Six Nations statistics

Who made the most errors? Who did the most tackling? We dissect the Official Match Data from the third weekend of Six Nations action.

Who made the most errors? Who did the most tackling? We dissect the Official Match Data from the third weekend of Six Nations action.

Once again the stats this week highlight what we all know already: The margins are so small at Test level that every mistake comes at a cost.

Unfortunately for fans of northern hemisphere rugby, the error count in all three games is uncomfortably high.

Scotland coach Andy Robinson was raging at the referee following the loss to Ireland at Murrayfield and you can bet your house that he gave his squad the same treatment after they missed 12 tackles. At least they only gave away four penalties, the most disciplined display of the weekend.

France have really cleaned up their act on defence: After missing 25 tackles against Scotland, they missed only four against Ireland and then just one against England.

For the second time in three weeks, Scotland were the team most eager to send the ball through the hands, completing the most passes – 192 – but in a real turnaround, Italy were next with 191. The Azzurri reveled in their new attacking approach, offloading in the tackle 17 times, more than any other team.

England offloaded just five times, highlighting their confidence in retaining possession in the contact area. England won the most turnovers, stealing French ball seven times, leading Les Bleus coach Marc Lièvremont to question the ref's calls at the breakdown.

But the French should do some introspection too. You can't make 16 errors and expect to win at Twickenham.

For all their passing, the Scots broke the Irish line just twice. Ireland were the best at breaching the opposition defence, doing it seven times. All those missed tackles by the men in blue obviously helped.

For the third consecutive week, Wales did the most kicking. Wales also gave away the most penalties, a whopping 15! Ireland were next worst, giving away 12 (not 14 as Robinson intimated).

With three rounds completed, a global picture has begun to emerge. While Wales have overtaken England as the most penalised team, more interesting is the ratio between penalties conceded and awarded. Italy are by far the most disciplined team with a ratio of 24 conceded to 46 awarded.

Ireland, by contrast, have a habit of getting on the wrong side of the referee. A ratio of 34/17 means they are conceding exactly double the amount penalties they are being awarded. Food for thought indeed.

Of course, championship leaders England hold a clear lead in the 'points scored' column while France will be concerned that they have conceded seven tries but have only scored five.

Most tackles made: Wales – 142
Most tackles missed: Scotland – 12
Most passes completed: Scotland – 192
Most line breaks: Ireland – 7
Most possession kicked: Wales – 26
Most turnovers won: England – 7
Most offloads in tackle: Italy – 17
Most errors made: France/Italy – 16
Most penalties conceded: Wales -15

Least tackles missed: France -1
Least errors made: Scotland/Ireland 11
Least penalties conceded: Scotland – 4

Overall after three rounds:

Most tackles made: Wales – 372
Most tackles missed: Scotland – 32
Most passes completed: Scotland – 594
Most line breaks: England -20
Most points scored (team): England – 102
Most points scored (player): Toby Flood – 35
Most tries scored (team): England – 11
Most tries scored (player): Chris Ashton – 6
Most possession kicked: Wales – 78
Most turnovers won: Ireland – 13
Most penalties conceded: Wales – 36
Most offloads in tackle: Scotland – 37
Most errors made: France/Ireland/Scotland – 32

Least tackles missed: England -11
Least errors made: Wales – 28
Least penalties conceded: Scotland – 22

Italy 16 – 24 Wales

There's no mystery why Italy lost in Rome. Just two successful kicks from six attempts from the tee. Missing two thirds of your shots at goal will leave you out to dry every time, especially at Test level.

Italy had plenty of possession and even more territory, but if you can't turn your opportunities into points….

Ten missed tackles by the Azzurri also helped Wales over the whitewash.

Minutes in possession:
Italy: 36mins, 23 sec
Wales: 36 mins, 48 sec

Minutes in opponents half (total):
Italy: 54mins, 22 sec
Wales: 41 mins, 6 sec

Ruck and drive v Ruck and pass:
Italy: 19 – 94
Wales: 21 – 59

Ball won in open play – in opposition 22 – in set pieces – in turnovers:
Italy: 116 – 25 – 29 – 1
Wales: 83 – 19 – 15 – 4

Possession kicked – Kicks to touch – Percentage kicks
Italy: 21 – 2 – 35%
Wales: 26 – 3 – 49%

Tackles made – tackles missed – tackle completion
Italy: 91- 10 – 90%
Wales: 142 – 5 – 96%

Total errors made – errors from kicks:
Italy: 16 – 4
Wales: 13 – 2

England 17-9 France

Very even stats reflect a very close game. France will regret missing two penalty kicks, but they really fell behind on the deck where England were allowed to get their hands on the ball too often.

Minutes in possession:
England: 17 mins, 49 sec
France: 22 mins

Minutes in opponents half (total):
England: 47 mins, 59 sec
France: 43 mins, 14 sec

Ruck and drive v Ruck and pass:
England: 24- 55
France: 11 – 60

Ball won in open play – in opposition 22 – in set pieces – in turnovers:
England: 81- 24- 25 – 7
France: 73 – 7 – 23 – 3

Possession kicked – Kicks to touch – Percentage kicks
England: 19 – 6 – 36%
France: 21 – 5 – 42%

Tackles made – tackles missed – tackle completion
England: 99 – 4 – 96%
France: 92 – 1 – 98%

Total errors made – errors from kicks:
England: 13 – 2
France: 16 – 3

Scotland 18-21 Ireland

Scotland had significantly more possession, yet couldn't score a try as Ireland punished their hosts for missing tackles.

Ronan O'Gara's contribution? Check the 'errors from kicks' column.

Minutes in possession:
Scotland: 31 mins, 25 sec
Ireland: 26 mins, 17 sec

Minutes in opponents half (total):
Scotland: 39 mins, 23 sec
Ireland: 43 mins 29 sec

Ruck and drive v Ruck and pass:
Scotland: 19 -74
Ireland: 11 -63

Ball won in open play – in opposition 22 – in set pieces – in turnovers:
Scotland: 98 -10 – 30 -1
Ireland: 76 – 23 – 14 – 5

Possession kicked – Kicks to touch – Percentage kicks
Scotland: 24 – 5 – 34%
Ireland: 24 – 11 – 40%

Tackles made – tackles missed – tackle completion
Scotland: 99 – 12 – 89%
Ireland: 122 – 5 – 96%