There’s no question the league has reached new heights in 2018, but do the on-court stats back that up? Are teams and players putting out bigger and better numbers than they were in the inaugural season?
Our Champion Data expert delves into the statistics to compare the two seasons.
THE KEY STATS
BIG HOME SCORES
The average home score in 2018 is 59.3 goals per game. This is a significant increase (4.5) from 2017, where it was only 54.8.
HEAVY AWAY SCORING
The average away score in 2018 is 57.8 per game, which is 4.3 more goals per game than 2017.
HOME ADVANTAGE
This season has seen 63.4% of games won by the home team. This equates to 33 games, which is already more than the total number of home wins last season with eight games still to be played.
WINNING MARGIN
The average winning margin this season is 8.7 goals per game, compared to 8.3 per game in 2017. However, due to the Thunderbirds’ games having a margin of 18.8, by taking those games out of the equation, the average winning margin is only 5.4 goals per game.
AWAY MARGINS
The winning margin by away teams is higher than the winning margin by home teams. This season the average winning margin in the 17 away wins is a very healthy 11.1. Again, this figure is significantly higher because of the average winning margin of teams travelling to Adelaide. The average margin against the Thunderbirds in Adelaide is 23.6 goals. With Adelaide games excluded, the average winning margin by away teams is only 7.1 goals.
GOAL FEST
So far this season 6091 goals have been scored. If the average number of goals (117.1) per game continues, the 7000th goal of the season will be scored in the grand final.
HOT SHOTS
The overall goaling accuracy across the entire league is 87.6% – a higher level than last year. On average each game has had 117.1 goals from 133.7 attempts, which equates to 1.95 goals every minute.
HITTING THE CENTURY
So far this season all 52 games have had over 100 goals scored. Last season 13 games had less than 100 goals scored.
HEAVY HITTERS
The Round 11 match between the Swifts and the Fever in Sydney had 142 goals scored. The Fever won 74-68 and this was the first time a team in Super Netball has scored over 63 goals and lost. 68 goals would have been enough to win 42 games this season.
TIGHT CONTESTS
35 games this season have been won by 10 or less goals. This equates to 67.3% of games played so far in 2018. 40.3% games have been decided by less than five goals, which is a slight decrease compared to 2017.
AN ATTACKER’S GAME
Interestingly, many of the main defensive stats are down on their 2017 levels.
- Intercepts are down 1.7 per game in 2018, however the 13.1 intercepts per game is still an exciting 3.3 intercepts per quarter.
- Defensive rebounds are down 1.2 per game, at an average of 4.8 per game, due in large part the the fact there have been less missed goals in 2018.
- Penalties conceded per game are virtually the same between seasons – 128.1 per game compared to 128.4 per game in 2018. 128.1 equates to 2.1 penalties per minute.
- Turnovers are down this season with 52 per game, which is 4.5 less compared to the 56.5 turnovers per game in 2017.
| |
2018 (After Round 13) |
2017 (Suncorp Super Netball) |
|---|
| Number of Games |
52
|
60
|
| Average Home Score |
59.3
|
54.8
|
| Average Away Score |
57.8
|
53.5
|
| Highest Score |
76
|
75
|
| Home Wins |
33 (63.4%)
|
30 (50.0%)
|
| Draws |
2 (3.8%)
|
2 (3.3%)
|
| Away Wins |
17 (32.7%)
|
28 (46.7%)
|
| Average Winning Margin |
8.7
|
8.3
|
| Average Home Win Margin |
8.0
|
9.6
|
| Average Away Win Margin |
11.1
|
7.5
|
| Biggest Margin |
31
|
26
|
| Total Goals Scored |
6091
|
6496
|
| Total Attempts |
6954
|
7696
|
| Season Percentage |
87.6%
|
84.4%
|
| Average Goals Per Game |
117.1
|
108.3
|
| Average Attempts Per Game |
133.7
|
128.3
|
| No. Games over 100 Goals |
52 (100%)
|
47 (78.3%)
|
| Most Goals in a Game |
142
|
129
|
| Games Won by 5 or Less Goals |
21 (40.3%)
|
25 (41.7%)
|
| Games Won by 6-10 Goals |
14 (26.9%)
|
12 (20.0%)
|
| Games Won by 11-15 Goals |
5 (9.6%)
|
12 (20.0%)
|
| Games Won by 16-20 Goals |
4 (7.6%)
|
6 (10.0%)
|
| Games Won by 21 or More Goals |
6 (11.5%)
|
3 (5.0%)
|
| Total Intercepts |
679 (13.1 per game)
|
885 (14.8 per game)
|
| Total Deflections |
1522 (29.3 per game)
|
1835 (30.6 per game)
|
| Total Offensive Rebounds |
295 (5.7 per game)
|
400 (6.7 per game)
|
| Total Defensive Rebounds |
248 (4.8 per game)
|
359 (6.0 per game)
|
| Total Penalties |
6661 (128.1 per game)
|
7704 (128.4 per game)
|
| Total Turnovers |
2702 (52.0 per game)
|
3389 (56.5 per game)
|
