The Super Rugby TOTW has representatives from 10 of the teams highlighting the competitiveness of this year's tournament with the Sunwolves leading the way with three representatives.

Being a Super Rugby tipster is hard this year as the tournament clearly has no easy matches anymore. Away wins are now commonplace and teams are finding it hard to put back-to-back victories together. There are no unbeaten teams and after seven rounds all teams still are in the hunt for a finals spot.

One of the most consistent performers this year is Sunwolves fly-half Hayden Parker who landed 5/5 kicks at goal, made 11 carries for 26 metres and came up with a try assist. His teammate Semisi Masirewa enjoyed a wonderful match against the Waratahs scoring three tries, gaining 106 metres from nine carries and beating eight defenders in the process.

Chiefs fullback Damien Mackenzie was again the catalyst for the Chiefs late win in Buenos Aires and he was top points scorer in the round with 20 poionts. Stormers hooker Mbongeni Mbonami made the most carries (11) and metres (39) of any hooker in round seven, also landing 8/9 lineout throws and completing 6/7 tackles.

Player of the Week is Blues wing Rieko Ioane who again showed his class against Stormers scoring a try and made a round high 135 metres from just 12 carries, making eight clean breaks in the process - the most breaks recorded by Opta in a Super Rugby match (since 2010/11).
 

 

 

15

Damian McKenzie

Chiefs

Top point scorer in round 7 with 20 points, first time in his Super Rugby career he has scored 20+ points in consecutive matches, 100% goalkicking rate and scored a try, making 56m from his 13 carries

14

Semisi Masirewa

Sunwolves

Became the fourth Sunwolves player to score a Super Rugby hat trick, gaining 106 metres from nine carries, beating 8 defenders in the process.

13

Jack Goodhue

Crusaders

Made the most tackles (16/17) of any back in week 7, also  making 36m from 6 carries against the Hurricanes and beating 4 defenders.

12

Andre Esterhuizen

Sharks

Made 6/6 tackles, scored a try and made 57m from 14 carries overall, only three backs made more carries over the entire round.

11

Rieko Ioane

Blues

Scored a try and set up another, made a round high 135m from just 12 carries, making 8 clean breaks in the process, the most breaks recorded by Opta in a Super Rugby match (since 2010/11).

10

Hayden Parker

Sunwolves

Landed 5/5 kicks at goal, taking his seasonal tally to 27/27. Also made 11 carries for 26 metres and came up with a try assist.

9

Will Genia

Rebels

Made the most metres of any scrum-half in round 7 (37m), as well as topping the charts in his position for carries and kicks in play, also made 4/4 tackles.

1

Lizo Gqoboka

Bulls

Made 12/13 tackles, the most of any prop in round 7, also making 15m with ball in hand, the second best tally for a prop in the round.

2

Mbongeni Mbonami

Stormers

Made the most carries (11) and metres (39) of any hooker in round 7, also landing 8/9 lineout throws and completing 6/7 tackles.

3

Santiago Medrano

Jaguares

Made 9/10 tackles and chipped in with five carries for the Jaguares.

4

Grant Hattingh

Sunwolves

Made 15/16 tackles, won 6 lineouts and scored a crucial try against the Waratahs.

5

Guido Petti Pagadizaval

Jaguares

Won 7 lineouts including one steal from a Chiefs throw. Also made 13/13 tackles and 11 carries.

6

Luke Jacobson

Chiefs

Made 17/18 tackles, won two turnovers and made 37m from 14 carries, beating four defenders in the process.

7

Michael Hooper

Waratahs

Made 19 tackles, 2nd most by a player in round 7, also scoring one try and assisting another, winning a turnover and making 33 metres from 8 carries.

8

Akira Ioane

Blues

Made 68 metres from 13 carries, assisting a try and making five clean breaks. Also made 16/18 tackles and won 2 turnovers.

 

Opta Index: How does it work

The Opta Index allows genuine opportunities to compare and contrast both player and team strengths and weaknesses across Super Rugby, providing real insights pre-game as follows: 

After every match Opta completes a video analysis of every touch of the ball. Each action in the match is awarded a points value depending on the relative importance of the action. So 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. The total match score is then weighted to take account of the strength of the opposition so that performances across many matches can be judged fairly.