Post by Jamie Crawford on Jan 27, 2015 12:16:07 GMT
After a fantastic performance at Castle Park against Munster ‘A’ in the British & Irish Cup the Knights return to league action away at Sixways against Worcester Warriors, who are second in the Championship. Bristol are the unbeaten Championship leaders courtesy of them beating Wuss 23 – 19 at Ashton Gate in the first game of the season. Four more points scored that day by Wuss would make them equal with Bristol on the Win:Loss count; in addition to that:
Wuss have won eleven bonus points to Bristol’s nine
Wuss have scored 43 more points and had 19 fewer scored against them than Bristol
Wuss have scored six more tries and conceded three fewer tries than Bristol.
Based on the stats Wuss should be top with Bristol just behind them. That said when Wuss beat the Knights 16 – 32 on 20th September, they didn’t look unbeatable. However that was when the Knights’ form in the Championship was far superior to our current form. Our form in the B & I Cup conversely has been fantastic; all we need to do is convince the Knights that they are playing Wuss in the Cup!
In our turn the Knights are one of four teams to have won three games except the Knights have lost nine games and had no draws but Jersey, Yorkshire (Leeds) Carnegie and Moseley have all lost eight and had one draw. The difference between them is down to bonus points.
Fly half Ignatio Mieres is Wuss’s point-scorer with the boot. Warrior Winger Sam Smith is the equal second highest try-scorer in the Championship. Tom Biggs, Winger and equal fourth in the Championship has scored one try less than Smith. Equal sixth with one try fewer than Biggs are Centre Max Stelling. Back Row Mat Gilbert, Prop Val Ruskin and Back Row Gerrit-Jan van Velze; they have all only scored one try less than Biggs and Stelling. These three have all scored one try more than leading Knights try-scorer Latu Makaafi. The Knights’ Dougie Flockhart remains the leading points scorer in the Championship.
Biggs, Back Row Sam Betty and Sam Smith are three of only six in the Championship to have scored a hat trick this season.
Tries can be scored all over the pitch, from any position but Knights’ Back Row and Wingers in particular need to be vigilant of their opposite men. Over 60% of Wuss's tries have been scored by the Back Row, Centres and Wingers. The Back Row alone have scored over 30% of Wuss’s tries.
Warrior try-scoring is fairly consistently high throughout the match and they have conceded the fewest tries in the Championship. More importantly tries have been conceded mainly in the second half with a third of all of them being conceded in the last twenty. In opposition to their try scoring, over half of tries conceded have been scored by Back Row and Wings. Tries have been conceded predominantly in the second half, with nearly half of their total in the last twenty.
Elsewhere around the country whose results could affect the Knights’ league position:
Jersey (8th, five points above) welcome Nottingham (4th) to St Peter. Never say never to a Knight bonus point win!
Carnegie (9th, four points above)
Moseley (10th, one point above) travel to Leeds to play Carnegie.
Plymouth Albion (bottom and eight points below but we’ll keep our eye on them!) play host to South Yorkshire rival Rotherham Titans, 5th)
C’mon Knights, there’s no pressure because you’re the definite underdogs. Let’s emulate your B & I Cup form and give the Warriors a battle they’ll want to forget.
DONNY, DONNY, DONNY…
Wuss have won eleven bonus points to Bristol’s nine
Wuss have scored 43 more points and had 19 fewer scored against them than Bristol
Wuss have scored six more tries and conceded three fewer tries than Bristol.
Based on the stats Wuss should be top with Bristol just behind them. That said when Wuss beat the Knights 16 – 32 on 20th September, they didn’t look unbeatable. However that was when the Knights’ form in the Championship was far superior to our current form. Our form in the B & I Cup conversely has been fantastic; all we need to do is convince the Knights that they are playing Wuss in the Cup!
In our turn the Knights are one of four teams to have won three games except the Knights have lost nine games and had no draws but Jersey, Yorkshire (Leeds) Carnegie and Moseley have all lost eight and had one draw. The difference between them is down to bonus points.
Fly half Ignatio Mieres is Wuss’s point-scorer with the boot. Warrior Winger Sam Smith is the equal second highest try-scorer in the Championship. Tom Biggs, Winger and equal fourth in the Championship has scored one try less than Smith. Equal sixth with one try fewer than Biggs are Centre Max Stelling. Back Row Mat Gilbert, Prop Val Ruskin and Back Row Gerrit-Jan van Velze; they have all only scored one try less than Biggs and Stelling. These three have all scored one try more than leading Knights try-scorer Latu Makaafi. The Knights’ Dougie Flockhart remains the leading points scorer in the Championship.
Biggs, Back Row Sam Betty and Sam Smith are three of only six in the Championship to have scored a hat trick this season.
Tries can be scored all over the pitch, from any position but Knights’ Back Row and Wingers in particular need to be vigilant of their opposite men. Over 60% of Wuss's tries have been scored by the Back Row, Centres and Wingers. The Back Row alone have scored over 30% of Wuss’s tries.
Warrior try-scoring is fairly consistently high throughout the match and they have conceded the fewest tries in the Championship. More importantly tries have been conceded mainly in the second half with a third of all of them being conceded in the last twenty. In opposition to their try scoring, over half of tries conceded have been scored by Back Row and Wings. Tries have been conceded predominantly in the second half, with nearly half of their total in the last twenty.
Elsewhere around the country whose results could affect the Knights’ league position:
Jersey (8th, five points above) welcome Nottingham (4th) to St Peter. Never say never to a Knight bonus point win!
Carnegie (9th, four points above)
Moseley (10th, one point above) travel to Leeds to play Carnegie.
Plymouth Albion (bottom and eight points below but we’ll keep our eye on them!) play host to South Yorkshire rival Rotherham Titans, 5th)
C’mon Knights, there’s no pressure because you’re the definite underdogs. Let’s emulate your B & I Cup form and give the Warriors a battle they’ll want to forget.
DONNY, DONNY, DONNY…
