Sam Tomkins Boom or Bust in the NRL

Sam Tomkins made the brave move to leave his beloved club Wigan and take on the NRL in 2014. He left the English Super League having achieved it all, he won two Premierships 2010 & 2013, two Challenge Cups 2011 & 2013 and was named player of the year (Man of Steel) in 2012. Sam has represented England on 25 occasions scoring 21 tries. He played 129 Super League matches, winning 100, giving him the ridiculous winning percentage of 77.5%. To put it into perspective Cameron Smith’s winning percentage in slightly below 70% and he has played for the most dominant team of the last decade. Of course the Super League is not a competitive as the NRL. For example the bottom placed London Broncos have lost all 23 games in 2014, while bottom placed Canberra and Cronulla have each won 5.

The New Zealand Warriors had to pay a world record transfer fee of 700,000 pounds to acquire Tomkins from Wigan. His arrival signalled the beginning of the end for talented Fullback Kevin Locke’s association with the Warriors, has Sam been worth or the fuss and money?

By the numbers Sam Tomkins as played in all 20 games for the Warriors in 2014 and won 11, a winning percentage of 55%. He has scored 10 tries, set up 9, broke the line 12 times, assisted in 16 line breaks and forced 4 drop outs. His strike rate is down in all departments when compared to his numbers in Super League but that is to be expected. Super League do not record line break assists or forced drop outs, so I cannot get an accurate figure on attacking plays per game, on the stats available its 2.7, so you could safely estimate somewhere around 3.5 to 4 APPG.

In the NRL Sam has produced 2.6 Attacking Plays Per Game (APPG), on par with Brett Stewart, Greg Inglis and only slightly below Billy Slater with 2.8 APPG. Surprise packet Michael Morgan is in killer form averaging 3.3 APPG, but man of the year Jarryd Hayne is sitting pretty on top with 4.1 APPG. These numbers indicate that in attack Tomkins has not been outclassed and can match it with some of the biggest names in the NRL. As a side note gun young Fullback Anthony Milford who is not included in the picture above has averaged 2.75 APPG in 2014.

Sam has broken 79 tackles and offloaded 14 times in 2014, giving him an average of 4.7 Second Phase Per Game (SPPG), a higher rate then Brett Stewart (2.9 SPPG), Michael Morgan (3.6 SPPG) and Billy Slater (4.3 SPPG). Of the Fullbacks shown above only Greg Inglis (4.9 SPPG) and Jarryd Hayne (7.1 SPPG) are more proactive when it comes to second phase. Anthony Milford has averaged 6.25 SPPG.

Sam has run 258 times for 2074 metres at 103.7 per game. This is only slightly less then his average run metres in Super League (110.5) and is a solid contribution. He averages more metres then Brett Stewart (89.4) and Michael Morgan (100.9). Billy Slater (117.4), Greg Inglis (143.6) and Jarryd Hayne (174.2) have run for significantly more metres. Anthony Milford has averaged 104.65 metres per game.

In defence Tomkins has been impressive given his diminutive stature. He has made 104 tackles from 130 attempts at 80% successful. 80% is a very good percentage for a NRL fullback. Hayne, Slater, Inglis and Stewarts career average in the position are all slightly below or above 80%. In Super League Sam defended at 88% successful, I have not seen any NRL Fullback do this for an extended period of time. His defence in 2014 has been better then Jarryd Hayne’s (75.31), Billy Slater’s (76.99) and Brett Stewarts (79.52). Michael Morgan (86.92) and Greg Inglis (88.89) are at a new level when it comes to defending at fullback in 2014. Anthony Milford’s has been defending at 65.77% in 2014.

When it comes to discipline Sam has made 26 errors and given away 7 penalties for an average of 1.7 Errors/Penalties Per Game (EPPG), 0.4 more then his average in the Super League. This is a better rate then Billy Slater and Jarryd Hayne, who both average 1.9 EPPG, but significantly worse then Michael Morgan (1.5), Brett Stewart (1.0) and Greg Inglis (0.6). Anthony Milford has averaged 1.3 EPPG.

In conclusion Sam Tomkins first year in the world’s hardest Rugby League competition has been a success. He has matched it with some of the biggest names and shown he is up for the challenge. It’s good to see a quality English player come to Australia in their prime and have a crack. It’s a shame we shall never see the likes of James Roby or Kevin Sinfield run around the NRL.

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Fringe NRL halves making it in the Super League

I have collated the 2014 season statistics of 12 ex NRL halves who are currently playing in the English Super League.

NRL Halves make the move to England for various reason, like Travis Burns who made the move after a number of on field disciplinary issues or Sam Williams and Josh Drinkwater who made the move due to a lack of opportunities. Some try to return to the NRL, but few are successful, as was the case with Daniel Holdsworth, Michael Dobson and Michael Witt . It is rare for a top class NRL half to make the move, unless he is squeezed out due to salary cap, as Brett Finch was after the Melbourne salary cap scandal, or they may make the move towards the end of their career.

Travis Burns:

Played 127 NRL games for 3 clubs. Burns made the switch to Super League in 2013 after lengthy suspensions in 2012. He has lined up for Hull KR 23 times in 2014 and leads our list in try assists with 19, he also has the most offloads with 34 and forty twenties with 4. He has made the most tackles as well as missed the most of all other players on this list, making 406 tackles from 458 attempts at 88% successful. Burns has continued his bad boy reputation having spent 10 minutes in the bin twice in 2014.

