This weekend’s monumental clash between Ireland and England in the Aviva Stadium promised to be a pivotal moment in this year’s 6 Nations championship. A victory for either side would put them in the driving seat to claim this year’s crown. Ahead of the game Paul Pierotti, Managing Director at Accenture Analytics looked back at some of the key statistics from last year and how they impacted on the outcome of the Championship.
832 passes completed by Ireland
With a legend in the centre like Brian O’Driscoll and a world-class fly-half in Jonathan Sexton you may expect to see Ireland topping the passing stats, but don’t underestimate the role head coach Joe Schmidt has played. In 2013 Ireland made just 527 passes, less than Wales, England, France and Italy. A year on and a new Southern-Hemisphere inspired approach took them to their first Championship win since 2009.
722 tackles made by Italy
It may not surprise you to know that the Italian defence was pushed harder than any other team in 2014 with the Azzurri making an astonishing 208 tackles against Ireland alone. Italian back-row forward Robert Barbieri topped the individual tackle charts, averaging a bone-shuddering 17 challenges per match.
138 points for top-scorers England
England failed to top the table but did score more points than anyone else including six more than eventual winners Ireland.
84 offloads from France
Few surprises that France showed the greatest willingness to keep the ball alive in the tackle. In keeping with traditional Gallic flair they offloaded more than twice as many times as eventual winners Ireland – however, they also had the highest number of turnovers (86).
60 penalties conceded by Scotland
They avoided the wooden spoon but couldn’t avoid the prize for the most penalised nation. Moray Low was on Scott Johnson’s naughty step, conceding on average two penalties a game.
16 tries scored by Ireland
England may have made more metres and beaten more defenders but it was Ireland who had the cutting edge, clinically crossing the line on 16 occasions.
4 tries conceded by Ireland
Key to Ireland winning back the RBS 6 Nations trophy on points difference was their staunch defence. Not only did they concede the least tries but they also had the highest successful tackle percentage (88.48%).
Accenture, Official Technology Partner of the RBS 6 Nations, brings you deeper insight into the Championship match data.
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