With NRL Round 9 complete we can have a look at one of my advanced statistics for rugby league, Run %. This statistic aims to estimate the percentage of team plays that a player completed a run during his time on the field. It is used to estimate workload with the ball.
Firstly, we will look at all players for Round 9.
Despite a chronic knee injury, Andrew Fifita can still turn it on in limited minutes, with 9 runs in 13 minutes for a Run % of 43.6%. It’s likely that percentage would have declined had he played more minutes but even for an injury affected game that is an incredible Run %. It is rare for a Run % to be above 25% even in short minutes, let alone above 30 or 40%.
His teammate Siosifa Talakai had a similarly impressive Run % in limited minutes, completing a run on 33.6% of Sharks possessions.
Penrith forwards James Tamou and James Fisher-Harris locked up positions 1 and 3 this round, with Paul Vaughan sandwiched in between. Nathan Brown from the Eels is also worth a mention with 26 hit ups in the full 80 minutes for a run % of 13.5%.
The highest placed back this week was Roger Tuivasa-Sheck in 20th spot with a run rate of 13%.
Lastly, the season stats for Run % show Fifita with a slim lead over Melbourne’s Nelson Asofa-Solomona. Given his injuries and limited minutes it’s unlikely Fifita will hold on to this lead, either due to lower workload or not hitting a minute threshold. Jason Taumalolo looks the most likely challenge the two ahead of him given the dearth of quality middle forwards at the Cowboys.
