Rugby: Missing the little extras

Luke McAlister. Photo / Getty Images

There is some reassurance that Dan Carter and Luke McAlister are proficient but Super Rugby statistics paint an alarming picture of inadequate goalkicking this season.

Carter (79.5 per cent) and McAlister (73.8 per cent) could well be entrusted with goalkicking duties at this year's World Cup and both are returning decent figures.

But plenty of other teams are missing out on valuable points because of wayward goalkicking.

The Highlanders, for example, are kicking at a paltry 56 per cent and are fortunate they are playing so well generally. Before last night's game against the Chiefs, Robbie Robinson had taken the most kicks for the Highlanders and landed just 15 of his 30 attempts.

They have also used Tony Brown (63.2), Colin Slade (75), Lima Sopoaga (50) and Aaron Smith (0 from 1) during their campaign.

The Hurricanes and Chiefs are marginally better with Daniel Kirkpatrick (65.8), Aaron Cruden (68.4), Stephen Donald (70) and Mike Delany (61.5) but only Carter and McAlister appear among the top 10 kickers in the competition.

"In the professional era, and with the [spare] time these guys have, anything below 70 per cent is not good enough," former All Black goalkicker Matthew Cooper said. "The game of rugby can still be decided in the last five minutes. Aaron Cruden [who landed a last-minute penalty against the Reds last weekend] is an example of how important it is.

"I am still a great believer that you need two quality goalkickers in every side.

"If you go back to the days of Grant Fox, Daryl Halligan and Matthew Ridge, they all worked so hard on their goalkicking that it was unacceptable for them to not be in the high 70s or early 80s. We knew as fans when they lined up the ball, more often that not it was going to go between the posts. You couldn't say that today."

Not all kickers today are astray. Stormers first five-eighths Peter Grant is the best in the competition with a success rate of 83.7 per cent, while Carter, the Bulls' Morne Steyn (79.3), the Sharks' Patrick Lambie (77.8) and the Waratahs' Kurtly Beale (76.7) were all above 75 per cent before this weekend's round of games.

Goalkicking, however, seems to be something of a dying art. Greater value is placed on running playmakers than previously - to the detriment of a good, all-round kicking game. This is particularly true in schoolboy rugby, which is all about scoring tries, so players aren't developing a wide skill-set.

The professional era also demands physically strong players. Those like Danny Cipriani, who is a decent goalkicker (71.1), are liabilities on defence. Players also don't seem to be spending enough time on all aspects of kicking and many even struggle kicking off both feet in general play. A different mindset exists in South Africa, where a good kicking game is seen as essential.

What is revealing is that rugby union lags well behind rugby league this season.

Although league players attempt fewer kicks than their union counterparts - they rarely attempt long-range penalties - only one recognised goalkicker in the NRL is operating at less than 70 per cent (Manly's Daly Cherry-Evans is kicking at 63.6 per cent).

Seven have returns of 80 per cent or better from players who have attempted more than 20 kicks at goal, including the Warriors' James Maloney, who has landed 23 of his 26 kicks at goal (88.5).

Halligan and Ridge played major roles in improving goalkicking following their switch to rugby league in the 1990s. Previously teams gave little attention to the practice - and some like Mal Meninga were still toe-poking the ball - but they showed teams could win with a good goalkicker. Halligan had an 80 per cent success rate throughout his league career and was the first in the NRL to score 2000 points.

Halligan is employed by a number of NRL clubs as kicking coach, including the Warriors, and helped Michael Witt achieve a phenomenal success rate of 28 consecutive kicks in 2007.

"You can't just make a goalkicker," Cooper says. "You have to understand the key basics from an early age. I wonder how much emphasis [high school] first XV coaches put on it.

"If you have no idea how to kick by 15 or 16, you will struggle when you hit the professional ranks. I know my goalkicking made me a better player generally and helped my chances of being picked for sides.

"It takes dedication, repetition and total trust in your technique. I am seeing too many kickers today missing quite badly. If you are doing that, then something is wrong technically. How often did you see Grant Fox hook or shank a kick? He knew the dynamics of kicking and what was going to happen."

The All Blacks employ Mick Byrne as their kicking coach but he's also employed as Japan's forwards coach which precludes him from working with Super Rugby franchises. Most employ a part-timer to help with the goalkickers.

Cooper remembers the day he fully understood the art of goalkicking. He was on the 1992 All Blacks tour in the rarefied air of Bloemfontein and spent about four hours on a day off lining up kick after kick.

He was determined he wouldn't leave the park until he fully understood the mechanics of goalkicking. From that day on, he knew exactly what was going to happen every time he struck the ball.

The problem for Cooper is, he's not sure enough kickers today know that. And the numbers tend to suggest he's right.