCORED

DGS SCORED

% POINTS TRIES

% POINTS KICKS

TRIES : PK SCORED

NZL 38 6 - 73% 27% 1 : 0.2

AUS 13 12 - 55% 45% 1 : 0.9

ARG 11 18 - 43% 57% 1 : 1.6

RSA 8 19 2 34% 66% 1 : 2.4

TRIES

CONCEDED PGs

CONCEDED DGs

CONCEDED % POINTS

TRIES % POINTS

KICKS TRIES : PK CONCEDED

NZL 5 17 - 30% 70% 1 : 3.4

AUS 16 13 2 54% 46% 1 : 0.8

RSA 22 12 - 61% 39% 1 : 0.5

ARG 27 13 - 63% 37% 1 : 0.5

TRIES % PENALTY GOALS %

FIRST HALF 32 46% 36 54%

SECOND HALF 38 67% 19 33%

TRIES

SCORED TRIES

CONCEDED

PENALTY GOALS

SCORED

PENALTY GOALS

CONCEDED

1ST

HALF 2ND

HALF 1ST

HALF 2ND

HALF 1ST

HALF 2ND

HALF 1ST

HALF 2ND

HALF

NZL 17 21 2 3

ARG 12 6 6 7

AUS 7 6 9 7

AUS 9 3 9 4

ARG 4 7 13 14

RSA 9 10 8 4

RSA 4 4 8 14

NZL 6 - 13 4


13

RATE OF TRY SCORING / TRY CONCEDING The following tables show the rate of try scoring and try conceding. This is a measure of each team’s success

in converting possession into tries and preventing their opponents converting possession into tries. Overall,

there were 70 tries scored, giving a rate of one try every five minutes 31 seconds of ball in play.

The following tables show the rate of try scoring and conceding for each team.

SOURCE OF TRIES The following table shows the possession source of tries.

The following table shows the source of tries scored and conceded by each team.

TRY SCORING RATE

TRY CONCEDING RATE

NZL One every 2m 42s

NZL One every 19m 02s

AUS One every 6m 43s

AUS One every 7m 08s

ARG One every 10m 14s

RSA One every 4m 30s

RSA One every 10m 30s

ARG One every 2m 54s

TRY SOURCE

TOTAL %

LINEOUT 23 33%

OPPONENTS KICK 15 21%

TURNOVER/HANDLING ERROR 14 20%

SCRUM 10 14%

RESTART 5 7%

PENALTY/FREE-KICK 3 4%

LINEOUT SCRUM TURNOVER KICK RESTART PEN & FK TOTAL TRIES

OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP

NZL 10 4 6 1 8 - 10 - 2 - 2 - 38 5

AUS 6 7 - 1 4 4 3 2 - 1 - 1 13 16

ARG 4 7 3 4 - 5 1 7 2 2 1 2 11 27

RSA 3 5 1 4 2 5 1 6 1 2 - - 8 22



ORIGIN OF TRIES The following table shows the origin of tries.

The following table shows the origin of tries scored and conceded per team.

NUMBER OF RUCKS AND MAULS IN BUILD UP TO TRIES The following table shows the number of rucks and mauls that preceded each try.

The following table shows the number of ruck/mauls in the build up to tries scored and conceded per team.

TRY ORIGIN

TOTAL %

OWN HALF 24 34%

HALFWAY TO 10M 6 9%

10M TO 22M 13 19%

22M TO GOAL LINE 27 39%

OWN HALF HW - 10m 10m - 22m 22m - TRY TOTAL TRIES

OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP

NZL 14 - 3 1 6 - 15 4 38 5

AUS 3 7 1 1 6 3 3 5 13 16

ARG 4 6 - 4 1 7 6 10 11 27

RSA 3 11 2 - - 3 3 8 8 22

NUMBER % CUMULATIVE %

0 R/Ms 17 24% 24%

1 R/Ms 11 16% 40%

2 R/Ms 10 14% 54%

3+ R/Ms 32 46% 100%

NO R/Ms 1 R/Ms 2 R/Ms 3+ R/Ms TOTAL TRIES


NZL 10 1 7 - 4 1 17 3 38 5

AUS 3 4 2 5 3 2 5 5 13 16

ARG 3 9 1 3 2 4 5 11 11 27

RSA 1 3 1 3 1 3 5 13 8 22


15

NUMBER OF PASSES IN BUILD UP TO TRIES The following table shows the number of passes that preceded each try.

