The Super Rugby Team of the Week is dominated by players from the winning teams as the Crusaders forge ahead in NZ Conference while the Waratahs and Rebels are locked into a battle for top spot in Australia. 

Brumbies wing Henry Speight had his best game for his franchise this year to be Player of the Week. Despite missing Wallaby selection he scoring a brace of tries and ran for 145 metres that included 7 line breaks and 10 defenders beaten. 

 

15

Israel Folau

Waratahs

Folau made the most carries (13), gained the most metres (127), and beat the most defenders (5) of any fullback.

14

Henry Speight

Brumbies

Speight made the most clean breaks (7), beat the most defenders (10), and gained the joint most metres (145) of any player.

13

Samu Kerevi

Reds

Kerevi's six offloads were two more than any other player for the round.

12

Bill Meakes

Rebels

Meakes made more carries (18) than any other back, crossing for a brace of tries.

11

Izaia Perese

Reds

Perese gained 145m, the equal most of any player over the round, and crossed for a try.

10

Richie Mo'unga

Crusaders

No player scored more points (12) than Mo'unga, who was flawless with the boot (5/5) and beat the third most defenders (9) of any player.

9

Joe Powell

Brumbies

Powell provided a round-high three try assists, and made 4/4 tackles.

8

Michael Wells

Waratahs

Made two try assists, more than any other forward, as well as crossing for a try of his own and making two clean breaks.

7

Ardie Savea

Hurricanes

Ardie Savea was the only player to make more than 10 carries and tackles for the round (11 carries, 20 tackles).

6

Lachlan McCaffrey

Brumbies

McCaffery finished with a tally of four offloads, more than any other forward, and crossed for a try.

5

Jackson Hemopo

Highlanders

Hemopo was the only lock to make more than one offload (2) or to provide a try assist in Round 16 and also made the second most carries of any second row.

4

Matt Philip

Rebels

Won a round-high 10 lineouts, including a brace of steals against the throw, and made the most carries of any lock.

3

Jeff Toomaga-Allen

Hurricanes

Made 12 tackles, the second most of any player not to miss a single attempt, and scored a try for the Canes.

2

Codie Taylor

Crusaders

Made 11/12 successful throws, only two hookers made more, as well as providing a try assist and making 11/12 tackles.

1

Hencus van Wyk

Sunwolves

Made six tackles without missing, crossed for a try, and made five carries.

 

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.