Super Rugby
Izzy firing in attack, Whiteley a wall in defence
Richard Kelly
March 26, 2015
Greg Growden casts an eye over Super Rugby Round 7
We're just about through the first third of the Super Rugby season and the unbeaten Hurricanes are clear at the top of the standings. The competition leaders have played five games after having the bye last week, with the Brumbies, Force, Chiefs, Sharks and Lions the only teams to have featured in each of the six rounds. At this juncture, we've decided to use the Opta Index to take a look at some of Super Rugby's top early performers for season 2015. Going by Opta's points-scoring system, which is explained at the foot of this article, we take the top scoring forwards and backs of the season and examine why our number crunching has them as the top dogs.
Backs Handre Pollard (Bulls): 449
Springboks tyro Handre Pollard continues to impress in Super Rugby © Getty Images
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Israel Folau (Waratahs): 388
Israel Folau enjoyed his best performance in 2015 against the Brumbies last weekend © Getty Images
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Patrick Lambie (Sharks): 369
Patrick Lambie continues to lead the way for the Sharks © Getty Images
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Ben Smith (Highlanders): 337
Waisake Naholo (Highlanders): 335
Forwards Warren Whiteley (Lions): 367
Warren Whiteley is easily the hardest working defensive player in Super Rugby © Getty Images
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Sam Cane (Chiefs): 337
Chiefs flanker Sam Cane is proving a handful at the breakdown © Getty Images
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Sean McMahon (Rebels): 320
Michael Hooper (Waratahs): 316
Michael Hooper was in fine form against the Brumbies © Getty Images
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Luke Braid (Blues): 288
How the Opta Index works The Opta Index allows genuine opportunities to compare and contrast both player and team strengths and weaknesses across top flight rugby, providing real insights as follows: After every match Opta completes a video analysis of every touch of the ball in rugby matches. Each action in the match is awarded a points value depending on the relative importance of the action. For example, a try scores more points than a tackle but a player loses points for a missed tackle. The points are then weighted against the score at the time when the action took place (higher points if the score is closer), the time in the match (higher points at the start of the match) and the position on the pitch where it took place (higher points for actions closer to the goal line). The player is then given a score for the match by adding up all his actions while he was on the field. © Opta Stats for ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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