The following table shows the number of passes in the build up to tries scored and conceded per team.

TRY SCORERS The following table shows tries scored by backs, forwards and penalty tries.

The following table shows the number and percentage of tries scored by backs, forwards and penalty tries per

team.

NUMBER % CUMULATIVE %

0 PASSES 9 13% 13%

1–3 PASSES 20 29% 42%

4–6 PASSES 18 26% 68%

7–9 PASSES 8 11% 79%

10+ PASSES 15 21% 100%

NO PASSES 1–3 PASSES 4–6 PASSES 7–9 PASSES 10+ PASSES TOTAL TRIES

OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP

NZL 4 1 11 1 10 1 4 - 9 2 38 5

AUS 2 3 5 4 2 5 2 1 2 3 13 16

ARG 3 2 2 11 3 8 2 3 1 3 11 27

RSA - 3 2 4 3 4 - 4 3 7 8 22

TOTAL TRIES

%

TRIES BY BACKS 48 69%

TRIES BY FORWARDS 22 31%

PENALTY TRIES - -

TRIES BY BACKS

TRIES BY FORWARDS

PENALTY TRIES

TOTAL % TOTAL % TOTAL %

NZL 28 74% 10 26% - -

ARG 7 64% 4 36% - -

RSA 5 63% 3 38% - -

AUS 8 62% 5 38% - -



2. KICKS AT GOAL The following table shows kick success rates.

The following table shows the kicking success for penalty goals, conversions and drop goals per team.

KICKING SUCCESS

TOTAL %

CONVERSIONS 53 / 70 76%

PENALTY GOALS 55 / 79 70%

OVERALL SUCCESS 108 / 149 72%

DROP GOALS 2 / 6 33%

PENALTY SUCCESS

CONVERSION SUCCESS

OVERALL SUCCESS

DROP GOAL SUCCESS

TOTAL % TOTAL % TOTAL % TOTAL %

ARG 18 / 23 78% 10 / 11 91% 28 / 34 82% 0 / 2 0%

RSA 19 / 28 68% 7 / 8 88% 26 / 36 72% 2 / 4 50%

AUS 12 / 16 75% 9 / 13 69% 21 / 29 72% 0 / 0 -

NZL 6 / 12 50% 27 / 38 71% 33 / 50 66% 0 / 0 -


17

3. BALL IN PLAY AND POSSESSION The average ball in play time in pool matches was 32 minutes 13 seconds or 40 per cent. The table below

shows the ball in play times and possession times for each pool match and team. The winning team won, with

less possession in seven matches (highlighted in gold).

The following table shows the average possession time per team per match and the proportion of possession

obtained by each team and their opponents.

