SANZAAR Super Rugby Team of the Week: Round 13
Via sanzarrugby.com
The Super Rugby Team of the Week has representatives from eight of the teams after an intriguing weekend that saw the race for finals become even more competitive. The Kiwi teams are again looking strong at this stage with four in line for a finals berth and the Crusaders and Hurricanes are vying for top spot in the NZ Conference. In the South African Conference the Lions lead but three teams are on their tail in joint second place. In Australia it looks like a fight between the Waratahs and Rebels for the top spot.
Bulls fullback Warrick Gelant continues to impress this season and his all round statistics in a top performance against the Sharks earned him Player of the Week.
|
15 |
Warrick Gelant |
Bulls |
Scored one try, assisted another, gained 117m from 16 carries, made four clean breaks, and nine kicks in general play. |
|
14 |
Waisake Naholo |
Highlanders |
Beat a joint round-high nine defenders, made three clean breaks, 14 carries for 82m and found his way to the tryline once. |
|
13 |
Jesse Kriel |
Bulls |
Made a joint round-high five clean breaks, gained 117m from 11 carries, assisted one try and scored another. |
|
12 |
Kurtley Beale |
Waratahs |
Made eight kicks in general play, provided a try assist, an offload and made two clean breaks from nine carries. |
|
11 |
Hosea Saumaki |
Sunwolves |
Scored a hat-trick of tries, more than any other player, won two turnovers, made two clean breaks, and gained 63m from eight carries. |
|
10 |
Hayden Parker |
Sunwolves |
Kicked 12 goals without miss and scored a try for a Sunwolves record of 36 points in the match. |
|
9 |
Brad Weber |
Chiefs |
Made 5/5 tackles, 5 carries for 16m gained, one clean break and four kicks in general play. |
|
8 |
Luke Whitelock |
Highlanders |
Made 17/19 tackles, 17 carries for 48m, two clean breaks, two offloads, and scored one try. |
|
7 |
Jean-Luc du Preez |
Sharks |
Made a team-high 15 carries, gaining 54m and making two clean breaks, also beat three defenders and made 9/10 tackles. |
|
6 |
Elliot Dixon |
Highlanders |
Made a round-high seven offloads, provided a try assist, and gained 36m from 12 carries. |
|
5 |
Marvin Orie |
Lions |
Finished with three clean breaks, three offloads, made nine carries for 47m gained, and 8/9 tackles. |
|
4 |
Grant Hattingh |
Sunwolves |
Won a team-high five lineouts, made 9 tackles, 11 carries, and crossed for a try. |
|
3 |
Jeff Toomaga-Allen |
Hurricanes |
Made 14/14 tackles, four carries for 17m gained, and beat five defenders. |
|
2 |
Ricky Riccitelli |
Hurricanes |
Made a round-high 18 successful lineout throws, made 9/10 tackles, 11 carries, and crossed for a try. |
|
1 |
Tendai Mtawarira |
Sharks |
Provided a try assist, made two offloads, five carries for 16m gained and 3/3 tackles. |
Opta Index: How does it work
The Opta Index allows genuine opportunities to compare and contrast both player and team strengths and weaknesses across Super Rugby, providing real insights pre-game as follows:
After every match Opta completes a video analysis of every touch of the ball. Each action in the match is awarded a points value depending on the relative importance of the action. So for example, a try scores more points than a tackle, but a player loses points for a missed tackle.
The points are then weighted against the score at the time when the action took place (higher points if the score is closer), the time in the match (higher points at the start of the match) and the position on the pitch where it took place (higher points for actions closer to the goal line).
The player is then given a score for the match by adding up all his actions while he was on the field. The total match score is then weighted to take account of the strength of the opposition so that performances across many matches can be judged fairly.
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