Sharks need to stifle charging Chiefs
1 Aug 2012
JON CARDINELLI analyses the final and notes that the Chiefs and Sharks share attacking strengths, but not the same defensive weaknesses.
Why bother with an analysis? The Chiefs have been one of the most physical teams in the tournament, while the Sharks’ ability to produce an intense forward showing will be compromised by their taxing travelling schedule. The Sharks will be at a significant disadvantage this Saturday. Some might even call the final a mis-match.
What the stats and trends can show us is that the challenge facing the Sharks is greater than most expect. Forget the travel fatigue and the fact that this game will be staged in Hamilton – the Chiefs’ attack will be tough to repel and their defence difficult to breach.
According to ruckingoodstats.com, the Sharks are the highest-ranked team in terms of keeping the ball in play over the course of a match. They average 7.4 offloads (the second-best rate in the tournament) and break 16.9 tackles (seventh-best in the tournament) per game. These stats support the statement that they are a very dangerous attacking unit.
But then so too are the Chiefs. The men from Hamilton may not boast the possession stats of the Sharks, but when they do get their hands on the ball, they make their opportunities count.
They are the top-ranked team in terms of offloads (9.1 per match), and their robust ball carriers manage to break 20.9 tackles per match (third-best in the tournament). They are also particularly effective in the opposition’s 22, breaking 5.5 tackles per match. They are the best team in the competition in terms of linebreaks (3.3 per match), and flyhalf Aaron Cruden runs at the defence more than any other pivot.
While there may be similarities in the attacking strengths of these two finalists, their defensive records are vastly different.
The Sharks miss 20.7 tackles per match, making them the worst team in the tournament for tackles missed. It will interest the Chiefs to note that the Sharks miss 5.5 tackles on average in their own 22, and as previously mentioned, the Chiefs are a side that enjoys tackle-busting success in the red zone. The Sharks missed 23 tackles last week in the semi-final against the Stormers, so it’s not as if the total average miss-rate is an unfair reflection of their current defensive form.
By comparison, the Chiefs are one of the best defensive units in the comp. Their line speed has allowed them to stifle opponents and force them into errors. The stats substantiate this claim, as the Chiefs have effected the most charge downs and intercepts.
But the Chiefs are not without weakness. They have made more errors than any other team when kicking from hand. They have also conceded the most penalties overall, as well as the most penalties at the ruck and maul.
While the Sharks’ high tempo game has proved successful this season, they cannot hope to beat the Chiefs at their own game. The more prudent course of action is to attempt to slow the Chiefs down.
The Chiefs lineout hasn’t been that flash and the stats confirm that they are ranked third for quick throw-ins. This suggests that they enjoy playing the game at a lively pace and are not well equipped to combat a good opposition lineout.
The Sharks also have the most disciplined scrum in the tournament, and it is here where they will fancy themselves against the Chiefs. They should also attempt to draw the Chiefs into a battle at close quarters, as the Chiefs don’t have a good record when it comes to maintaining their discipline at the breakdowns and mauls (see above).
The Sharks are the more disciplined side, but will they need to improve on their breakdown performance against the Stormers. John Plumtree’s men may have won the battle at the collisions in that match, but they still conceded 10 penalties at the ruck and maul.
If they can sharpen up in that area, then they will stand a good chance of stifling the Chiefs.
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323 Comments
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1 Aug 2012, 14:04 pm
@SA rugby is k@k-193: Sheez dude. Hating our rugby is fine, hating random South Africans is fine too, but nastiness re: Caster, an athlete who happened to be the victim of some screwed up chromosone count, and no fault of her own? Pretty cruel, but then again, I suppose you are entitled to say this – freedom of speech and all that.
1 Aug 2012, 14:06 pm
@wait for it, wait for it…-198:
You do realise this will make Kiwi teams even stronger as well.
Two teams from the north Island and two from the south.
Imagine a mixture of Chiefs boys in Hurricanes and Blues. GAME OVER
1 Aug 2012, 14:07 pm
@wait for it, wait for it…-200:
You still complaining.
were you not singing the same cry baby tunes last night?