POSSESSION

TIME % PTS

POSSESSION TIME

% PTS BIP TIME BIP %

RSA 13m 28s 49% 30

ARG 14m 09s 51% 23 27m 38 35%

AUS 16m 16s 44% 8

NZL 20m 59s 56% 42 37m 16 47%

ARG 15m 02s 54% 26

RSA 12m 49s 46% 24 27m 52 35%

NZL 17m 15s 56% 29

AUS 13m 41s 44% 9 30m 57 39%

NZL 16m 20s 46% 57

ARG 19m 37s 54% 22 35m 57 45%

AUS 17m 32s 50% 23

RSA 17m 30s 50% 17 35m 03 44%

AUS 11m 19s 31% 36

ARG 24m 50s 69% 20 36m 10 45%

NZL 13m 28s 48% 41

RSA 14m 28s 52% 13 27m 57 35%

RSA 14m 04s 45% 18

AUS 16m 58s 55% 10 31m 03 39%

ARG 19m 28s 60% 17

NZL 12m 52s 40% 36 32m 20 40%

RSA 11m 40s 35% 15

NZL 21m 39s 65% 57 33m 19 42%

ARG 19m 28s 63% 21

AUS 11m 30s 37% 33 30m 58 39%

OWN AVG POSSESSION

TIME

OPP AVG POSSESSION

TIME

OWN % POSSESSION

OPP % POSSESION

MOST IN A

MATCH

LEAST IN A

MATCH

ARG 18m 46s 13m 04s 59% 41% 6/6 0/6

NZL 17m 06s 15m 52s 52% 48% 3/6 3/6

RSA 14m 00s 16m 29s 46% 54% 2/6 4/6

AUS 14m 33s 19m 02s 43% 57% 2/6 4/6



4. PASSING The following table shows the average number of passes per match and the rate of passing per match. The average passes per match was 277, meaning the average per team per match was 138.5. The least passes in a match was 188 (South Africa v Argentina) and the most was 386 (Australia v New Zealand). The following table shows the average, the most, the least and the passing rate per team and opposition.

PASSING MOVEMENTS The following table shows the number of passes in each passing movement.

The following table shows passing movements for each team.

PASSING

AVERAGE RATE

277 1 every 7.0s

AVG PASSES

LEAST PASSES

MOST PASSES

RATE OF PASSING

OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP

NZL 180 119 126 84 247 163 1 every 5.7s 1 every 8.0s

AUS 119 174 84 126 146 247 1 every 7.3s 1 every 6.6s

ARG 147 118 102 86 219 159 1 every 7.6s 1 every 6.6s

RSA 106 143 86 102 127 221 1 every 7.9s 1 every 6.9s

PASSING MOVEMENTS

NUMBER %

1 PASS 932 52%

2 PASS 472 26%

3+ PASSES 390 22%

1 PASS 2 PASS 3+ PASS

NZL 42% 28% 30%

ARG 53% 26% 22%

AUS 53% 30% 17%

RSA 63% 20% 17%


19

PLAYER PASSING The following table shows the proportion of all passes made by forwards, scrum-halves and backs.

The following table shows the number and proportion of passes made by the forwards, the scrum-half and

backs of each team.

Overall, forwards passed the ball once in every 2.9 possessions and the backs every 2.0 possessions. The

following tables show how often forwards and backs of each team passed the ball.

TOTAL %

PASS : POSSESSION RATIO

PASSES BY FORWARDS 620 18% 1 in 2.9 possessions

PASSES BY SCRUM-HALF 1,511 46% 1 in 1.1 possessions

PASSES BY BACKS 1,186 36% 1 in 2.0 possessions

PASSES BY FORWARDS

% PASSES BY

SCRUM-HALF %

PASSES BY BACKS

%

NZL 229 21% 426 39% 424 39%

ARG 186 21% 423 48% 275 31%

RSA 102 16% 309 48% 227 36%

AUS 103 14% 353 49% 260 36%

FORWARDS PASS : POSSESSION

RATIO

BACKS PASS : POSSESSION

RATIO

NZL 1 in 2.2 possessions

NZL 1 in 1.8 possessions

ARG 1 in 3.1 possessions

ARG 1 in 2.0 possessions

AUS 1 in 3.4 possessions

AUS 1 in 2.1 possessions

RSA 1 in 3.4 possessions

RSA 1 in 2.2 possessions



The following table shows how often front rows, second rows and back rows passed the ball.

The following tables show how often front rows, second rows and back rows of each team passed the ball.

The following tables show how often fly-halves, centres and back threes passed the ball.

The following tables show how often fly-halves, centres and back threes of each team passed the ball.

