Johns v Thurston a statistical attempt

On Tuesday Fox Sports released an article attempting to compare Andrew Johns and Johnathan Thurston, by the numbers. The article only compared games, points, awards, titles, etc. In my opinion they could have done a better job. This article will attempt to go a little further.

Comparing these to great Halfbacks is no easy task, as I am not a statistician and do not have access to NRL stats databases. The stats I have managed to find on Andrew Johns are incomplete. The reason for this is the NRL did not start collecting detailed statistics (Line Breaks, Offloads, etc.) until 1998 and in the seasons that followed they increased in detail (Try Assists, Line Break Assists, etc.). Another issue with this comparison is the different stats providers, for example: all the stats I have for Andrew Johns were recorded by the NRL’s old stats provider Sports Data and the stats I have on Johnathan Thurston were recorded by Fox Sports. The reason I have not used Sports Data stats for JT is they are only available up till 2007. This is an issue because different stats providers have been shown to have differences in their records, for example: for the 2007 season Sports Data recorded 31 try assists and 19 offloads for Johnathan Thurston, while Fox Sports recorded 30 and 16 respectively. The issues mentioned above illuminates that this is a flawed attempt to compare the incomparable.

[Game statistics sourced from www.rugbyleagueproject.org]

They have each played 249 first grade games; Joey won 61.8% of games, including 2 premierships for Newcastle, while JT has won 53.8% of games across 2 clubs including 1 premiership. JT has taken part in 8 winning series for Queensland; winning 63.3% of games compared to Joey’s 5 series wins for NSW at 56.5%. As a side note: 16 of Joey’s 23 Origin appearances were at Halfback, while the other 7 were played at Hooker or off the bench. Joey won 87% of games for Australia, with 2 World Cup victories; while JT has won 93.5% of games for Australia with 1 World Cup victory.

[Award statistics sourced from www.rugbyleagueproject.org]

They are equal on top with 3 Dally M Medals a piece, in addition they have taken out 2 Golden Boots. JT has the edge on Dally M positional awards with 6 (3 at Halfback and 3 at 5-8) compared to Joeys 4 at Halfback. Joey claimed a Clive Churchill Medal in 2001, the only major award JT is without.

To this point we have covered all the basic stats that everyone already knows; we will now delve into the nitty gritty, starting with their attacking game.

[Andrew Johns Stats sourced from Sports Data’s NRLstats.com; Johnathan Thurston Stats Sourced from Fox Sports.]

As discussed above the stats I found on Andrew Johns were incomplete, which makes this comparison unfair for both players. We of course have a complete record of Joey’s tries; scoring 80 from his 249 games compared to JT who has crossed the line 81 times from 249 games, a per game strike rate of 0.32 and 0.33 respectively. I only have try assist stats for 147 of Joey’s appearances, where he managed 166 at a strike rate of 1.13 per game. JT has assisted in 259 tries at a strike rate of 1.04 per game. Joey broke the line 107 times in the 173 games that were recorded, a strike rate of 0.62 per game; compared to 149 line breaks made by JT at 0.60 per game. Line Break Assists is the smallest sample I have on Johns as they were only recorded for 81 of his 249 appearances. In that period Joey assisted in 105 line breaks at a rate of 1.30 per game. JT has assisted 268 line breaks at a rate of 1.08 per game. Joey dominated when it came to forty twenties; kicking 16 from the 147 games recorded at 0.11 per game; compared to JT who has only managed 6 from 243 games (couldn’t find stats on a few finals games) at 0.02 per game.

Joey produced 338 offloads in the 173 games that they were recorded at 1.95 per game; compared to JT who has to date produced 232 offloads at 0.93 per game. Joey averaged 60.78 metres per game in the 147 that were recorded; compared to JT who has averaged 63.50 across his career. It’s fair to say that if we had complete stats on Joey’s career his per game averages would slide back towards JT’s numbers; however, how much is unclear as we are missing stats on years where he won a Premiership, a Dally M and a Halfback of the year award.

