It was a dry weekend on South African soil. There were no home victories in the fifth round of Vodacom Super Rugby although the Vodacom Bulls and DHL Stormers managed crucial victories on tour.
Defense played a significant role in the South African franchises’ matches and it is no wonder local players dominated the tackles stats taken from the All Out Rugby App.
The Stormers claimed an historic five-point victory over the Jaguares in their first visit to Buenos Aires thanks to a mammoth defensive effort of 181 tackles to 72 by the hosts.
The tackle stats tell a different story in the Bulls’ narrow 30-27 victory over the Sunwolves in Singapore with the home side making 99 tackles compared to the 44 by the South African side.
Although the Toyota Cheetahs and Cell C Sharks turned in valiant defensive efforts it was not good enough as they went down to the Brumbies and Crusaders respectively.
Spearheaded by CJ Velleman, the Kings also defended like heroes but couldn’t avert a Hurricanes victory away from home.
Executing 19 tackles, Velleman topped the stats while the rest of the top stats are dominated by the Stormers pack.
They were instrumental in their victory creating an almost impenetrable wall as almost every single player up front making a contribution.
The loose trio hunted together with eighthman Nizaam Carr and Sikhumbuzo Notshe making the second most tackles over the weekend with 18 apiece.
Prop Frans Malherbe shared third place with the Force’s Matt Hodgson with 15 each while Stormers stalwart Schalk Burger and Eben Etzebeth also cracked the top five with the 13 they made respectively.
Kings hooker Edgar Marutlulle and Cheetahs captain Francois Venter also made it into the top Carries stats with the 13 they each made.
Stormers flyer Leolin Zas demonstrated some attacking flair sharing third place in the Clean Breaks with the Cheetahs’ Sergeal Petersen and Jamba Ulengo of the Bulls with three apiece.
The fleet-footed Cheslin Kolbe is among the top players this weekend in the Defenders Beaten category with five, only three less than the first-ranked player Ngani Lauampe of the Hurricanes.
South African players also dominated the Lineouts won on won throw statistics with the Cheetahs’ Francois Uys topping the list with 14.
He is followed by Stephan Lewies of the Sharks with 9 while Robs Simmons (Reds) and the Bulls’ RG Snyman share third place with eight each.