PASS : POSSESSION

FRONT ROW 1 in 3.2 possessions

SECOND ROW 1 in 3.1 possessions

BACK ROW 1 in 2.6 possessions

FRONT ROW POSSESSIONS

SECOND ROW POSSESSIONS

BACK ROW POSSESSIONS

AVG PASS RATE

AVG PASS RATE

AVG PASS RATE

NZL 10 1 in 2.2

NZL 9 1 in 2.5

NZL 20 1 in 2.0

AUS 6 1 in 3.0

ARG 5 1 in 3.0

ARG 16 1 in 2.8

ARG 10 1 in 3.8

AUS 3 1 in 3.7

RSA 9 1 in 2.8

RSA 5 1 in 4.1

RSA 4 1 in 4.1

AUS 8 1 in 3.5

PASS : POSSESSION

FLY-HALVES 1 in 1.5 possessions

CENTRES 1 in 2.1 possessions

BACK THREE 1 in 2.6 possessions

FLY-HALF POSSESSIONS

CENTRES POSSESSIONS

BACK THREE POSSESSIONS

AVG PASS RATE

AVG PASS RATE

AVG PASS RATE

NZL 30 1 in 1.4

NZL 19 1 in 1.8

NZL 22 1 in 2.3

ARG 22 1 in 1.4

AUS 13 1 in 2.1

ARG 14 1 in 2.4

AUS 20 1 in 1.5

RSA 10 1 in 2.3

RSA 11 1 in 2.9

RSA 17 1 in 1.7

ARG 10 1 in 2.6

AUS 11 1 in 3.0


21

5. RUCKS AND MAULS The following table shows the average number of ruck/mauls per match and the rate of ruck/mauls per match.

The average ruck/mauls per match was 156, meaning the average per team per match was 78. The least ruck/mauls in a match was 119 (South Africa v Argentina) and the most was 201 (New Zealand v Argentina). The following table shows the average, the most, the least and the rucking rate per team and opposition.

The following tables show the total number and proportion of ruck/mauls created in the 22m area by each team

in attack and defence.

RUCK / MAULS

AVERAGE RATE SUCCESS

156 1 every 12s 93%

AVG RUCK / MAULS

% SUCCESS

LEAST RUCK / MAULS

MOST RUCK / MAULS

RATE OF RUCKING


NZL 82 82 93% 95% 57 48 108 116 1 every 12.6s 1 every 11.7s

AUS 71 93 90% 95% 44 63 92 130 1 every 12.2s 1 every 12.2s

RSA 63 79 93% 94% 48 59 81 108 1 every 13.3s 1 every 12.6s

ARG 95 58 93% 93% 60 44 130 85 1 every 11.9s 1 every 13.5s

ATTACKING R/Ms IN OPP 22m

DEFENDING R/Ms IN OWN 22m

TOTAL % TOTAL %

NZL 157 32%

NZL 92 19%

AUS 108 25%

AUS 131 23%

RSA 78 21%

ARG 84 24%

ARG 113 20%

RSA 149 32%



6. KICKING The following table shows the average number of kicks per match and the rate of kicking per match.

The average kicks per match was 40, meaning the average per team per match was 20. The least kicks in a match was 27 (Argentina v Australia) and the most was 55 (Australia v South Africa). The following table shows the average, the most, the least and the kicking rate per team and opposition.

PLAYER KICKING The following table shows the proportion of all kicks made by forwards, scrum-halves, fly-halves and backs.

The following table shows the number and proportion of kicks made by the forwards, the scrum-half, the fly-

half and backs of each team.

