This week’s Stat Attack! takes account of both Swindon and Avonvale fixtures.
Minety’s match at Swindon was, in fact, a home fixture.
It was the first time the Minety players had played an evening match since a pre season warm up game.
It was the first time that a Minety game had been played under floodlights this season, although at least one home fixture in the depths of winter could have been helped by floodlighting, it got that dark.
It was not the first time this season that only 15 players had been available, so no replacements in the event of injury.
Steve White’s massive bang on the head late on meant the team finished the game with only 14 players on the pitch.
The four first half tries assured Minety of the bonus point and meant they had to hold on for a win that would guarantee 4th place in the league.
Andrew Hibbard captained the team in the absence of the injured Tom Claxton.
Dave Cooke became the 5th player to play at fly half this season (after Adam Watt, Tom McAllister, Jack Ward and John Blair)
Ben Kingston scored his first try (the all important 4th try) in only his second match for the 1st XV this season.
No player of Scottish ancestry (or, at least, no one who’s owned up to it yet) played at Swindon. Colin French was in attendance as a supporter.
At Avonvale, it was the furthest that any 1st team player has had to walk from changing room to pitch. (Out of the changing room, along a narrow road to the main road, turn right and down the hill and then right again and further down the hill onto the pitch).
Jay Thompson and Scott Glew became the 45th and 46th players to play for the 1st XV this season over 21 league matches (should have been 22 but Pewsey Vale conceded).
Over the course of the season Minety won 13, drew 1 and lost 8 matches, scoring 468 points and conceding 357.
Minety scored 111 points more than they conceded.
Minety finished 16 points below 3rd placed Avonvale and 1 point above 5th placed Warminster.
Given that Combe Down and Avonvale aren’t actually in Wiltshire, we were the second placed Wiltshire team, behind the champions Bradford on Avon.
Minety finished 63 points above the bottom club and 27 behind the top club.
5 of Minety’s 8 losses came against the three clubs above them.
Minety scored an average of 22 points per game and conceded 17.
Minety failed to score in just 2 fixtures, against champions Bradford and second placed Combe Down.
During Saturday’s match at Avonvale there were 7 attempts at either a penalty or conversion; all were successful!
The top appearances for Minety 1st XV this season were as follows:
Garin Garland 19/21 90%
Tom Claxton 18/21 86%
Ben Scott 18/21 86%
Dave Cooke 17/21 81%
Andrew Hibbard 17/21 81%
Jack Howse 17/21 81%
Chris Rule 16/21 76%
Top Points scorers (out of 468 scored in the league)
Garin Garland 230 (49% of the total)
Dave Cooke 40 (8.6%)
Matt Roberts 25 (5.3%)
Jack Ward 25 (5.3%)
Jack Howse 20 (4.3%)
20 players scored for Minety is 2017 / 2018
The team received 17 yellow cards and 1 red card in 21 matches
There have never been more than 12 players playing together in consecutive matches all season.
Tom Claxton, Mark Glew and Jay Thompson were the only players to be listed at No. 2 throughout the season.
11 players made just one appearance each for the 1st XV
Jack Howse had the longest run of consecutive appearances with 16.
Colin French, with 11 appearances, was the Scotsman with the most appearances.
I videoed 24 matches (21 Division 1, 1 Division 3 and 2 Pre season friendlies).
Anton failed to make it onto the pitch as a player despite missing just one 1st XV match all season.
Benjamin Disreali failed to make a single appearance.
70,000 views on the website since February 2016 suggests that there is still a market for rubbish!
This is the last Stat Attack! of the season (huge breath of relief).
As Disraeli once said, “Thank God that’s over!”
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