 [Andrew Johns stats sourced from Sports Data from 173 of 249 games, Johnathan Thurston’s stats sourced from Fox Sports across 249 games = % (total tackles/total attempts displayed as percentage)]

I found Defensive stats for 173 of Joey’s games where he averaged 14.61 tackles per game, missing 2.03 per game. JT‘s has averaged 14.70 tackles per game across his career averaging 3.50 misses. Fox Sports has JT’s effectiveness in defence at 75%; this must include ineffective tackles, which I could not find figures for. To be fair to JT I used the same simple formula that was used for Joey (total tackles made divided by total tackles attempted times 100). Using this simple method Joey made 88% of all tackles attempted compared to JT who has been 81% successful.

When it comes to errors and penalties the stats I found indicate that JT is slightly less disciplined. In the 173 games that errors were recorded, Joey made 213 at 1.23 per game, compared to JT who has made 396 errors at 1.59 per game. Penalties were only recorded for 81 of Joey’s games where he conceded 44 at 0.54 per game, compare to JT who has conceded 156 at 0.63 per game. In addition JT has also been sin binned on 4 occasions. I am not sure if Joey has ever been sent to the bin.

[Andrew Johns stats sourced from Sports Data; Johnathan Thurston’s stats sourced from Fox Sports. Highlighted red text means the data is incomplete. * Numbers have been derived from per game averages times the total games, therefore the figure will not be totally accurate.]

Numbers won’t settle the debate as people either love or hate these two players. From my perspective it has been fantastic watching these two magicians dominate over the years.

2014 DALLY M

 

With only one and a half rounds to go the race for the Dally M has hotted up. At this point there appears to be a three main contenders, consisting of Johnathan Thurston, Jarryd Hayne & Sam Burgess. Thurston (2005 & 2007) & Hayne (2009) have previously been crowned the NRL’s best player, while Same Burgess has history against him. The last Forward other then a Hooker to win the Dally M was Gavin Miller in 1988 and 1989. Despite leading the Dally M points after 16 rounds, it appears going by predictions that Ben Hunt has dropped out of the top three, however after a stunning performance last night, starring in a win over the Dragons, he could have roared back into contention. 

Sam Burgess put on a Match winning performance Thursday night and has done him self no harm in breaking the drought of running forwards winning the Dally M. 

Below I have added a comparison between Johnathan Thurston’s and Jarryd Hayne’s Dally M winning years compared to 2014 and it indicates that both man are in similar form to when they were crowned the games best. 

                                     If I was a betting man I would be putting my money on either JT or Jarryd Hayne to take out the title of the games best in 2014. They each have two games to go and each performance is crucial. 

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Terry Campese Then and Now

Terry Campese was told this week that he was no longer guaranteed a spot in first grade. He now seems destined to play out his contract for Mounties in NSW Cup or perhaps, or perhaps he may receive an offer from Super League, Canberra however may not be interested in topping up his wage. Since the initial injury sustained in the 2010 finals series, the one time Australian & NSW pivot has failed to recapture the stellar form he displayed from 2008 to 2010. He has only managed 43 games in the past 4 seasons, as opposed to the 87 in the 4 seasons prior to his string of injuries. Of the 43 games he has lined up for since the 2010 injury, he has only seen 17 victories at 39.5%, as opposed to the 47% success rate between 2008-2010, where Canberra made the finals on 2 occasions (2008 & 2010). 

Terry’s attacking stats since 2010 have seen a reduction in all areas, most noticably his running game.  Prior to the injury Terry was running on average 6 times a game for 50 metres, from 2011 onwards he has only been running the ball slightly over 2 times a game for under 20 metres. Terry’s diminished running game has had a flow on effect to all other areas of his game, his ability to produce second phase plays has dropped dramatically. Between 2008-10 Campese would on average offload 1.4 times a game and break 2.3 tackles. Since 2010 he has only managed 0.4 offloads per game and 0.7 tackle breaks. 