KICKING

AVERAGE RATE

40 1 every 49s

AVG KICKS LEAST KICKS MOST KICKS RATE OF KICKING

OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP OWN OPP

RSA 24 21 22 18 29 26 1 every 35s 1 every 46s

AUS 19 21 12 15 26 29 1 every 47s 1 every 54s

NZL 19 19 13 14 26 24 1 every 53s 1 every 51s

ARG 17 18 14 12 21 25 1 every 67s 1 every 44s

TOTAL %

KICK : POSSESSION RATIO

KICKS BY FORWARDS 10 2% 1 in 178 possessions

KICKS BY SCRUM-HALF 114 24% 1 in 15 possessions

KICKS BY FLY-HALF 151 32% 1 in 9 possessions

KICKS BY BACKS 200 42% 1 in 7 possessions

KICKS BY FORWARDS

% KICKS BY

SCRUM-HALF % KICKS BY

FLY-HALF %

KICKS BY BACKS

%

NZL 2 2% 29 25% 43 37% 42 36%

RSA 2 1% 29 20% 51 35% 64 44%

AUS 1 1% 31 28% 35 31% 45 40%

ARG 5 5% 25 25% 22 22% 49 49%


23

The following table shows how often scrum-halves, fly-halves, centres and back threes kicked the ball.

The following table shows how often the scrum-half, fly-half, centres and back three kicked in each team.

KICK : POSSESSION

SCRUM-HALVES 1 in 15.2

FLY-HALVES 1 in 5.1

CENTRES 1 in 10.4

BACK THREE 1 in 6.6

SCRUM-HALF KICK : POSSESSION

FLY-HALF KICK : POSSESSION

RSA 1 in 12

RSA 1 in 3

AUS 1 in 13

AUS 1 in 5

NZL 1 in 17

NZL 1 in 6

ARG 1 in 19

ARG 1 in 8

CENTRES KICK : POSSESSION

BACK THREE KICK : POSSESSION

ARG 1 in 8

RSA 1 in 4

AUS 1 in 9

AUS 1 in 7

RSA 1 in 10

ARG 1 in 7

NZL 1 in 18

NZL 1 in 10



7. 50m RESTARTS The following table shows the proportion of 50m restarts that were contestable and the success rates of

contestable restarts.

The following tables show the type and the success for each team when kicking 50m restarts.

The following tables show the type and the success for each team when receiving 50m restarts.

RESTARTS

CONTESTABLE RESTARTS 46%

NON-CONTESTABLE RESTARTS 54%

RECEIVING – SUCCESS 78%

REGAINING – SUCCESS 22%

TOTAL ERRORS 5

TYPE OF 50m RESTARTS

KICKED

SUCCESS KICKING CONTESTABLE

50m RESTARTS

CONTESTABLE NON-

CONTESTABLE

TOTAL RATE

AUS 63% 37%

ARG 8 / 23 1 in 2.9

ARG 51% 49%

AUS 4 / 22 1 in 5.5

NZL 39% 61%

RSA 2 / 11 1 in 5.5

RSA 28% 72%

NZL 1 / 11 1 in 11

TYPE OF 50m RESTARTS

RECEIVED

SUCCESS RECEIVING CONTESTABLE

50m RESTARTS

CONTESTABLE NON-

CONTESTABLE

TOTAL RATE

NZL 56% 44%

RSA 10 / 11 1 in 1.1

ARG 47% 53%

NZL 23 / 27 1 in 1.2

AUS 42% 58%

ARG 12 / 16 1 in 1.3

RSA 32% 68%

AUS 7 / 13 1 in 1.9


25

8. LINEOUTS The following table shows the average number of lineouts per match, the proportion of lineouts contested, the

lineout retention rates and the total number of not straight throws.

The least lineouts in a match was 16 (Argentina v New Zealand and New Zealand v Argentina) and the most was 29 (4 matches). The following table shows the success per team on their own lineouts, the percentage contested, the total number

of steals conceded and if the ball was released or ended in a ruck or maul.

The following table shows the success per team on their opponents’ lineouts, the percentage contested, the total

number of steals won and if the ball was released or ended in a ruck or maul.

