GarethGriffiths
Academy Player
- Joined
- Jul 8, 2017
- Messages
- 491
I'm sure that there's more than a few clubs out there using this method.
Which clubs do you think are using Moneyball in the best ways?
All clubs are to an extent using this. It's about finding value where others don't. Look at the huge number of South Africa forwards dotted around Europe, Fijian wingers and Georgian props in France. Why overpay for indigenous players when you can pick up better, cheaper players elsewhere.
If looking for an individual moneyball signing that's worked well this season, John Cooney is a good example. Ulster were resigned to losing Ruan Pienaar, one of the top scrum halves around. They replaced him with Connacht's 27 year old backup scrum half who had 15 starts in the previous 3 seasons. He's gone on to be Ulster's primary goalkicker and arguably only Jacob Stockdale has played better for them this season.
As for a team who used it well, Scarlets saw value in Rhys Patchell, Johnny McNicholl, Hadleigh Parkes and Tadhg Beirne when others didn't. It brought them a Pro12 ***le last season.
All I can do is subjectively peak at examples of players who have looked better than most would have anticipated since moving teams. Could be gut instinct of coaches, could be analysis. Only those involved in making those decisions will truly know.Unless you know more about the reason that those signings were made than you've mentioned, they don't necessarily represent Sabremetrics. They could just as easily be a case of a coach having an eye for talent and the balls to take a risk. Given the profile that the 2011 New Zealand team gave this, I'm amazed that we haven't heard more about it than we have. Saying that, the nature of the beast is that this only works if you hold an information advantage over others in the market place. Anyone smart enough to put the Sabremetrics principles to use in a rugby context would obviously be bright enough to realise this and be guarded with their trade secrets.
All I can do is subjectively peak at examples of players who have looked better than most would have anticipated since moving teams. Could be gut instinct of coaches, could be analysis. Only those involved in making those decisions will truly know.
If we're to take the Billy Beane phrase "we're not selling jeans here", Chris Cloete fits the bill as a possible moneyball signing. A 5'9" tall flanker would be considered by most to be too small. He came through Sri Lankan pro rugby and a couple of unglamourous South African Currie Cup teams to become an important member of the Munster team turning in excellent performances whenever he plays. Munster saw value where others in Europe didn't. Maybe it's great scouting and gut instinct from Munster scouts which brought him to the south west of Ireland, maybe it's excellent work by their performance analysts or maybe it's a combination of both.