Terry’s defence has also suffered post injury, possibly due to a reduced ability to move laterally fast enough in response to changing attack. Between 2008-10, he averaged 18.5 tackles per game, only missing 1.8 on average, a success rate of 91%. This percentage was better then many back rowers playing the game and was on par with John Sutton. Since the injury Terry has averaged 16.3 tackles per game missing 2.1 on average, a success rate of 88%. This percentage is still high for a half, but is statistically significant.

Above and below are comparisons of regular season form between Cooper Cronk and Terry Campese from 2008 to 2010. These comparisons help to illustrate the kind of player Terry Campese was and only begs the question how good could he have been if not for a horrible string of injuries. Keep in mind these are only the raw numbers of a Five Eighth and Halfback, but both where the dominant halves for their club during this period. During this period Cooper only out pointed Terry in Try Assists, Errors and Penalties. Terry averaged more Try’s, Line Breaks, Line Break Assists, Forty Twenties, Forced Drop Outs, Offloads, Tackle Busts, he missed fewer tackles and had a higher defensive success rate. 

Injury has robbed Terry Campese the opportunity to ever fulfil his full potential. Frustrated Canberra fans have had enough of losing and many blame Terry for not reaching his former heights and for taking up so much of the Salary cap, however it is not his fault Canberra decided to sign him on such a lucrative deal after he sustained the devastating injury, that mistake is on the Raiders administration. Lets hope he can see out the rest of his career injury free, enjoying what time on the paddock he has left. 

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JARRYD HAYNE’S REGULAR SEASON FORM SINCE 2009

This is a quick breakdown of Jarryd Hayne’s statistics from 2009 to the present. His worst year was was 2013 under Ricky Stuart. 

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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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2014 Prop Comparison

 

After 21 rounds of the NRL competition the jury is still out on who has been the best Prop in 2014. There have been a number of standout performers, including but not limited to: Matt Scott, Corey Parker, Jesse Bromwich, James Graham, Aaron Woods, Josh McGuire and George Burgess.

The ever improving Paul Vaughan has more tries and line breaks then all other props with 6 and 5 respectively. Martin Taupau also has 5 line breaks to his name. Jesse Bromwich has the most try and line breaks assists with 3 and 5 respectively. Andrew Fifita is equal in try assists with 3. Corey Parker has the second most line break assists with 4. Andrew Fifita has been stifled by injury for most of the season, but he averages more attacking plays per game then any other Prop at 0.67 APPG.

Andrew Fifita is also the king of second phase averaging 7.5 SPPG (Parker second with 4.06 SPPG), including 53 tackle breaks and 37 offloads. He is second in both tackle bust and offloads, behind Martin Taupau with 56 tackle breaks and Corey Parker with 50 offloads. Meat and Potatoes Prop Josh Starling is the least active Prop when it comes to second phase only averaging 0.32 SPPG, including 2 tackle breaks and 4 offloads.

Jesse Bromwich is the biggest metre eater so far in 2014, running 286 timed for 2705 metres at 143 metres per game. James Graham has ran the most hit ups with 297, George Burgess has ran the second most metres with 2426 and Matt Scott has the second best average metres per game, running 139 per game. Sam McKendry runs the least metres per game of all Props on this list, running for just under 80 per game.

Josh McGuire has made more tackles then all other props in 2014 with 632 at 35 a game. Aiden Tolman is the most effective Prop in defence, he has 345 tackles from 350 attempts at 98%. Nate Myles has missed the most tackles with 53, making him the least effective prop on this list. Myles has made 519 tackles from 572 attempts at just over 90%.

The trend of potency in attack leading to a higher error rate continues. Andrew Fifita the best Prop in attack is also the least disciplined making on average 2.08 Errors/Penalties Per Game (EPPG), he has the most errors with 15 and has 11 penalties. JWH is them most penalised Prop in 2014 with 24 to his name. Reformed bad boy Willie Mason is the most disciplined at 0.35 EPPG, including 2 errors and 4 penalties.

