Rugby World Cup: Stats reveal SBW's prowess, Georgia's defensive steel

Sonny Bill Williams in action for the All Blacks against Argentina at Wembley Stadium. Photo/NZ Herald Brett Phibbs.

Sonny Bill Williams' outstanding performance against Argentina sees him included as the only All Black to claim top ranking in a range of Opta Rugby statistics released following the opening weekend of the Rugby World Cup.

The All Blacks have six players included in the top 25 offloads list, with Williams topping the count with 11, three clear of Georgia's Mamuka Gorgoze in second-place.

New Zealand's ability to play with continuity across the park saw Kieran Read ranked fifth-equal with six offloads, and the quartet of fullback Ben Smith, centre Conrad Smith, wing Julian Savea and five-eighth Dan Carter managing four each.

Some of the same names also appeared in the 'most breaks' category, which was headed by impressive England fullback Mike Brown, who slashed through the Fijian defence on six occasions, while Williams, Read, Conrad Smith and All Blacks halfback Aaron Smith each broke the Pumas' line twice.

Brown, who crossed for two tries in a Man of the Match display for the host-nation, also claimed No1 spot on the 'defenders beaten' list after evading 11 would-be Fijian tacklers.

Second-place was a tie, with Samoan speedster Tim Nanai-Williams and Fijian flyer Nemani Nadolo both evading seven tacklers, and All Blacks rookie right wing Nehe Milner-Skudder and veteran second-five Ma'a Nonu each burst past two to make the cut.

That man in white, Brown, also ran for the most metres with 191, ahead of dashing Ireland fullback Rob Kearney (148m), while Ben Smith was the lone All Black, some way down the list with 92m.

South African loose-forward Schalk Burger was not to be outdone with 22 carries in his side's upset defeat to Japan, with Brown again prominent in second-place after handling the Gilbert 20 times.

Unsurprisingly, Ben Smith was the busiest All Black with 15 carries earning him seventh-place, and Williams and Read also followed with 13 each.

Remarkably, no All Blacks made the most tackles list, but Georgia had seven players in the top 25, including the top three - Gorgodze (24), Giorgi Nemsadze (23) and Viktor Kolelishvili (21) - following their surprise 17-10 win over Tonga.

France captain Thierry Dusautoir and Fijian forward Leone Nakarawa both proved a menace at the breakdown, topping the turnovers with four apiece, while Read claimed third-place with three, and All Blacks prop Tony Woodcock was one of 17 players to snare two.

Stolen ball was another category, with Ireland's Peter O'Mahoney twice depriving Canada of possession, and All Blacks lock Brodie Retallick was one of 11 players to catch an opposition ball-runner by surprise.

No player wants to feature on a missed tackles list, but Fiji's Sakiusa Matadigo and Argentina's Juan Martin Hernandez were 'level-best' with six ineffective defensive efforts each, while All Blacks front-rower Owen Franks fell off four ball-runners.