Friday 18 September 2015

Rugby Union World Cup Interconnectivity Diagram

Which I making at least partly as part 2 of @TiberiusJolly's birthday present, so I hope it amuses him. Although I did learn one thing making this, which is that Maurie Fa'asavalu is playing for Samoa.  So I'm sorry, I'm cheering for them.

The teams are as correct as Wikipedia can make them and are taken from here.  Now, there is some debate for some of the teams the players are listed under due to the rugby union seasons in different countries not quite matching up, plus you get strange things like Paul O'Connell being listed as a Toulon player before he's touched a ball for them because the Irish season has finished.  For the New Zealand players, I have listed them under their franchise not their province.  All unattached players are listed as being separately unattached.

The club teams with the most players represented is UAR, which is the Argentine Super Rugby franchise, and Glasgow Warriors, both with 21.

The national team closest to the centre are Samoa, while the closest teams to the centre are Agen and Toulon.

Of interest is how far away Ireland are from everyone else.  This is because all their players (except Paul O'Connell (ish)) play in Ireland and very few foreign players play in Ireland.  Uruguay are similarly out to one side, although more of their players play abroad, and it is more that those players play for teams that have few other players represented at the World Cup.

I plan on following the changes in the diagram as teams get knocked out, as usual, but I'll also produce on showing all the players that have been called up, because the turnover is much higher in rugby union than in football.  So far, Wales are winning/losing that one, having had to call up three new players into the squad.  Following a match between them and Samoa, who have also had to call up two players.  Which suggests that one take home message from this is not to face either Wales or Samoa in your warm-up matches because they damage your players.

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