Best by the Numbers: Jesse Bromwich (rates high in all areas and has no downsides)

Worst by the Numbers: Nate Myles (surprising, but has high error rate, worst defence, doesn’t average over a hundred metres a game, averages under one second phase play and has not registered a single attacking play in 2014)

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2014 Second Row Comparison

Sonny Bill Williams as you may expect dominated most areas when compared to all other Second Row Forwards. In attack he has the most try assists with 4 and the most line break assists with 11. Simon Mannering has the most tries with 9 and Boyd Cordner leads the line breaks with 9. Ex Five Eighth Wade Graham has registered 4 forced drop outs more then any other Second Rower. SBW averages 1.53 Attacking Plays Per Game (APPG) followed by Dave Taylor (1.22), Boyd Cordner (1.21), Wade Graham (1.16), Simon Mannering (1.16), Matt Gillett (1.13) and Tony William (1.06). No other Second Rower averaged over 1.00 APPG. Elijah Taylor is the worst attacking Second Rower with a poor average of 0.18 APPG.

SBW leads the way in Second Phase Per Game with 4.87 with 37 tackle busts and 36 offloads, ahead of Tony Williams (4.28). No other Second Rower averages over 4.00 SPPG. Jason Taumalolo leads the tackle busts with 56 but he only has registered 5 offloads for the season, this gives him an average of 3.21 SPPG. Ryan Hoffman is the least active Second Rower when it comes to second phase only averaging 0.89 SPPG.

Dave Taylor has ran more metres then any other Second Rower in 2014, with 253 runs for 2394 metres at 133 metres per game. SBW and Jason Taumalolo average the second most metres per game with 117 a piece. Chris McQueen averages the fewest metres at only 60 metres per game.

Tackling machine Elijah Taylor leads the tackle count for Second Rowers with 576 at 33 per game to his name. Leeson Ah Mau is the most effective in defence with 454 tackles from 466 attempts at 97.42% effective. SBW comes in second with 337 tackles from 350 attempts at 96.29% effective. Dave Taylor has spent significant time in the Centres this year and his defence has suffered with a effective percentage of 84.13.

With great attacking ability comes errors and second rowers are no different with SBW leading the Errors/Penalties Per Game (EPPG) stat with 2.00. SBW has 21 errors equal with Wade Graham and 9 penalties. Wade Graham also leads the penalty count with 15. Gun defender Leeson Ah Mau is the most disciplined Second Rower only averaging 0.58 EPPG.

Best by the numbers: SBW

Worst by the numbers: No stand out apparent.

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2014 Lock Comparison

Corey Parker’s move to the front row has narrowed the competition for the title of the NRL’s best Lock. Paul Gallen and Sam Burgess appear to be the only real contenders for this title. They are easily the most potent in attack,  Burgess leads the tries and line breaks with 7 a piece and Gallen leads line break assists with 6. Gallen averages 1.63 Attacking Plays Per Game (APPG), this is significantly more then Burgess who averages 1.06 APPG. Feleti Mateo leads the try assists with 5 and is a close third in APPG at 1.00. The Warriors Sebastine Ikahihifo is the least potent lock when it comes to attack in 2014 only averaging 0.07 APPG.

Burgess and Gallen also lead all other Locks by some margin in second phase play. Sam has registered 53 tackle busts and 43 offloads in 2014. The next closest Lock has 16 less tackle busts and 14 less offloads. Gallen has only played 8 games in 2014 so he has significantly less game time then Burgess, however he averages more Second Phase Per Game (SPPG), averaging 6.38 to Sam’s 5.33. Glen Hall with only 7 tackle bust and 4 offloads is worst second phase lock in 2014. This only gives him an average of 0.61 SPPG.