LINEOUTS

AVERAGE PER MATCH 25

SUCCESS % 88%

CONTESTED % 49%

TOTAL STEALS 30

% RELEASED 68%

% RUCK/MAUL 32%

TOTAL NOT STRAIGHT 2

OWN LINEOUTS

TOTAL LINEOUTS

CONTESTED SUCCESS STEALS %

RELEASED %

RUCK/MAUL

RSA 74 46% 93% 3 71% 29%

NZL 67 37% 91% 6 62% 38%

ARG 75 51% 88% 7 68% 32%

AUS 78 62% 79% 14 72% 28%

OPP LINEOUTS

TOTAL

LINEOUTS CONTESTED SUCCESS STEALS

% RELEASED

% RUCK/MAUL

NZL 69 74% 20% 12 69% 31%

RSA 84 33% 13% 11 70% 30%

ARG 59 39% 10% 6 69% 31%

AUS 82 52% 6% 3 65% 35%



9. SCRUMS The following table shows the average number of scrums per match, the scrum retention rate, the percentage

of times the ball came out and the percentage of times they ended in penalties or free-kicks.

The least scrums in a match was nine (Argentina v Australia and South Africa v New Zealand) and the most was 24 (Argentina v New Zealand). In total there were four tightheads in 168 scrums. The following table shows success per team on their own scrums and how they were won and lost.

The following table shows the success per team on their opponents’ scrums and how scrums were won and lost.

SCRUMS


SUCCESS % 88%

COLLAPSE RATE 67%

RESET RATE PER 26%

BALL OUT RATE 67%

SCRUM PK/FK RATE 33%

% PF/FKs AGAINST DEFENCE 71%

OWN SCRUMS

TOTAL SCRUMS

WON % BALL

RELEASED PEN/FK

FOR LOST %

TURNOVER/ THRU 90

PEN/FK AGAINST

NZL 43 93% 32 8 7% - 3

RSA 42 90% 29 9 10% - 4

ARG 40 88% 28 7 13% 1 4

AUS 43 81% 20 15 19% 3 5

OPP SCRUMS

TOTAL SCRUMS

WON % TURNOVER /

THRU 90 PEN/FK

FOR LOST %

BALL RELEASED

PEN/FK AGAINST

ARG 48 17% 1 7 83% 27 13

RSA 40 13% - 5 88% 19 5

AUS 34 9% 1 2 91% 33 12

NZL 46 9% 2 2 91% 30 9


27

The following table shows the total number of collapses, the rate of collapses and the collapsed scrum outcome on each team’s scrum put-in.

The following table shows the total number of resets (pre and post feed) and the rate of resets on each team’s scrum put-in.

The following tables show the total number and the rate of ball out and penalties/free-kicks on each team’s scrum put-in.

SCRUMS COLLAPSES

TOTAL NO. RATE RESET BALL OUT PK/FK

NZL 43 34 79% 29% 47% 24%

ARG 40 27 68% 43% 29% 29%

RSA 42 27 64% 26% 33% 41%

AUS 43 24 56% 32% 28% 40%

SCRUMS RESETS

TOTAL NO. RATE PRE FEED POST FEED

NZL 40 14 35% 11 1

ARG 43 12 28% 11 3

RSA 43 10 23% 5 3

AUS 42 8 19% 9 1

SCRUMS BALL OUT SCRUMS PK/FKS

TOTAL NO. RATE TOTAL NO. RATE

% FOR

% AGAINST

NZL 43 32 74%

NZL 43 11 26% 73% 27%

ARG 40 29 73%

ARG 40 11 28% 64% 36%

RSA 42 29 69%

RSA 42 13 31% 69% 31%

AUS 43 23 53%

AUS 43 20 47% 75% 25%



10. PENALTIES AND FREE-KICKS The average number of penalties/free-kicks per match was 23. The least penalties/free-kicks in a match was

18 (South Africa v New Zealand) and the most was 30 (New Zealand v Australia). The following table shows

the overall average number of penalties/free-kicks per match.

