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How to read statistics in RU

Gill_Lenart

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So at the beginning I wanted to introduce myself, I am Gill, I am Polish, but I live in England.

I started to be interested in this sport because I liked it, but I have a problem understanding the rules of the game, I watch matches and I do better, I read the guides as well.

I know, I know, rugby in Poland hardly not "exists", it is a niche sport, hardly anyone is interested in it and the league is weak and poor.

I just wanted to ask what statistics should I pay attention to ..? Which statistics are the most important to you?
to assess which team had the greater advantage and whether it won "fairly".


Whether it is important to have a territory advantage or possession is more important in the first case. or, for example, Turnovers won ?.

2021-02-24 14_13_09-Window.png

For example, at the start, I look at such statistics as mark above, but am I doing right?

And I have a question, is there a better website with statistics than the official Premiership Rugby? because here it is presented enough generally.
Maybe you know better sites with more statistics ?
Thank you.


 
Hi Gill

Respect to you for trying to understand the game and for taking such an interest by going through all the guides, etc.

When it comes to stats, I personally think that one shouldn't read too much into it. Now don't get me wrong; stats are important, especially for coaching staff for analysing where their team needs to improve. But for fans, the stats are more academical I would say.

The reason I say this is because of the dynamics and fluidity of a rugby match. For example, Team A can dominate in most aspects of the game, yet they can end up still losing the match because if the scores are close then all it takes is one brilliant moment from team B, who lost in all the stats, but who used their opportunities better.

If there is one stat that I think is more defining of a match, I would say it is the "points scored from visits to opponent 22" as this shows how good/clinical a team is in converting their opportunities (and by extension the possession they have) into points when they are close to their opponents goal line. But again, a team can score everytime they reach their opponents 22, but they can still lose the game from an interception, drop goal, etc.

You also need to look at the game holistically and not isolate the stats, because if you see Team A has got 70% possession and 60% territory, that doesn't necessarily mean that they are dominating the game because if Team B focuses on their defence and uses their defence to put pressure on Team A, then Team B might actually be more successful in implementing their gameplan than Team A and in doing that, Team B might actually be dominating the game eventhough the stats point to the opposite.

I am sorry if I confuse you and there will be other fellow rugby supporters who can probably provide you with another perspective of how to read the stats. I personally just see the stats as an informative aspect of the game, but I don't read to much into it.
 
First up, Welcome to the forum and the sport!

looking at stats is hard as different teams have different games plans that will skew those stats

for example, the All Blacks have for several years had a game plan based around the fact they believe they will always have superior fitness/skills. their game plans therefore i happy to kick away possession and wait for or try and force a mistake from the opposition....and then counter attack. OR, they'll be happy for keep the score close for 3/4 of the match planning on having more gas in the tank for the final 20min

so if you look at the stats for these games the AB's will quite possibly have less possession and territory and more tackles...but still win the game

in the end the only stat that REALLY matters is the score, the rest are kind of interesting at best
 
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