Burgess and Gallen comfortably average the most metres per game, averaging a staggering 163 and 164 metres respectively. Trent Merrin comes in third at 150 metres per game. Sam Burgess has ran 365 times for 2936 metres. This is over 100 carries and 500 metres more then any other Lock. Ryan Hinchcliffe averaging 48 metres a game is the least active running lock this season.

Work Horse Shaun Fensom has racked up 730 tackles in 2014, 130 more then Sam Burgess and Ryan Hinchcliffe who have each made 597. Shaun averages over 40 tackles a game and has only missed 21 all season. This makes him 97.20% effective in defence. Only Glenn Hall has a better percentage with 97.55, however he averages 23 less tackles a game then Fensom. Only Greg Bird (87.34%) and Adam Docker (89.41%) are less then 90% effective in defence.

When it comes to discipline Sam Burgess is easily the worst offender with the most penalties (15) and errors (22). This gives him an average of 2.06 Errors/Penalties Per Game (EPPG) Greg Bird is nipping at his heals at 1.86 EPPG. Greg Eastwood with 3 penalties and 2 errors is the most disciplined Lock, averaging on 0.33 EPPG.

Best by the numbers: Paul Gallen, just gets over the top of Sam due to his poor discipline.

Worst by the numbers: Adam Docker, average in all areas of the game.

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Reliance on the spine.

 

Some claim the “Spine” (1,6,7,9) of a football team is the key to a premiership, others would argue that forwards, and defence win games. I would say its a combination of all, as well as a special team cohesion not shown by the numbers. For example Manly sit on top of the ladder, with the 4th most attacking plays, 9th most metres, and the 10th best defensive percentage. Compared to the Cowboys who sit 12th, with the 5th most attacking plays, 3rd most metres, and the 3nd best defensive percentage. If it was purely mathematical, Manly would not would not be in such a lofty position. Moving on.

The purpose of this article is to rank a teams reliance on their spine in attack. My method which was basic, and only focusing on the statistics available, was to add up all the Tries, Try Assists, Line Breaks, Line Break Assists, Forced Drop Outs, and 40/20s that have been notched up by a teams Fullback, Five Eighth, Halfback, and Hooker (including interchange Hooker). I would then divide this figure by the number of games played by the team to receive a number. This numbers represents the average number of “attacking plays per game” a spine had produced. I would then do the same for the entire team to get a total team “attacking plays per game”. I then used these two figures to calculate what percentage of attacking plays the teams spine had performed of the total. For example the Cowboys relied on their spine for 57.95% of the total attacking plays while the Roosters only relied on their spine for 41.87% of the total.

The problem with this method is that I have not factored in injuries during the game, and swapping of position, such as the Roosters routinely do with their Fullbacks. This effective should be minimal as Anthony Minichiello and RTS have only have a difference on 3 attacking plays, so hopefully it evens out.

The teams are listed below from highest reliance on the spine to lowest. I have also added in a number of other figures, for comparison. Its hard to know if such statistics have any use. Sometimes they confirm exactly what you want them to. For example the Bulldog’s spine have the 14th most attacking plays, and the team has the 12th most, which is not spectacular for a team coming 3rd, but they have the most metres by far, and the second best defensive percentage. These figures seem to confirm that the Bulldogs success belongs to their Forward pack and not their spine. However such numbers do not take into account the Hooker’s control of the ruck, or the Halves direction during play. Which are huge factors in winning football games. Other times stats make no sense at all. The Cowboys for example tick every statistical box of a top eight team, and yet they sit outside the top eight. Perhaps it is over reliance on their spine. I am not sure.

 

1. Cowboys (57.95%)                                                                                  

Pos 12th, 7 wins, 9 losses.

1st in spine attacking plays.

5th in total attacking plays.

All run metres 23751 (3rd)

Defensive percentage 92.81 (2nd)

The Cowboys have used 8 players in their spine out of a total of 29 total in 2014.

 

2. Storm (55.73%)

Pos 8th, 8 wins, 8 losses.

2nd in spine attacking plays.

6th in total attacking plays.

