Some claim the spine of a football team – positions 1,6,7,9 – is the key to a premiership. Others would argue that forwards, and defence win games.
I would say it’s a combination of all, as well as a special team cohesion which is not shown by the numbers. For example Manly sit on top of the ladder, with the fourth most attacking plays, ninth most metres, and the 10th-best defensive percentage.
This is compared to the Cowboys who sit 12th, with the fifth most attacking plays, third most metres, and the third-best defensive percentage. If it was purely mathematical, Manly would not would not be in such a lofty position.
The purpose of this article is to rank a teams reliance on their spine in attack. My method was to add up all the tries, try assists, line breaks, line break assists, forced drop outs and 40/20s that have been notched by a team’s fullback, five-eighth, halfback and hooker.
I would then divide this figure by the number of games played by the team to receive an overall number. This numbers represents the average number of “attacking plays per game” a spine had produced.
I would then do the same for the entire team to get a total team “attacking plays per game”. I then used these two figures to calculate what percentage of attacking plays the teams spine had performed of the total.
For example the Cowboys relied on their spine for 57.95 per cent of the total attacking plays, while the Roosters only relied on their spine for 41.87 per cent of the total.
The problem with this method is that I have not factored in injuries during the game and swapping of positions, such as the Roosters routinely do with their fullbacks. However this effectively should be minimal as Anthony Minichiello and RTS have only have a difference on three attacking plays, so hopefully it evens out.
The teams are listed below from highest reliance on the spine to lowest. I have also added in a number of other figures, for comparison. Its hard to know if such statistics have any use.
Sometimes, the numbers confirm what you already suspected. For example the Bulldogs’ spine have the 14th most attacking plays, and the team has the 12th most, which is not spectacular for a team coming third. However, they have the most metres by far, and the second best defensive percentage.
These figures seem to confirm that the Bulldogs success belongs to their forward pack and not their spine. However such numbers do not take into account the hooker’s control of the ruck, or the halves direction during play.
Other times, stats make no sense at all. The Cowboys for example tick every statistical box of a top eight team, and yet they sit outside the eight. Perhaps it is over reliance on their spine, or other issues.
1. Cowboys (57.95 per cent)
12th, 7 wins, 9 losses.
1st in spine attacking plays.
5th in total attacking plays.
All run metres 23,751 (3rd)
Defensive percentage 92.81 (second)
The Cowboys have used 8 players in their spine out of a total of 29 total in 2014.
2. Storm (55.73 per cent)
8th, 8 wins, 8 losses.
2nd in spine attacking plays.
6th in total attacking plays.
All run metres 23,389 (7th)
Defensive percentage 91.99 (7th)
The storm have used 8 players in their spine out of a total of 27 total in 2014.
3. Panthers (55.42 per cent)
2nd, 11 wins, 5 losses.
4th in spine attacking plays.
10th in total attacking plays.
All run metres 23,798 (second)
Defensive percentage 90.58 (12th)
The Panthers have used 7 players in their spine out of a total of 25 total in 2014.
4. Tigers (54.29 per cent)
10th, 8 wins, 8 losses.
10th* in spine attacking plays.
14th in total attacking plays.
All run metres 22726 (13th)
Defensive percentage 89.87 (16th)
The Tigers have used 8 players in their spine out of 27 total in 2014.
5. Raiders (53.44 per cent)
15th, 5 wins, 11 losses.
5th in spine attacking plays.
9th in total attacking plays.
All run metres 22,115 (16th)
Defensive percentage 91.71 (8th)
The Raiders have used 8 players in their spine out of 26 total in 2014.
6. Sharks (53.18 per cent)
16th, 4 wins, 12 losses.
15th in spine attacking plays.
15th in total attacking plays.
All run metres 22,214 (15th)
Defensive percentage 92.33 (5th)
The Sharks have used 13 players in their spine out of 29 total in 2014.
7. Rabbitohs (50.20 per cent)
Pos fourth, 9 wins, 7 losses.
8th in spine attacking plays.
7th in total attacking plays.
All run metres 22,994 (10th)
Defensive percentage 94.19 (1st)
The Rabbitohs have used 9 players in their spine out of 27 total in 2014.
8. Knights (50.00 per cent)
14th, 5 wins, 11 losses.
13th in spine attacking plays.
13th in total attacking plays.
All run metres 23486 (6th)
Defensive percentage 90.42 (13th)
The Knights have used 8 players in their spine out of 27 total in 2014.
9. Titans (48.21 per cent)
13th, 7 wins, 9 losses.
16th in spine attacking plays.
16th in total attacking plays.
All run metres 22,855 (12th)
Defensive percentage 90.42 (15th)
The Titans have used 11 players in their spine out of 29 total in 2014.
10. Dragons (47.88 per cent)
9th, 8 wins, 8 losses.
12th in spine attacking plays.
11th in total attacking plays.
All run metres 22,954 (11th)
Defensive percentage 92.58 (4th)
The Dragons have used 9 players in their spine out of 27 total in 2014.
11. Sea Eagles (46.43 per cent)
1st, 11 wins, 5 losses.
6th in spine attacking plays.
4th in total attacking plays.
All run metres 23,071 (9th)
Defensive percentage 91.65 (10th)
The Sea Eagles have used 7 players in their spine out of 26 total in 2014.
12. Warriors (45.66 per cent)
6th, 9 wins, 7 losses.
3rd in spine attacking plays.
1st in total attacking plays.
All run metres 23,638 (5th)
Defensive percentage 91.50 (11th)
The Warriors have used 6 players in their spine out of 28 total in 2014.
13. Eels (45.55 per cent)
11th, 8 wins, 8 losses.
7th in spine attacking plays.
3rd in total attacking plays.
All run metres 22610 (14th)
Defensive percentage 90.39 (14th)
The Eels have used 7 players in their spine out of 29 total in 2014.
14. Broncos (45.24 per cent)
7th, 8 wins, 8 losses.
10th* in spine attacking plays.
8th in total attacking plays.
All run metres 23671 (4th)
Defensive percentage 91.66 (9th)
The Broncos have used 5 players in their spine out of 25 total in 2014.
15. Bulldogs (42.73 per cent)
3rd, 11 wins, 5 losses.
14th in spine attacking plays.
12th in total attacking plays.
All run metres 25,007 (1st)
Defensive percentage 92.92 (second)
The Bulldogs have used 10 players in their spine out of 26 total in 2014.
16. Roosters (41.87 per cent)
5th, 9 wins, 7 losses.
9th in spine attacking plays.
2nd in total attacking plays.
All run metres 23,230 (8th)
Defensive percentage 92.08 (6th)
The Roosters have used 7 players in their spine out of 25 total in 2014.
Reckon you can pick the winning team? Build your own dream team with Draftstars daily fantasy and compete on any match. For great odds on the NRL head on over to PlayUp. Imagine what you could be buying instead. Set a deposit limit.
Having a week off to recharge their batteries during the bye did nothing to stop South Sydney’s season from hell descending further into the…
1. Tigers earning their stripes The Tigers played Souths last year when the Bunnies were at their very highest point. Tim Sheens coached them…
Who are the hardest working big men in the NRL?
Death, taxes and the Storm defying pre-season predictions that this year will be the one when they slip down the ladder. Inevitably, seven rounds…
Cameron Ciraldo must wonder what to say to his players at times like this. Against the best teams in the league, Canterbury have performed…
1. Sea Eagles see no evil The Manly Sea Eagles are a loveable bunch, which is why they famously don’t have to carry banners…