1 Aug 2012, 14:09 pm
@Hurricane-199:
Problem with South Africa is….there is plenty of money to fund a team twice the size but there is no effective system in place to funnel the resources to rectify these deficiencies.
South Africa could easily compete in every single Olympic discipline if the right personnel were in charge. That will not happen in my lifetime.
1 Aug 2012, 14:10 pm
@Hurricane-199:
On Friday I will watching Eric Murray race for Gold with his Grandad in Trentham.
1 Aug 2012, 14:12 pm
@cane-205:
awesome dude. Hope he does well. Make Grandads day
1 Aug 2012, 14:12 pm
@Hurricane-199:
hehehe…
yes… the little down-underdog island that could… will do great i’m sure…
even get more medals then south africa to put yet another feather in oh-so-desperate kiwi need for recognition…
thing is… it was a kiwi poster who boasted that sa would do worse than tonga…
now THAT was big call…
but didn’t notice any more-righteous-than-everyone-else kiwi posters object to that one…
but instead of wiping donkeys egg from all over kiwi faces… a kiwi poster would rather get uppity about the banter… that was started by a kiwi poster…
go figure…
gotta love the righteousness of it all…
1 Aug 2012, 14:14 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged by Mad Eye Productions.-201: You’re not allowed to point these things out to Poepa. Next thing he’ll be wild-eyed and sweating and writing obscenities on the wall in his own feces again before offering a blanket apology for all the hurt he caused. Do you want that hanging over your head?
1 Aug 2012, 14:14 pm
@Hurricane-202:
i have no problem with strength versus strength.
do you have a problem with neutral referees..?…
PS: dont answer it
1 Aug 2012, 14:15 pm
@ufo-207: for a bloke who doesnt like generalising you sure seem to be doing a lot of it…
must be that superiority complex from those in the republic… is it inherited?
1 Aug 2012, 14:17 pm
the islands of New Zeal and Righteousness…!!
1 Aug 2012, 14:18 pm
@SA rugby is k@k-210:
you know
generally
when people say ‘dont drink the koolaid’
they really mean it…
1 Aug 2012, 14:18 pm
@SA rugby is k@k-210:
please give an example of my generalizing…
1 Aug 2012, 14:19 pm
Watching the medals being handed out. Eight giants and a Skop. Eight giants and a Fern. Eight giants and a Dusky.
1 Aug 2012, 14:20 pm
@ufo-213: this do?
yet another feather in oh-so-desperate kiwi need for recognition…
1 Aug 2012, 14:20 pm
@SA rugby is k@k-193:
hehehe
you are a class act, pops.
1 Aug 2012, 14:21 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged by Mad Eye Productions.-201:
To be fair Mad Eye…………………………………………………Casta has rights.
But so too do her competitors.
My understanding is that Casta is allowed to compete,
as long as she continues some form of feminine hormone treatment.
If She was not S. African, she would be banned. Full stop.
(I know this is no fault of Casta).
1 Aug 2012, 14:21 pm
@wait for it, wait for it…-216: class on a blog? surely you jest? I mean, every kiwi is a filthy scum cheat, so therefore how could any kiwi have class?
1 Aug 2012, 14:22 pm
This site is as consistent as the Boks rugby team.
@ufo-207:
Ummm whats are you talking about?
I didnt see anything of the sort about someone saying Tonga winning more medals that you guys.
How can i object to something i have not seen or read?
We talked about South Africa and your justice system, are you playing by that. Hurricane Guilty….but he wasnt there…… so hes different …..guilty.
Dont waste your time trying to bring me into a post by another kiwi.
Oh smiley face if you like
1 Aug 2012, 14:25 pm
@wait for it, wait for it…-209:
We love Neutral Refs Bakkies.
We even love Barnsie.
He will burn in hell. But we love him just the same.
1 Aug 2012, 14:26 pm
@SA rugby is k@k-215:
hahaha…
that’s not a generalisation…
i was quite specific…
you guys have a huge need for recognition…
hence your presence on a saffa rugby chat site…
hence the boast by cane before the games even started that new zealand would do better than south africa which would do worse than tonga…
hence your battle cry that your population is so much smaller… so that any achievement of the Righteous Islands is multiplied by 10 to reap the full amount of recognition due to you…
generalisation…?