All run metres 23389 (7th)

Defensive percentage 91.99 (7th)

The storm have used 8 players in their spine out of a total of 27 total in 2014.

 

3. Panthers (55.42%)

Pos 2nd, 11 wins, 5 losses.

4th in spine attacking plays.

10th in total attacking plays.

All run metres 23798 (2nd)

Defensive percentage 90.58 (12th)

The Panthers have used 7 players in their spine out of a total of 25 total in 2014.

 

4. Tigers (54.29%)

Pos 10th, 8 wins, 8 losses.

10th* in spine attacking plays.

14th in total attacking plays.

All run metres 22726 (13th)

Defensive percentage 89.87 (16th)

The Tigers have used 8 players in their spine out of 27 total in 2014.

 

5. Raiders (53.44%)

Pos 15th, 5 wins, 11 losses.

5th in spine attacking plays.

9th in total attacking plays.

All run metres 22115 (16th)

Defensive percentage 91.71 (8th)

The Raiders have used 8 players in their spine out of 26 total in 2014.

 

6. Sharks (53.18%)

Pos 16th, 4 wins, 12 losses.

15th in spine attacking plays.

15th in total attacking plays.

All run metres 22214 (15th)

Defensive percentage 92.33 (5th)

The Sharks have used 13 players in their spine out of 29 total in 2014.

 

7. Rabbitohs (50.20%)

Pos 4th, 9 wins, 7 losses.

8th in spine attacking plays.

7th in total attacking plays.

All run metres 22994 (10th)

Defensive percentage 94.19 (1st)

The Rabbitohs have used 9 players in their spine out of 27 total in 2014.

 

8. Knights (50.00%)

Pos 14th, 5 wins, 11 losses.

13th in spine attacking plays.

13th in total attacking plays.

All run metres 23486 (6th)

Defensive percentage 90.42 (13th)

The Knights have used 8 players in their spine out of 27 total in 2014.

 

9. Titans (48.21)

Pos 13th, 7 wins, 9 losses.

16th in spine attacking plays.

16th in total attacking plays.

All run metres 22855 (12th)

Defensive percentage 90.42 (15th)

The Titans have used 11 players in their spine out of 29 total in 2014.

 

10. Dragons (47.88%)

Pos 9th, 8 wins, 8 losses.

12th in spine attacking plays.

11th in total attacking plays.

All run metres 22954 (11th)

Defensive percentage 92.58 (4th)

The Dragons have used 9 players in their spine out of 27 total in 2014.

 

11. Sea Eagles (46.43%)

Pos 1st, 11 wins, 5 losses.

6th in spine attacking plays.

4th in total attacking plays.

All run metres 23071 (9th)

Defensive percentage 91.65 (10th)

The Sea Eagles have used 7 players in their spine out of 26 total in 2014.

 

12. Warriors (45.66%)

Pos 6th, 9 wins, 7 losses.

3rd in spine attacking plays.

1st in total attacking plays.

All run metres 23638 (5th)

Defensive percentage 91.50 (11th)

The Warriors have used 6 players in their spine out of 28 total in 2014.

 

13. Eels (45.55%)

Pos 11th, 8 wins, 8 losses.

7th in spine attacking plays.

3rd in total attacking plays.

All run metres 22610 (14th)

Defensive percentage 90.39 (14th)

The Eels have used 7 players in their spine out of 29 total in 2014.

 

14. Broncos (45.24%)

Pos 7th, 8 wins, 8 losses.

10th* in spine attacking plays.

8th in total attacking plays.

All run metres 23671 (4th)

Defensive percentage 91.66 (9th)

The Broncos have used 5 players in their spine out of 25 total in 2014.

 

15. Bulldogs (42.73%)

Pos 3rd, 11 wins, 5 losses.

14th in spine attacking plays.

12th in total attacking plays.

All run metres 25007 (1st)

Defensive percentage 92.92 (2nd)

The Bulldogs have used 10 players in their spine out of 26 total in 2014.

