I'd love to have access to the full range of AFL stats, but I don't know where to find them. I know they are kept, as you see them quoted in the media sometimes. Why keep a list of interesting, complicated stats, unless you publish them, or make them accessable for others to enjoy?
The reason I bring this up, is Rucking stats. Why can't we easily gain access to the numbers on Ruck contests attended/won, effective hitouts, and to who those effective hitouts went to? I'd love to see those stats, it would make our Ruck selection so much easier. NicNat is a case in point. In his 2012 season he was quite often (3 or 4 times a game, at least!) roving his own tap out, and often then kicking it into the Forward 50. His work below his knees in that season, for someone his height, was something to see! Was he able to do that, as he was still young, flexible, more slight of build than he is now? If so, he will never get back to that Ruckman that becomes a Ruck-Rover once the Ruck contest is over. I am pretty sure it was speed, agility, and his ability to take the ball cleanly below his knees, at good speed, that made him the SC marvel he was in 2012.
Can't we gain access to how often NicNat won the tapout in 2012 compared to how many contests he was involved in, then also see how often he roved his own tapout that season? It would be wonderful to compare all those figures to 2013 and 2014 figures! Why keep stats, if people can't access them???!!! The bottom line is, we need to be able to compare at least some of those figures (particularly % of tapouts won, and to advantage) to have a realistic chance of assessing if he can make it back to anything in the 107+ area of SC. His persistent groing injury, and just the loss of flexibility as you get older, mean he will unlikely ever be the same below knees player he was in 2012 and prior. It means he has to make up for those lost numbers by increasing his "Ruck numbers". He has the ability to do that, just to the naked eye. It would just be nice to have access to the numbers to look at, to back it up!