By David Nagel
If football statistics had a pecking order there would be one that stands head and shoulders above the rest.
Just as every tennis player on the planet would to play like Roger Federer, basketballers like Michael Jordan, or spin bowlers like the great Shane Warne…statistics have a hero that they all aspire to be.
Clearances and stoppages won, tackle counts, turn overs and inside 50s all contribute to the only true statistic that really matters at the end of the day…the almighty scoreboard!
Creating chances and converting is what football is all about…what it has always been about, and what it will always be about in the future.
As superior as Federer, Jordan or Warne have ever been…the scoreboard is clearly the most important statistic in football.
In the West Gippsland Football Netball Competition (WGFNC) this year, there’s one team that stands head and shoulders above the rest when it comes to creating and converting its chances.
Not only has Tooradin-Dalmore created more scoring opportunities than any other team this season, they’ve converted at a rate better than their opposition as well.
The Seagulls have had 393 scoring shots this season, 31 more than next best Phillip Island, and with 220 goals and 173 behinds are converting at a best-of-the-league 56 percent of the time.
If finals positions were based on accuracy, then Nar Nar Goon (55.6), Bunyip (54.6), Cora Lynn (53), Warragul Industrials (52.6) and Inverloch-Kongwak (51.8) would be those to make up the top six.
Bottom-side, the winless Garfield, has the worst accuracy rate in the competition converting just 61 of its 146 scoring shots at a rate of 41.8 percent.
And what about in defence, what teams are making it most difficult for opposition teams to convert?
You guessed it…Tooradin-Dalmore leads the way again!
The Seagulls have only conceded 155 scoring shots this season, with only 62 goals scored against, meaning that opposition teams are only converting 40 percent of the time.
The direct correlation between the top and bottom teams is complete when we consider that opposition teams have been most accurate against Garfield this season.
The Stars have conceded 345 scoring shots, with teams kicking 191 goals at a rate of 55.4 percent.
Is it method, is it pressure, is it skill…whatever it is there’s no doubting the factual difference that exists between the top and bottom teams in the competition when it comes to conversion for and against?
Delving deeper, accuracy against a team certainly doesn’t come down to luck.
The top-six teams in the competition are the hardest to convert ‘accurately’ against with Tooradin (40 percent) joined by Cora Lynn (45.7), Inverloch-Kongwak (47.3), Warragul Industrials (49.3), Phillip Island (49.7) and Nar Nar Goon (50.3) on the sometimes considered ‘lucky’ list.
Creating chances and converting, and stopping others from doing it…is what footy is all about!
SCORES FOR – ACCURACY
TEAM GOALS BEHINDS SHOTS POINTS ACCURACY
TOORADIN-DALMORE 220 173 393 1493 0.560
NAR NAR GOON 163 130 293 1108 0.556
BUNYIP 125 104 229 854 0.546
CORA LYNN 140 124 264 964 0.530
WARRAGUL IND 140 126 266 966 0.526
INVERLOCH-KONGWAK 173 161 334 1199 0.518
DALYSTON 80 75 155 555 0.516
PHILLIP ISLAND 183 179 362 1277 0.506
KOOWEERUP 106 124 230 760 0.461
KILCUNDA-BASS 92 114 206 666 0.447
KORUMBURRA-BENA 66 82 148 478 0.446
GARFIELD 61 85 146 451 0.418
SCORES AGAINST – ACCURACY
TEAM GOALS BEHINDS SHOTS POINTS ACCURACY
GARFIELD 191 154 345 1300 0.554
DALYSTON 177 144 321 1196 0.551
KOOWEERUP 155 130 285 1060 0.544
KORUMBURRA-BENA 211 189 400 1455 0.528
BUNYIP 117 105 222 807 0.527
KILCUNDA-BASS 149 142 291 1036 0.512
NAR NAR GOON 92 91 183 643 0.503
PHILLIP ISLAND 90 91 181 631 0.497
WARRAGUL IND 110 113 223 773 0.493
INVERLOCH-KONGWAK 89 99 188 633 0.473
CORA LYNN 106 126 232 762 0.457
TOORADIN-DALMORE 62 93 155 465 0.400