 

16. Roosters (41.87%)

Pos 5th, 9 wins, 7 losses.

9th in spine attacking plays.

2nd in total attacking plays.

All run metres 23230 (8th)

Defensive percentage 92.08 (6th)

The Roosters have used 7 players in their spine out of 25 total in 2014.

 

If nothing else all these numbers provide interesting talking points.

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2014 Halfback Comparison

 

After 17 rounds of competition few would have predicted Ben Hunt to be the dominant Halfback in the competition. He currently leads the Dally M and is the dominant attacking number 7 in the competition. He leads all other Halfbacks in Tries (7), Try Assists (17), and Line Breaks (14). He is second in Line Break Assists (11) and third in Forced Drop Outs (11). He averages 4.00 Attacking Plays Per Game (APPG), followed by Copper Cronk (3.60), Benji Marshall  (3.14), Mitchell Pearce (3.13), and Shaun Johnson (3.07). No other Halfback averages over 3.00. Daniel Holdsworth has proved to be the worst attacking Halfback in the competition, averaging only 0.71 APPG. He is the only Halfback to average below 1.00.

Shaun Johnson has broken more tackles then any other Halfback this year with 39 to his name. He leads Ben Hunt with 35, Albert Kelly equal with Adam Reynolds on 31 and Luke Brooks with 30. No other Halfback has broken over 30 tackles so far this year. DCE and Robert Lui are the only Halfbacks with over 20 Offloads to their name so far in 2014 with 23 apiece. DCE is the leading second phase Halfback, averaging 3.64 SPPG. DCE leads a close following pack consisting of Robert Lui (3.27), Shaun Johnson (3.20) and Ben Hunt (3.07). No other number 7s average over 3.00 SPPG. Daniel Holdsworth again sits alone at the bottom when it comes to second phase averaging only 0.29 SPPG.

Albert Kelly leads the way in Runs (101), Metres (1178), and Metres Per Game (84.14). Shaun Johnson is the only other Halfback to have cracked a thousand metres this year and to average over 60 metres per game. Johnson has ran for 1049 metres at 69.93 MPG. Daniel Holdsworth makes it 3 from 3 at the wrong end of the scale. He has ran for a pathetic 13.57 MPG in 2014.

Adam Reynolds has made more tackles then any other Halfback in 2014 with an even 300 to his name. Josh McCrone sits second with 292, and Ben Hunt third with 272. DCE is the most effective defending Halfback with a percentage of 92.61. He is hotly pursued by Adam Reynolds (92.59%), Cooper Cronk (91.67%), Josh McCrone (90.97%), and Jeff Ronson (90.53%). No other Halfback averages above 90%. Rookie 19 year old Luke Brooks has opened up a gap of 20 missed tackles to the nearest offender. He has missed 76 tackles so far in 2014. All these missed tackles has left him only 69.11% effective in defence. Brooks is the only Halfback to average less them 75% in defence.

In 7 appearances Jack Littlejohn has only made one error and conceded no penalties, giving him and outstanding average of 0.14 Errors/Penalties Per Game (EPPG). Only Littlejohn along with Jeff Robson (0.70), Tyrone Roberts (0.93), and Shaun Johnson (0.93) average less then 1.00 EPPG. Benji Marshall 2014 comeback tour has yielded more errors per game then any other Halfback at 2.29 EPPG. No other Halfback averages over 2.00 EPPG.

Best Attacking Halfback: Ben Hunt,

Most Consistant Halfback: Ben Hunt,

Worst Halfback: Daniel Holdsworth.

A special mention to Shaun Johnson along with Ben Hunt who each average over 3 APPG, 3 SPPG, over 50 MPG, defend above 85% and only average around 1 EPPG.

If Ben Hunt goes only to win the Dally M in 2014 it would cap of an incredible coming of age for Hunt. He will have finally proved his potential in the top grade after he was heralded as the next big thing way back in 2008, when he won the NYC inaugural player of the year in 2008.

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