Linebreaks

When a player carrying the ball runs through the opposition's defensive line.

Linebreaks are a useful NRL stat as it can be a revealing measure of both the attack and defence of particular teams. Generally speaking, linebreaks will lead to tries, as once the defensive line is broken, there is usually only the fullback to beat.

Linebreaks are also relevant to position, as it is the fast outside backs who rack up the most linebreaks given they are equipped with enough pace to sneak through the small gaps between players.

Linbreaks can also be an indication of poor defence. You can infer that teams who concede large numbers of linebreaks are either lazy or poorly organised in defence.

Example: “Kalyn Ponga made an impressive 3 linebreaks in the Knights' victory over the Titans.”

Over/under punters are particularly interested in linebreaks, as they tend to reveal the ability of a team to breach the opposition's defence and therefore score points. On the flip side, they can also reveal teams that readily leak points. 

Benchmark: Outside backs should aim to make a linebreak at least once every two games.