Stat dive - defence analysis

[D.O.W.]

Very interesting read. I was looking at the post game stats past night and I couldn't get my head around it because I thought that we were by far the better defensive team! Yet newcastle lead tackle breaks 35-19, and we missed many more tackles, 35-19 then newcastle. It didn't add up. However, we made an average of q0m more per set then them. This article tells us why, and how we were far better defensively.

These stats really provide a deeper insight into whats working for us. We do miss a lot of tackles from rushing up the defence (aka Reed Mahoney who often leads the defensive line meeting the ball receiver). This year, Reed’s pressure is working because he’s got capable support defensively and there’s a lot of belief in the squad, last year he had boys trying to help out but they struggled to contain the big boppers coupled with a lack of belief.

 

[Lynchpin]

average metres gained past the play

Define "play-the-ball".
Is that where the player is tackled, and then restarts for the next play? Or is it where the ref allows them to walk to before starting the next play? (ala Rorters Revival-style play the balls.)
The answer (and reality) impacts this "stat".
Regardless, our defence has been outstanding - a beautiful blend of technique, attitude, and belief.
For the first time in over a decade we look like we can reliably hold out multiple sets when under the pump.

 

[GA45]

The 6 agains on the 5th tackle yesterday was fuckin crazy! Surely that **** of a ref needs to be looked into

If the NRL isn’t looking at Ziggy they won’t be looking at yesterday’s ref !

 

[rexest]

And so many on here call ciraldo the assistant.

 

[GA45]

And so many on here call ciraldo the assistant.

They seem to be quiet these days

 

[CrittaMagic69]

They seem to be quiet these days

I alternated between Ciraldildo and Ciraldawg depending on my mood.

 

[alwaysthesun]

They seem to be quiet these days

I was never over-critical myself but was concerned about rookie coach with a team that was so far off the mark.. the buy in this year is night and day to last, and the players genuinely look happy.. I remember watching the Penrith documentaries and one thing that was evident was Cirado, and Ivan of course always keeping things fresh.. like the different themes and such.. and they made sure everybody is involved. There's a lot to be excited about.

 

[Lynchpin]

I alternated between Ciraldildo and Ciraldawg depending on my mood.

Very kinky.
Each to their own I suppose...

 

[The DoggFather]

And so many on here call ciraldo the assistant.

Not for 3-4 weeks, it's looking like the boys are buying into his plan, so should we.

It looks like JT being attacking coach has freed up CC to implement his defence tactics.

Of course having players that want to play helps too.

 

[CQDog]

As I wrote in another thread, the last try against the knights was a direct result of our half being rested. For 70 minutes there had not been a single break down our right side then Taffe came on and over read the play. Best strolls through a yarning gap to score.

OP will block you now lmfao

 

[ILiveForDib]

Really want to see us keep nailing down on our defense. Keeping teams to 1-2 tries is as good as scoring 40, emulating penriths sort of mentality in that way I can deal with. Need better ball discipline still a lot of work but were on the right trajectory.

This assistant might win us a premiership one day

 

[InGusWeTrust]

I thought we’d been good preventing post-contact metres, so it’s good to see it confirmed by stats. Remarkable really, considering where we were at last season. I was thinking about it earlier actually. Even with a few injuries here and there we have handled it much better because we can actually bring in decent players, instead of relying on turnstiles like Okunbor etc. Say Salmon replaced him. While not a dangerous attacker his defence is pretty reliable. Same goes for several other players.

I remember back in the day being thrilled by our team’s defence. It was so good some years that we would repel quality opponents time and again on our tryline. Playing Canberra in semifinals at SFS comes to mind. Gillies, Britt, Hetherington et al. Those were the days. It was a very proud aspect of our team, so if we can get back to that, I’m sure everyone will be happy.

 

[obje]

Canterbury’s commitment to defense emphasises how unserious the Cowboys are - The Rugby League Eye Test

If you watched both Sunday games from NRL Round 7, there’s some very obvious conclusions about the sides that played. Other than the Knights losing their 2023 identity and the Sharks running up a score against a bottom nine side at home, that is. The first is that the long path for Cameron...

www.rugbyleagueeyetest.com

I posted an article by this site earlier on in the season analysing Kikau's early involvement which has certainly come to fruition. This article takes a deep dive into how and why our defence has improved. Some really great stats. Warning, it's a long one and data heavy for those who are into that sort of thing.

Key takeaways/excerpts:

Because once teams get the ball, the Dogs are ruthless at stopping extra yardage past the play the ball. On average metres gained past the play the play the ball by tackle – not average run metres – the Bulldogs rank 1st, 1st, 2nd and 1st from the second to fifth play the ball.

View attachment 107251

Even by more conventional rugby league metrics, Canterbury has still put on the clamps. Below is a chart of average metres per run conceded by opponent.

View attachment 107253

Yet again the Bulldogs defense shines here, allowing just 7.63 metres per run, 35 centimetres per run ahead of Penrith, the only other team to allow fewer than eight metres per run.

Unsurprisingly given the above, the Dogs are yielding the fewest post contact metres per run of any team in the competition.

View attachment 107254

How good is it seeing objective data showing the systems working. All the nonsense over the past few years about it being too hard etc gone. Just solid results that speak for themselves

 

[Haddaway]

What's really impressive is we've been down a man most games this year and we still defend like we do.

Shows how fit we are.

 

[Haddaway]

I thought we’d been good preventing post-contact metres, so it’s good to see it confirmed by stats. Remarkable really, considering where we were at last season. I was thinking about it earlier actually. Even with a few injuries here and there we have handled it much better because we can actually bring in decent players, instead of relying on turnstiles like Okunbor etc. Say Salmon replaced him. While not a dangerous attacker his defence is pretty reliable. Same goes for several other players.

I remember back in the day being thrilled by our team’s defence. It was so good some years that we would repel quality opponents time and again on our tryline. Playing Canberra in semifinals at SFS comes to mind. Gillies, Britt, Hetherington et al. Those were the days. It was a very proud aspect of our team, so if we can get back to that, I’m sure everyone will be happy.

Salmon gets a shit go on here, but he goes hard in defense and obviously is buying in big time to the defensive structures. He made 40 odd tackles yesterday.

 

[CrittaMagic69]

Salmon gets a shit go on here, but he goes hard in defense and obviously is buying in big time to the defensive structures. He made 40 odd tackles yesterday.

Salmon cops shit because he's shit, switched off plenty of times in defence. Made two bad defensive errors against the Storm that lead to tries. Can't wait to see the back of this donkey.

 

[ILiveForDib]

What's really impressive is we've been down a man most games this year and we still defend like we do.

Shows how fit we are.

And a considerably smaller pack I want the fitness routine for myself

 

[rexest]

Salmon cops shit because he's shit, switched off plenty of times in defence. Made two bad defensive errors against the Storm that lead to tries. Can't wait to see the back of this donkey.

41 tackles 0 missed.

 

[CrittaMagic69]

41 tackles 0 missed.

And?

 

[CrittaMagic69]

And a considerably smaller pack I want the fitness routine for myself

Inhalers