The following table shows the total penalties/free-kicks for and against and the proportion for and against for

each team.

Overall 72 per cent of penalties and free kicks went against the defending team. The following table shows

the total penalties/free-kicks for and against the attack and the proportion for and against the attack for each

team.

PK/FKs


% AGAINST DEFENCE (OVERALL) 72%

% AGAINST DEFENCE (SCRUM) 71%

% AGAINST DEFENCE (RUCK/MAUL) 64%

TOTALPK/FK FOR

TOTAL PK/FK

AGAINST

AVG PK/FK FOR

AVG PK/FK

AGAINST

PK/FK FOR

%

PK/FK AGAINST

%

ARG 78 67 13.0 11.2 54% 46%

RSA 65 58 10.8 9.7 53% 47%

NZL 64 66 10.7 11.0 49% 51%

AUS 63 79 10.5 13.2 44% 56%

TOTAL PK/FK

AGAINST ATTACK

TOTAL PK/FK

AGAINST DEFENCE

AVG PK/FK

AGAINST ATTACK

AVG PK/FK

AGAINST DEFENCE

PK/FK AGAINST

ATTACK %

PK/FK AGAINST

DEFENCE %

ARG 22 45 3.7 7.5 33% 67%

RSA 17 41 2.8 6.8 29% 71%

AUS 22 57 3.7 9.5 28% 72%

NZL 15 51 2.5 8.5 23% 77%


29

CATEGORIES OF OFFENCES PENALISED

The following table shows the proportion of penalties and free-kicks awarded in each facet of play.

The following table shows the total number and proportion of penalties and free-kicks against each team in

each facet of play.

The following table shows the total number and proportion of penalties and free-kicks for each team in each

facet of play.

PK/FK REASONS

TOTAL %

TACKLE/RUCK 106 39%

SCRUM 57 21%

OFFSIDE 39 14%

FOUL PLAY 29 11%

MAUL 12 4%

GENERAL 23 3%

LINEOUT 4 1%

RUCK / MAUL

SCRUM OFFSIDE FOUL PLAY GENERAL

PLAY LINEOUT

TOT % TOT % TOT % TOT % TOT % TOT %

ARG 29 43% 17 25% 9 13% 6 9% 5 7% 1 1%

RSA 27 47% 10 17% 10 17% 6 10% 4 6% 1 2%

AUS 33 42% 16 20% 8 10% 10 13% 10 13% 2 3%

NZL 29 44% 14 21% 12 18% 7 11% 4 7% - 0%

RUCK / MAUL

SCRUM OFFSIDE FOUL PLAY GENERAL

PLAY LINEOUT

TOT % TOT % TOT % TOT % TOT % TOT %

NZL 32 50% 10 16% 9 14% 6 9% 5 8% 2 3%

AUS 30 48% 18 29% 9 14% 3 5% 3 5% - 0%

ARG 30 38% 15 19% 13 17% 11 14% 8 11% 1 1%

RSA 26 40% 14 22% 8 12% 9 14% 7 11% 1 2%



The following table shows the proportion of penalties and free-kicks awarded at the tackle/ruck.

The following table shows the total number and proportion of penalties and free-kicks against each team at

the tackle/ruck.

OPTIONS TAKEN AT PENALTIES/FREE-KICKS The following table shows the proportion of penalties and free-kicks awarded at the tackle/ruck.

The following table shows the options taken at penalties and free-kicks overall and per team.

