A look at the South African Contingent’s Numbers

STAT ATTACK: It’s exciting times for the South African franchises.

Two weeks ago, the South African collective produced the first clean sweep of the 2025/26 United Rugby Championship.

This past weekend, they backed it up with a second clean sweep with the Sharks overcoming Cardiff, the Bulls edging Munster, the Lions thumping the Dragons, and the Stormers defeating Edinburgh.

With the URC heading into a break until April 17, I look at how the South African sides have fared after 14 rounds of regular-season action.

STORMERS

John Dobson’s team got off to the best possible start, recording 10 straight wins across the URC and Champions Cup.

While they hit a bump in the local road after that, they bounced back from three successive derby defeats when they used their scrum as a weapon to beat the Bulls, who had been on a four-match winning streak, at Loftus in a rescheduled Round Eight match.

The result saw them bumped up to second on the log, a position they’ve maintained after Round 14.

The Capetonians are 10th on the attack ladder and have scored 48 tries and 378 points. They’ve covered 4610 metres, produced 102 clean breaks and 108 offloads, and have beaten 267 defenders.

The inaugural URC winners are 15th with defence stats. They’ve made 1802 tackles, of which they missed 261 for a tackle success rate of 78 percent, and have won 78 turnovers while they’ve lost 214.

Given the Stormers’ smart contestable kicking, their fourth position in the kicking column isn’t surprising.

They have kicked more than any other South African team, with 391 kicks from hand and 86 retained. Three of those kicks led to tries.

They’ve scored 24 penalties (missed 14) and 31 conversions (missed 15).

Their position on the standings when it comes to the line-out reflects just how well their set-piece has functioned this season.

The Cape side won the most line-outs in the competition, and have lost just 18 of their 236 line-outs for a success rate of 92 percent, while they’ve also recorded the second-most line-out steals in the competition, with 20.

Their scrum stats are just as impressive, with 98 scrums won and eight lost (92 percent success rate). They’ve won the most scrum penalties in the competition, a total of 52 – seven points more than the Sharks in second place.

The Stormers (on 51 log points) have two home and two away games remaining. After the break, they face Connacht (April 18) and Glasgow Warriors (April 25) at home, before travelling to Europe to take on Ulster (May 8) and Cardiff (May 15).

Victories in their remaining fixtures will put them on track to host a semifinal and possibly a Final.

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LIONS

The Lions, currently fifth (43 points) on the standings with eight wins in 14 matches, won the SA Shield for the first time after producing their best season yet in the competition and look set to book their first URC play-off spot.

Unsurprisingly, Ivan van Rooyen’s unit are on the higher-end (fifth) of the attack stats, with 57 tries scored and 421 points accumulated. They’ve gained 5522 metres, produced 154 clean breaks and 168 offloads, and left 342 defenders in the dust.

The Lions find themselves on the other end of the table when it comes to defence, with 1994 tackles made and 289 missed for a success rate of 77 percent. They’ve won 85 turnovers and lost 173.

The Joburg-based crew have registered 349 kicks from hand with 66 retained, with six tries scored from kicks.

Chris Smith’s goal-kicking reliability is mirrored in their penalties-scored section, with 20 penalties connected and three missed. They’ve knocked over 38 conversions and missed 19.

The Lions, 15th in this stats column, have won 173 line-outs and have lost 35, bringing their success rate to 83 percent. They’ve managed just nine steals.

Their scrum stats look better, although they’re 10th on the ladder. They have won 88 scrums and lost eight (92 percent), while they’ve won 16 scrum penalties.

The Lions are within touching distance of finishing in the top four and claiming a home quarterfinal berth.

They have four matches remaining in the regular season – two home games against the table-topping Glasgow Warriors (April 18) and Connacht (April 25), who are in ninth spot.

They then travel to Ireland to face defending champions Leinster (May 9) and Munster (May 16), respectively.

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BULLS

The Bulls bounced back from poor starts to both the URC and the Champions Cup to work their way into the top eight (eighth) after winning six of their last seven matches.

They have been a pleasing sight on attack, with Embrose Papier a consistent standout, while Cheswill Jooste also deserves a mention for his exploits from the back.

Johan Ackermann’s team are second on the attack stats, with 58 tries – the most of the SA teams – and 397 points scored. They’ve racked up 5993 metres, while they’ve made 125 clean breaks and 124 offloads and outsmarted 298 defenders.

Their defence has been lacking in recent months, so it’s to be expected that their defensive stats feature on the lower end of the ladder (13th). With 2139 tackles made and 315 missed, they have a tackle success rate of just 77 percent. They’ve won 88 turnovers and lost 216.

The three-time URC finalists find themselves in 12th position in terms of kicking stats, with a tally of 332 kicks from hand and 54 retained, with five tries scored from kicks.

They’ve scored 10 penalties (four missed) and 36 conversions (21 missed). The Pretoria-based side have also logged a dropped goal.

The Bulls’ line-out performance also takes 12th place, with 162 line-outs won and 22 lost for a success rate of 88 percent. They’ve grabbed nine steals at the set-piece.

The scrum has been a key component for the Bulls this season, and the numbers back it up. Second in the scrum stats, they’ve won 91 set-pieces and have lost just four (96 percent success rate), while they’ve won 33 penalties.

The Bulls will return to URC action with two away games against the Dragons (April 17) and Scarlets (April 25), before returning to South Africa to go up against Zebre Parma (May 9) and Benetton (May 16).

Positive results are going to be crucial for the Bulls to hold onto the top-eight spot; a single point separates them from Connacht (39) in ninth place, while they are seven points clear of the Sharks (33) in 10th.

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SHARKS

The men from Durban overcame a struggling start to go on and build an impressive innings at home this season, winning six from seven matches, losing by only one point against the Lions.

JP Pietersen’s team are 13th in the attack column, with 48 tries and 322 points scored, 4241 metres covered, and 82 clean breaks and 99 offloads performed.

Their defensive stats scrape the barrel. The Sharks are 16th in this area, with 1730 tackles made and 277 missed for a meagre success rate of 75 percent.

They’ve won 55 turnovers, the least among the SA cohort, while they’ve lost 211.

Ninth when it comes to kicking stats, the Sharks have kicked from hand 348 times, with 77 retained.

They’ve scored just six penalties and missed three, while they’ve succeeded with 31 conversions and misdirected 16. Three of their kicks have led to tries.

The Sharks are the top team in the competition with line-out stats – boasting 184 line-outs won and 28 lost (87 percent success rate), although their success rate is well below that of the Stormers. They do, however, have more steals than their coastal counterparts (29 versus 20).

They are also at the peak of the scrum stats, with 94 wins and four losses (96 percent) at scrum time. They’ve won 45 scrum penalties.

The Sharks are the only South African side outside the top eight after 14 rounds, and while cracking into a play-off berth seems unlikely, it’s not impossible.

They can still make the top eight if they secure wins in all of their remaining matches, though they’ll still have to hope that other results go their way as well.

Following the break, they face Ospreys (April 18) and Edinburgh (April 24) away, before returning home to host Benetton (May 9) and Zebre (May 16).