We’re now halfway through the NRLW regular season, and I thought I’d take a look at some charts to determine who have been the best players running the ball thus far. The first chart we’re going to look at is average runs per game plotted against average tackle busts per match, to get and idea of who the most damaging runners of the ball are. This one is usually dominated in NRLM by Brian To’o, although Greg Marzhew has been leading it this season. The results for the first five rounds of NRLW 2023 are below. A lot has been...
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The Dolphins debut year is a tale of two seasons
As an expansion team there is usually little in the way of expectations, even for one coached by the legendary Wayne Bennett. Very few had the Dolphins anywhere near the top eight this season, and most predictions were for a bottom four finish. And it looks like that’s exactly where they’ll finish up. And it’s possible they’ll have a better for and against margin than the Canberra Raiders. They should have picked up another victory on the weekend with a win over the Titans, but Api Koroisau broke their hearts with a penalty goal in the 76th minute. Still they...
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The case for a smaller ball in the NRLW
On a recent episode of the Upfront Podcast (please like and subscribe), NRLW star and first ballot Eye Test Hall of Famer Millie Boyle was asked about the possibility of using a smaller ball and it prompted a very interesting discussion. Rather than recap her answer, the video of the question is below. It does raise a great point, if we want to improve the NRLW product, a smaller ball may help introduce some of the more spectacular tries we see in the NRLM. And what’s more exciting than seeing a big forward running down an edge with the ball...
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How would a 2023 Dally M leaderboard look based purely on statistics?
With the Rugby League Players Association and the NRL finally signing their collective bargaining agreement, one of the feel good stories of the year can hopefully have its fairy tale ending. That being 32 year old Shaun Johnson winning the Dally M medal for player of the year. Given the sheer volume of #ShaunHub content this past fortnight and so many people touting him as the favourite for the Dally M medal, I thought I’d take this week to go through a thought experiment. What would a Dally M or “player of the year” award look like if we used...
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NRLW Round 3 in expected points and advanced stats
We’re three rounds into the season and the competition is already starting to split into the haves and have nots. The Eels obviously are firmly have nots, with the Dragons and Cowboys looking like they might join them and there’s some questions coming from the Sharks after their performance. And whilst Brisbane is 1-2, they showed enough against the Cowboys that you’d have to be very confident to predict they couldn’t make the top four from here. Let’s get into the charts and stats. Sydney Roosters v St George Illawarra For a game that was never close on the scoreboard,...
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What even are the Canberra Raiders this year?
The Canberra Raiders entered Round 23 with a point differential of -78, the 6th worst in the NRL. Their opponents were the last placed Wests Tigers, who’ve conceded more than 500 points this season and given up scores of 74, 36, 34, 18 and 32 since the first of July. It represented the best chance for the Raiders to right this number and regain some control over their finals hopes, which friend of the site Dan from the Sportress noted in his excellent match review. But he also noted that both teams are incapable of playing eighty minutes of decent...
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