Rangi Chase:

Played 32 NRL games for 2 clubs. Chase made the switch to Super League in 2009 after a lack of opportunities in the NRL. He has lined up for Salford 19 times in 2014 and leads this list in line breaks with 16,  tackle breaks with 73, carries with 291, metres with 1675, average metres with 88 per game and errors with 27. He is second in tries (6), try assists (18), forty twenties (3), offloads (31) and missed tackles (49). He is the most potent attacking half on the list averaging 2.16 Attacking Plays Per Game (APPG), followed by Blake Green (2.08 APPG), he is also the most active second phase half on our list averaging 5.47 SPPG, followed by Travis Burns (4.61 SPPG). Chase is the least disciplined half, with a defensive percentage of 83%, and an average of 2.16 Errors/Penalties Per Game (EPPG).

Blake Green:

Played 43 NRL games for 3 clubs and will make a comeback to the NRL in 2015 with the Melbourne Storm. He has only lined up 12 times for Wigan in 2014 and has amassed 5 tries, 13 try assists and 7 line breaks, averaging 2.08 APPG. He is solid in all areas of the game, averaging 3.17 SPPG, 92% in defence, has averaged 62 run metres per game and only 1.17 EPPG. If anyone can help in transition back to the NRL, Craig Bellamy can.

Josh Drinkwater:

Played 4 NRL games for the Saint George Dragons in 2013. He impressed in NYC leading the competition in try assists in 2012. He struggled to establish himself and was soon pushed back in the pecking order once Sam Williams another member of our list and Gareth Widdop where signed by the Dragons. He has lined up 20 times for the winless London Broncos in 2014 and has scored 2 tries, set up 11 and broke the line 5 times. He has conceded the most penalties with 19 and has been solid in defence (87% successful).

Lance Hohaia:

Played 185 NRL games for the NZ Warriors. Hohaia mad the move in 2012 to Saint Helens. He has lined up 16 times in 2014 and leads our list in tries with 7. Hohaia has set up 11 tries and cracked the line on 10 occasions. He is the most effective defender on our list at 94% successful. Hohaia was a solid NRL player and has moved to England to finish off his career.

Luke Walsh:

Played 120 NRL games for 2 clubs.  Walsh moved to the Super League in 2014 after he was pushed out of Penrith. He was underrated in the NRL averaging 2.7 Attacking Plays Per Game (APPG), Which includes line break assists and forced drop out, 2 statistics the Super League do not record. He has lined up 16 times for ladder leading Saint Helens and has scored 5 tries, set up 11, cracked the line 9 times and kicked 2 forty twenties, for an average of 1.69 APPG. He has been solid in defence at 85% and averaged over 60 run metres per game, which is 3 times as much as he did last year in the NRL.

Kris Keating:

Played 88 games in the NRL for 2 clubs including 2 grand final losses. He made the move to the Super League in 2014 after he was pushed out by Trent Hodkinson. Keating was one of the least potent attacking halves in the NRL, only averaging 1.33 APPG. He has lined up 20 times for Hull KR in 2014, scoring 5 tries, set up 10 and cracked the line 7 times. He has averaged over 90% in defence and gives away on average the fewest Errors/Penalties Per Game (EPPG) at 0.90.

Tim Smith:

Played 90 NRL games for 2 clubs. Smith was touted as the next big thing after he set up 40 tries in his debut season, earning the rookie of the year award. His NRL career fell apart after a string over alcohol related incidents, one of which involved the punching of the Australian Cricket captain Michael Clarke. He has had two stints in the Super League playing for 3 different clubs. He has only played 8 games for Wakefield in 2014, scoring 2 tries, setting up 9 and cracking the line 3 times. He is the worst second phase half on our list only averaging 1.13 SPPG, comprising of 8 tackle busts and 1 offload. He has been solid in defence at 91%.

Pita Godinet:

Played 18 NRL games for the NZ Warriors over 3 years and could never maintain a starting role. He made the move to Wakefield in 2014. He has lined up 19 times in 2014 and has scored 5 tries, set up 9 and broke the line 15 times. He averages 88% in defence and has the largest average carry of any member on our list, averaging 6.62 metres per carry.

Sam Williams:

Played 46 NRL games for 2 clubs and was pushed out of Saint George after Benji Marshall was signed. Williams was a solid half in the NRL averaging over 2 APPG and defended at 85%. He has lined up 6 timed for Catalans in 2014, setting up 5 tries and breaking the line once, he is the third best second phase half on this list, averaging 3.33 SPPG. Williams has been good in defence at 90% and is running for almost 60 metres a game. There is talk that he may be heading back to the NRL in 2015.

Jacob Miller:

Played 9 NRL games for the West Tigers and won a NYC premiership in 2012. He was also touted as the next big thing, but struggled at NRL level. He made the move to Hull FC mid way through 2013 after the emergence of Luke Brooks. He has lined up 9 times in 2014 and has produced meagre results in attack. He is the least potent half in attack on our list only averaging 0.78 APPG. Miller also averages the fewest run metres of any half on the list, at only 40 per game.

Jordan Rankin:

Played 17 NRL games for the Gold Coast Titans over 6 seasons. Rankin moved to Hull FC in 2014 and has had a solid first season. He has lined up 18 times in 2014 and has scored 9 tries, set up 8 and busted the line 8 times. He has busted 32 tackles, defended at 93% and averaged 58 run metres per game.

Most of these halves will never see the NRL again and any that do will most likely be on the Fringe. It will be interesting to see how Blake Green goes next year alongside some of the finest players to ever play the game.

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