NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Sport / Rugby / Rugby World Cup

The Stats Don't Lie: Pool play wrap - Ashton outscores Scotland

Herald online
3 Oct, 2011 10:46 PM9 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

England winger Chris Ashton scored six tries during the pool phase of the Rugby World Cup. Photo / Brett Phibbs

England winger Chris Ashton scored six tries during the pool phase of the Rugby World Cup. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Opinion by

The Rugby World Cup pool play phase is over for another four years and it's time to look at the key statistics from the 40 matches which throw up a few interesting facts.

It may surprise people that an Englishman topped the try-scoring with Chris Ashton scoring more tries (six) than Scotland combined (five), who were also outscored by Namibia (six).

However England's kicking rate was one of the worst with the ever-reliable Jonny Wilkinson kicking just 45 percent during pool play. It was still better than Romania's Marin Dumbrava who kicked 38 percent of his attempts.

Meanwhile Wales broke against tradition by having the second most linebreaks.

Check out how the 20 teams performed during pool play at the Rugby World Cup:

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

ARGENTINA

Finished runner up in Pool B with three wins and one loss, and will play New Zealand in the quarter finals.

Scored 90 points for with 40 against, with 10 tries in total. Their top try scorer is Juan Jose Imhoff with two.

Felipe Contemponi is their top points scorer with 24 points from one try, two conversions and five penalties. His goal kicking average is just 50 percent to date.

Gonzalez Amorosino Lucas with a total of nine is second equal in the tournament for linebreaks.

Discover more

Opinion

Freeley Speaking: Kiwiland in kilts

04 Oct 02:08 AM
Opinion

Colin Meads: What's an obstacle? All Blacks can still win

05 Oct 04:15 AM

AUSTRALIA

Finished runner up in Pool C with three wins and one loss, and will play South Africa in the quarter finals

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Scored 173 points for with 48 points against, with 25 tries in total. Top try scorer is Adam Ashley-Cooper with five.

James O'Connor is their top points scorer with 35 points from one try, 12 conversions and two penalties. His goal kicking average is 78 percent to date.

Ashley-Cooper is the top line breaker of the tournament so far, with a total of 10. Quade Cooper has made the most running metres with a total of 730.

CANADA

Finished 4th in Pool A with one win, one draw and two losses.

Scored 82 points scoring nine tries, and conceded 168 points.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Best game v Tonga, winning 25-20. Worst game v New Zealand losing 15-79.

Ander Munro was their top points scorer with 22 points from one try, one conversion, and three penalties and two drop goals. His goal kicking average was 50 percent.

ENGLAND

Finished top in Pool B with four wins, and will play France in the quarter finals.

Scored 137 points with 18 tries, and conceded 34 points plus two yellow cards.

Top try scorer is Chris Ashton with six, and he is the leading try scorer in the tournament. He is also England's top points scorer to date.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Jonny Wilkinson has scored 26 points with the boot with four conversions, five penalties and drop drop goal. His kicking stats are running at a lowly 45 percent. Toby Flood has kicked nine conversions and one penalty for a kicking success rate of 77 percent.

Ben Foden is second best in the tournament for running metres gained with 504, while James Haskell is their top tackler with 62.

FIJI

Had their worst ever RWC finishing fourth in Pool D with just the one win over Namibia.

Scored 59 points with seven tries, but conceded 167 points. Top try scorer was Vereniki Goneva with four.

Seremaia Baikeinuku was their top points scorer with 22, with five conversions and four penalties. His kicking success rate was one of the better ones at just under 82 percent.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Fiji made 68 offloads in their four games which was the most of any team during pool play, and conceded the least penalties (32 in total) of any team.

FRANCE

Finished second in Pool A with two wins and two losses, and will play England in the quarter finals.

Scored 124 points with 13 tries, and conceded 96 points plus one yellow card. Their top try scorer is Vincent Clerc with five.

Top points scorer is Dimitri Yachvili with 33, with six conversions and seven penalties at a success rate of 81 percent.

GEORGIA

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Finished fourth in Pool D with just the one win over Romania, but pushed both Scotland and England hard.

Scored 48 points for with three tries, and conceded 90.

Their top points scorer was Merab Kvirikashvili with 28, with two conversions and eight penalties at a success rate of 53 percent. He was the 10th best points scorer in pool play.

IRELAND

Finished top of Pool C with four wins and will play Wales in the quarter-finals.

Scored 135 points with 15 tries, and conceded 34 points. Top try scorer is Keith Earls with four.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Top points scorer is Ronan O'Gara with 39 (3rd in tournament) with nine conversions and seven penalties. His kicking success rate is 84 percent to date.

Ireland have made the least number of tackles in the tournament with their 331 being half the number Russia made in pool play.

ITALY

Finished third in Pool C with two wins and two losses.

Scored 92 points for with 13 tries, and conceded 95 points plus one yellow card.

Top points scorer was Mirco Bergamasco with 19, two conversions and five penalties with a success rate of 63 percent.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

JAPAN

Finished last in Pool A with three losses and the draw against Canada.

Scored 69 points with eight tries, and conceded 184 points plus one yellow card.

Top points scorer was James Arlidge on 34 with two tries, three conversions and six penalties. His kicking success rate was 64 percent.