1 Aug 2012, 14:27 pm
@cane-220: Clive Norling was one of the best in my books…neutral ref I mean… how he knew to get the japies before the email was pure prophecy… must have seen how righteous us kiwis were
1 Aug 2012, 14:27 pm
@wait for it, wait for it…-209:
Sorry but you really cant tell me what posts to answer too.
But i like Neutral refs, last year in the RWC they did great. How about you?
1 Aug 2012, 14:28 pm
@>^..^< katman-208: It’s the guy who was discussed yesterday? Ok, I should have realised.
@stormer in a teacup-214:
Glad you also find a Dusky in the coxswain look 
@cane-217: Then the IAAF should be the victim of the rest of the world’s scorn. Degrading her (like that other Kiwi fellow did) surely to G, serves very little purpose other than to hurt? Sorry – whether her competing is fair or not (and her times have been so dreadful, I doubt at this stage she is a threat to anyone – add to that the 10000 tests she will have to undergo pre and post race…) she doesn’t deserve to be beaten up like an adulterer in Afghanistan.
1 Aug 2012, 14:28 pm
@SA rugby is k@k-215: That was a very specific reference to kiwis.
1 Aug 2012, 14:29 pm
@SA rugby is k@k-218:
no pops, there are many kiwis who have a lot of class. you however have class all of a different knid.
as for honest kiwi rugby players who play the game hard but fair… well thats about as easy to find as ostrich teeth imo.
yes, i may be wrong and yes my perception my have been altered by the kiwi players who play ‘the low game’ but it sure seems that way to me.
1 Aug 2012, 14:31 pm
Pedigree we discussed Poep and his problems yesterday.
He was a very decent chap until he was Jedi mindfucked.
Now he’s something you step in if you aren’t paying attention
1 Aug 2012, 14:32 pm
@ufo-207: @Hurricane-219:
UFO,
I said Togo………………………………………………….not Tonga.
At the last Oly’s in Peking (Beijing), Togo managed a single bronze. SA managed NOTHING.
I see a Saffa beat Phelps out of a gold………………………………………………you party poopers.
Well at least you didn’t poison him I suppose.
1 Aug 2012, 14:32 pm
@ufo-221: sorry, where have I said anything about population sizes in respects Olympics? and do you think Cane may have been winding you up re the Tonga comments? having a laugh? nah of course not, when a kiwi says something on this blog its literal, when a saffa says something its all in jest?
lmfao , dont look now but you are sounding very righteous yourself…
as for chatting on a saffa rugby blog, that equates to needing recogniton? ok then lol delusional..
the only people who need constant recognition is Saffa rugby fans who proclaim theyre the best in the world when stats and rankings prove very much otherwise, but I bow to your superiority, guess you cant help yourself..
1 Aug 2012, 14:33 pm
@ufo-221:
You think we post here for recongnition?
We are the best rugby team in the world. This is a rugby site, we do not need anymore recognition on here, you know who we are.
But question.
Does the same thing apply to South Africans posting on a Kiwi rugby site?
1 Aug 2012, 14:34 pm
@cane-228:
lol
Now look what you have done.
1 Aug 2012, 14:35 pm
@cane-228:
Indeed.
He was a phlelpless bystander.
1 Aug 2012, 14:35 pm
@cane-228: We won a silver in Beijing.
1 Aug 2012, 14:37 pm
@cane-220:
pop goes the ab dream, cane
if nz were to actually allow neutral refs back into the game.
pop, goes the dream…
@Hurricane-223:
boet, i was being rhetorical.
i didnt really mean you couldn’t answer
1 Aug 2012, 14:38 pm
@the artist formerly known as gunther-227: Yeah, I realised it was that dude after Katman highlighted it for me.
He is probably the type of wotalotofcockigot who sits and laughs at those competing in the Paralympics. Anyways, I won’t worry too much about what he says again.
1 Aug 2012, 14:39 pm
@Hurricane-223:
oh and,
about neutral refs in rwc last year
they sure did, didn’t they..?… they sure did
1 Aug 2012, 14:39 pm
@Hurricane-230: “Does the same thing apply to South Africans posting on a Kiwi rugby site?”
Question: Are there any South Africans posting on a Kiwi rugby site?
Why don’t you go and do some research … take your time.
1 Aug 2012, 14:40 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged by Mad Eye Productions.-235:katman> the bloke who didnt like Skop talking about his family yet felt it quite alright to mock mine?
hahaha you’ll fit right in here with all the other saffatards…
1 Aug 2012, 14:42 pm
@SA rugby is k@k-222:
Clive is a friggen legend.
The first Ref to use a digital watch.
That digital watch, allowed us (NZ) the time necessary to win that series.
Alan Hewson……………………………………………you beauty.
(I didn’t see the match,
as I was on a march).
1 Aug 2012, 14:43 pm
@Hurricane-219:
hehehe…
you quite right hurricane…
and i use that line when poppa tries to drag me into fisticuffs about something someone else had said…
i just yanka da chain…
@cane-228:
hehehe…
togo…? i thought you just couldn’t spell…
what’s your evidence that we didn’t poison him…?
results are not yet it…
@Hurricane-230:
i have no idea what or how they say things on the kiwi sites… i just know the kiwi sites are overly moderated and boring… which is why you are mostly on here…
Cane and Hurricane…
It’s all good… just spinning your top cause you normally have clear heads and don’t get loopy-dippy-crazy…
@SA rugby is k@k-229:
go to your local crazy store and buy a sense of humor… or look in the mirror… same diffs…!
1 Aug 2012, 14:43 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged by Mad Eye Productions.-233:
well there goes canes togo theory.
how many did nz get?
1 Aug 2012, 14:43 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged by Mad Eye Productions.-233: But we have since poisoned that Togolese b*stard.
1 Aug 2012, 14:45 pm
@Hurricane-230:
It sure looks like it to me.
Why would we bother posting on a kiwi website?
Here the kiwis come to us.
1 Aug 2012, 14:45 pm
@ufo-240:
lol
Loopy-dippy-crazy.
You should see me watching the Hurricanes play.
1 Aug 2012, 14:47 pm
@cane-239: I know, to think he added so much stoppage time, and this after a bloke was felled by a flour bomb and he had to stop the game for quite some time… it would seem distasteteful if it didnt seem so logical..
@ufo-240: I got a sense of humour UFO, but the fact that one post from me gets so many wound up and ready to wade right in does highlight that I get under their skin…mission accomplished, nothing like ripping the heads of a few praaaaawns bru (obligatory smiley coming up)
1 Aug 2012, 14:48 pm
@SA rugby is k@k-238: I don’t really care what your reasons are for ‘hating’ SA, or her people. What I do know is that there are utterfuckingpricks in every nation on earth. Fern, HG and the Prescum represent SA with pride at the utterfuckingprickolympics.
You seem to be the flag carrier for NZ.
Hate the people on here by all means, hate our rugby as well, hate our players for the hell of it – but those who have suffered some sort of kak luck in the lottery of life, don’t deserve to be drawn into it – e.g. Caster.
1 Aug 2012, 14:48 pm
Hurricane…
you know i even registered on Silverfern once…
posted a comment congratulating the abs…
then the site crashed…
it just hung like that for weeks…
it was only later that i learnt it had not crashed… that’s just how dynamic and existing that site is…!!
1 Aug 2012, 14:49 pm
@the artist formerly known as gunther-243:
Oh, dont think all Kiwis are like us
1 Aug 2012, 14:50 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged by Mad Eye Productions.-233:
My humble and genuine apologies Mad Eye.
You are 100% correct.
SA did finish ahead of Togo.
One silver vs one bronze.
But is that any reason to rain on Micheal Phelps’s parade.
1 Aug 2012, 14:51 pm
@ufo-247:
lol
At least it crashed.
This site does not crash but is one of the buggiest i have seen in a long time.
Fact is this posting to fast problem has been going for over a week now.
Really is it that hard to fix….. course it isnt. Maybe all the South African IT personal are over here
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