Stat kings: Reds’ U16, U19 prime moving Super Rugby rookies revealed
Who were the stats sheet kings spearheading the Queensland Reds in the under-16 and under-19 Super Rugby tournament? Revealed here are the prime movers leaving their mark across various categories.
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The stats are in after the opening three rounds of the Super Rugby Under-16 and Under-19 competition and despite missing round 1 with a bye, some Queensland Reds rookies are right up there.
Which players have made up for lost time across both age divisions? Here we take a deep dive into who is moving mountains in the Reds’ young gun teams who are both one-from-two at the midway point of the season.
In the under-16s competition, tone-setting The Southport School No. 8 Agapetos Lote-Felo is leading the charge having scored two tries, the second most by a single player across the entire competition.
Lote-Felo, A Gold Coast Eagles product, has also muscled up on the defensive end where he has completed 18 successful tackles. That is the most by anyone in his team.
Brisbane State High lock Manasa Vunibola (14) and tough Toowoomba Grammar flanker Keegan Cook (17) are trailing in hot pursuit.
Cook has got his hands dirty earning a team-high two breakdown steals, while unsung lock Vunibola has made an impressive 28 attacking ruck arrivals.
Lote-Felo and his TSS accomplice Dylan Terblanche, a busy outside back of South African heritage, have taken 18 and 16 carries respectively in two games which emphasises their willingness to get involved.
The jinking Terblanche has made a team-high eight tackle breaks and Lote-Felo seven across two tireless 70-minute performances.
The Coast duo are leading the way, alongside centre Tai Taka (15 carries, four offloads) and Ipswich Grammar lock Jack Calleja (12 carries, three dominant tackles).
Toowoomba Grammar young gun Rhymen Tusi has amassed 16 carries representing the Western Force Under-16s team.
The pacy Terblanche has run an impressive 219.3m and behind him is winger Hemi Rakuita (190.4m), Tai Taka (160m) and that man Lote-Felo (152.3m, two offloads).
Lote-Felo is also leading the way attacking the breakdowns where he has 33 attacking ruck arrivals, just six less than first-placed Brumbies talent BJ Pumpa (39, three games).
Year 11 prop Tyrece Herniman has shown his urgency making 12 defensive ruck arrivals, as has lock Calleja (11), flanker Cook (10) and Lote-Felo (9).
In the kicking stakes the Reds have used the boot of Angus Underwood.
Despite coming off the bench in both games and playing 61 minutes out of a possible 140, Reds utility Angus Underwood, a flyhalf or fullback, has shown his productive tactical kicking game.
The headgear wearing Churchie playmaker has nine kicks to his name (third most in the competition) which have totalled 320.3m - only 35.6m less than Noah Jury (Rebels, three games played) in first place.
His buddy from Churchie, halfback Alfie Bowman, has made 215.8m on his five kicks coming off the bench and relieving pressure with his booming box kicks.
Indeed both Underwood and Bowman were impressive in the second half of Sunday’s match against the Waratahs at Norths.
Speedy left wing Rakuita, 16, leads all Reds players with five linebreaks and has just one less than Ratu Ifereimi Tuibua (Rebels) who tops the chart with six.
Rakuita’s fellow Ipswich Grammar schoolmate Calleja (13 lineouts taken - third most - and one steal) and the ever-present Cook (two lineout steals, tied first) have made an impact at lineout time.
Although Cook’s bread and butter is applying pressure at the breakdown where, per 80 minutes, he leads the Reds with defensive ruck arrivals (9.2).
He would also make 18.4 attacking ruck arrivals, behind Lote-Felo (18.9), Vunibola (20.7) and reserve second rower Jack Burton (24.2, second most).
Per 80 minutes, outside back Rakuita tops the charts in metres gained (119.6) and linebreaks (4.1).
In the under-19s competition, Reds blindside flanker Charlie Brosnan has been in a hurry to make up for lost time after the workhorse Brothers talent missed the club rugby season through an injury to his hip.
Brosnan has put up some mighty numbers and has had more to give after playing two 80-minute performances over the past fortnight.
The promising backrower from Thallon has made 30 successful tackles, the second most in the competition.
Brosnan heads the entire competition with 40 attacking ruck arrivals which highlights his V8 engine.
Around him, the hard work of halfback James Martens, outside centre Xavier Rubens, loosehead prop Byron Murphy, No. 8 Vaiuta Latu and flanker Noah Rauluni has played a big part in the Reds’ strong start.
Rauluni has made two dominant tackles and per 80 minutes he would lead the competition in attacking ruck arrivals (23).
Prop Murphy (21.6), lock Fergus Gillan (20.7) and Brosnan (20) would also be the next best in the competition which shows this bunch of Reds forwards have been attacking the breakdown with more ferocity than their rivals.
Gillan (11 lineouts takes, third place) and his Bond University Bull Sharks captain Charlie McCauley (10 takes, fourth place) have taken care of business in the lineouts as well despite Sunday’s windy conditions altering the Reds’ lineouts in round 3.
Queensland’s strike weapon Rubens has got himself heavily involved in two games.
The Souths Colts 1 premiership winner has taken 21 carries, made six linebreaks (third most) and 12 tackle breaks (tied third most) on his way to scoring three tries.
The Reds have also got plenty of out ballrunning halfback James Martens, who plays an up-tempo game that has seen him land two five-pointers.
Per 80 minutes, Martens would make the third most metres out of any player (129m) and the fifth most running metres (141.5).
That is something you rarely see from someone wearing No. 9 on their back.
He would also shed just under five tackles a game, make 2.3 offloads (second most), kick for 258.4m (fourth most) and make 8.2 kicks (third most).
The pesky scrumhalf would sit fifth in carries made (11.1) per 80 minutes, with prop Trevor King (10.9) and centre Rubens (10.6) fifth and sixth respectively, hooker Finlay King (11.5) third and No. 8 Latu first across the competition with 13.8.
The prolific Finlay King has scored three tries already, while big Latu has also made his presence felt in 116 minutes of action where he has made 136m from 20 carries and dished out three offloads.
It’s worth noting elite Queensland products Finn Prass (Sunshine Coast, four linebreaks for Force), Samson Tuqiri (Brisbane Boys’ College, four linebreaks for Brumbies) and Tafito Ah-Ki (Ipswich, eight defensive ruck arrivals for Force) have been productive.
Tough-as-nails Reds props Murphy (three tackle breaks, 12 carries) and Trevor King (19 carries, six passes) have toiled hard as well.
Some other statistics that stood out included: Flyhalf Maddox Maclean making 100m carrying the ball, scrumhalf Martens kicking the most metres for the team with 443m, 246m more than the next highest and towering lock Fergus Gillan’s productivity in 147 minutes so far (nine passes, 16 tackles, 2 commanding tackles, 38 ruck arrivals and 11 lineout wins).
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Originally published as Stat kings: Reds’ U16, U19 prime moving Super Rugby rookies revealed
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