NAMIBIA

Finished last in Pool D with no wins, and no competition points.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Scored 44 points with five tries, and conceded 266 points (the most in the tournament) plus two yellow cards. Heinz Koll was their top try scorer with two.

Top points scorer Theuns Kotze on 24 with one try, two conversions, two penalties and two drop goals. His kicking success rate was 40 percent.

NEW ZEALAND

Finished top of Pool A with four wins and are the only team to score maximum points in all games. They will play Argentina in the quarter finals.

Have scored the most points for with 240 and the most tries with 36 to date, and conceded 49 points. Top try scorer is Israel Dagg with five.

Top points scorer is Colin Slade on 36, with one try, 14 conversions and one penalty. His kicking success rate is 62 percent. Piri Weepu has landed all four of his attempts to sit on 100 percent.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Have made the most linebreaks with 55, with Sonny Bill Williams second best linebreaker in the competition having made 9 to date.

ROMANIA

Finished last in Pool B, with no wins and no tournament points.

Scored 44 points with three tries, and conceded 169 points plus one yellow card.

Top points scorer was Marin Dumbrava on 15 with five penalties at a success rate of just 38 percent.

Made the least linebreaks (four) and least passes (359) of any team. Conceded the most penalties (53) of any team.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

RUSSIA

Finished last in Pool C with no wins. Best game was v USA, losing 6-13.

Scored 57 points with eight tries, and conceded 196 points plus one yellow card.

Top points scorer was Konstantin Rachkov on 19 with one try, four conversions, one penalty and one drop goal. His goal kicking success rate was 63 percent.

Russia made the most tackles of any team with 662, and had the least number of offloads in the tackle with just 14.

SOUTH AFRICA

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Finished top of Pool D with four wins and will play Australia in the quarter-finals.

Scored 166 points with 21 tries, and have conceded just 24 points to have the best defence in the tournament. They have also conceded one yellow card in pool play.

Francois Steyn is their top try scorer on 3 but is out of the tournament following an injury.

Top points scorer is Morne Steyn, who tops the tournament points on 53 with two tries, 14 conversions and five penalties with a kicking success rate of 83 percent.

Heinrich Brussow is the top tackler in the tournament having made 73 to date, while fellow flanker Schalk Burger is the second best tackler with 68 made.

SAMOA

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Finished third in Pool D with two wins and two losses.

Scored 91 points with 10 tries, and conceded 49 points plus one yellow card and one red card.

Top try scorer was Alesana Tuilagi with three. Top points scorer was Tusi Pisi on 25 with two conversions and six penalties at a kicking success rate of 67 percent.

SCOTLAND

Finished third in Pool B with two wins and two losses. This is the first time Scotland have failed to make the playoffs in a World Cup.

Scored 73 points with just four tries, and conceded 59 points.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Top points scorer was Dan Parks on 24 with five penalties and three drop goals. His goal kicking success rate was 63 percent.

TONGA

Finished third in pool A with two wins including the tournament upset against France.

Scored 80 points with seven tries, and conceded 98 points plus three yellow cards.

Top points scorer was Kurt Morath (second overall) on 45 with 6 conversions and 11 penalties for a kicking success rate of 68 percent.

WALES

Finished second in Pool D with three wins and one loss, and play Ireland in the quarter finals.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Scored 180 points with 23 tries, and conceded 34 points. Scott Williams is their top try scorer with four.

Top points scorer is Stephen Jones on 23 points with 10 conversions and one penalty for a kicking success rate of 92 percent.

Wales are the second best team for total linebreaks (48) and tackle offloads (63).

USA

Finished fourth in Pool C with just one win over Russia.

Scored 38 points with four tries, and conceded 122 points plus two yellow cards.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Top points scorer was Chris Wyles on 18 points with one try, two conversions and three penalties. His kicking success rate was 63 percent.

Were second only to Romania in conceding penalties, with a total of 51.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Rugby World Cup

New Zealand

'Never felt so alone': Foster lifts lid on battles with NZ Rugby bosses

17 Jun 05:00 PM
Premium
Black Ferns

Woodman-Wickliffe on babies, books, broadcasting and King’s Birthday honour

02 Jun 03:00 AM
Rugby World Cup

‘Major failures’: French oversight costs Rugby World Cup $57m

08 Apr 06:15 PM

Anzor’s East Tāmaki hub speeds supply

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Rugby World Cup

'Never felt so alone':  Foster lifts lid on battles with NZ Rugby bosses

'Never felt so alone': Foster lifts lid on battles with NZ Rugby bosses

17 Jun 05:00 PM

Former All Blacks' frustrations began before he coached his first All Blacks test.

Premium
Woodman-Wickliffe on babies, books, broadcasting and King’s Birthday honour

Woodman-Wickliffe on babies, books, broadcasting and King’s Birthday honour

02 Jun 03:00 AM
‘Major failures’: French oversight costs Rugby World Cup $57m

‘Major failures’: French oversight costs Rugby World Cup $57m

08 Apr 06:15 PM
Gatland waived six-figure settlement to leave Wales

Gatland waived six-figure settlement to leave Wales

12 Feb 06:09 PM
Kaibosh gets a clean-energy boost in the fight against food waste
sponsored

Kaibosh gets a clean-energy boost in the fight against food waste

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP