Step aside Pieter-Steph, there's a new tackle king
STAT ATTACK: Pieter-Steph du Toit’s performance in the 2023 World Cup Final was rightly set as the benchmark.
However, his 28 tackles in the grand finale and 66 in five matches have been overshadowed in the Six Nations this season.
To recap, Du Toit played all 80-odd minutes of the Springboks’ 12-11 win over the All Blacks to win a record fourth Web Ellis Cup – only the second team to claim back-to-back titles.
He made several great carries, two clean breaks, won a number of line-outs, one turnover and of course those 28 tackles – earning him the Man of the Match award.
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In the Six Nations – which head into a decisive final round this coming Saturday – a new ‘tackle king’ emerged.
Despite his team’s winless run, Wales captain Jac Morgan has consistently put in stellar defensive performances.
His 25 tackles in the 29-35 loss to Scotland at Murrayfield this past weekend were only surpassed by teammate and lock Dafydd Jenkins – who made an astonishing 30 tackles.
To put their performances into context, it is worth looking at their tournament stats as well.
Morgan tops the Six Nations tackle stats with 73 in four matches – an average of just over 18 defensive hits per match.
He is followed by Italy’s Sebastian Negri (67 for the tournament, 18 in the 24-47 loss to England – average of 17) and Dafydd Jenkins (63, including his 30 at the weekend – 16 average).
In the 2023 World Cup, Argentinean Marcos Kremer made 92 tackles in seven games (13 tackles per match), with lock Franco Mostert the top Bok (73 – six games, 12 tackles per game) and Du Toit (66, five games – 13 tackles per game).
A glance at the Six Nations numbers also reveals which teams are struggling most on defence.
Ireland, in their 27-42 loss to France in Dublin, missed 16 tackles.
Their worst performer throughout the season was flyhalf Sam Prendergast – 17 missed tackles, an average of four missed tackles per game.
England’s Alex Mitchell (14 missed tackles) and Henry Slade (12) also rank ‘high’ for the wrong reason.
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