TACKLE / RUCK PK REASONS

TOTAL %

TACKLED PLAYER 29 28%

TACKLER / ASSIST 29 28%

ARRIVER – OFF FEET 25 24%

ARRIVER – ENTRY 14 13%

ARRIVER – HANDS 8 8%

TACKLED PLAYER

TACKLER / ASSIST

ARRIVER - OFF FEET

ARRIVER - ENTRY

ARRIVER - HANDS

TOTAL % TOTAL % TOTAL % TOTAL % TOTAL %

ARG 10 38% 5 19% 5 19% 3 12% 3 12%

AUS 9 30% 6 20% 7 23% 7 23% 1 3%

NZL 6 23% 8 31% 7 27% 3 12% 2 8%

RSA 4 17% 10 43% 6 26% 1 4% 2 9%

PK DECISIONS

TOTAL %

KICK TO TOUCH 139 56%

KICK AT GOAL 79 32%

TAP KICK 29 12%

SCRUM 20 7%

REVERSAL 2 1%

PENALTY TRY - 0%

KICK TO TOUCH

KICK AT GOAL TAP KICKS SCRUM REVERSAL PENALTY

TRY

TOTAL % TOTAL % TOTAL % TOTAL % TOTAL % TOTAL %

AUS 41 65% 16 25% 6 10% - 0% - 0% - 0%

NZL 34 53% 12 19% 5 8% 12 19% 1 2% - 0%

RSA 32 49% 28 43% 5 8% - 0% - 0% - 0%

ARG 32 42% 23 30% 13 17% 8 10% 1 1% - 0%


31

11. CARDS The following table shows the total number of yellow and red cards. There were 10 matches that contained at least one yellow card or 83 per cent of all matches. The most cards

in any match was two (five matches).

The following table shows the reasons for the yellow cards.

The following table shows the number of cards awarded against each team and the reasons for the cards.

The overall average points benefit to the team with 15 players was just over one point per sin-bin. The following

tables show how many points each team scored during a sin-bin period when they had a numerical advantage

and a numerical disadvantage.

CARDS

YELLOW CARDS 15

RED CARDS -

YELLOW CARDS RED CARDS

DANGEROUS CHARGING 5 -

DANGEROUS TACKLE 3 -

TACKLE / RUCK 2 -

REPEATED INFRINGEMENTS 2 -

FOUL PLAY 1 -

OBSTRUCTION 1 -

TACKLE IN THE AIR 1 -

YELLOW CARDS

AVG RED

CARDS REASONS

AUS 6 1.0 - 3 X Charging / 2 X High tackle /

1 X Obstruction

NZL 4 0.7 - 1 X High tackle / 2 X Repeated Infringement / 1 X Tackle/ruck

RSA 3 0.5 - 1 X Charging / 1 X Tackle/ruck /

1 X Tackle in the air

ARG 2 0.3 - 1 X Charging / 1 X Foul play

NUMERICAL ADVANTAGE NUMERICAL DISADVANTAGE

TOTAL NET POINTS TOTAL NET POINTS

NZL 0, +21 +21

ARG +10, +6 +16

ARG -3, +7, +4, +7, 0, +2, -2 +15

NZL -5, -7, 0, +7 -5

AUS +5, 0 +5

AUS 0, -7, -4, -3, -2, +3 -13

RSA -10, -6, +3, -7 -20

RSA +3, 0, -21 -18



12. TELEVISION MATCH OFFICIALS (TMO) There were 34 referrals to the TMO. The following table shows the breakdown of the TMO referrals. The most TMO referrals in any match was six (Argentina v New Zealand) and the least was none (two matches). The following table shows the reasons for the try referrals.

The following table shows the reasons for the foul play referrals.

TMO

TOTAL AVG TIME TAKEN

TRY TMO 20 1.7 86 secs

FOUL PLAY TMO 14 1.2 66 secs

TOTAL TMO 34 2.9 77 secs

TOTAL

GROUNDING 7

KNOCK-ON (GEN) 5

TOUCH 4

OFFSIDE 2

OBSTRUCTION 1

DOUBLE MOVEMENT 1

FORWARD PASS -

TOTAL

NECK GRAB/ROLL 3

LIFTING TACKLE 1

CHARGING 5

TACKLE IN THE AIR 1

KICKING -

HIGH TACKLE 2

EYE CONTACT -

STRIKING 2

the rugby championship 2016 statistical report · only lost two matches, against south africa in...

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