Vodacom United Rugby Championship fans are in for a treat this season with some new innovations set to enhance their passion for the game.
When season two kicks off in South Africa on Saturday with the clash between the Emirates Lions and Vodacom Bulls at Emirates Airline Park, the in-stadium fan experience will be significantly enhanced by SuperSport with a referee microphone to the stadium PA system that will broadcast TMO referral calls and try or no try decisions, as well as graphics reflecting select referee decisions.
The debate around the most in-form players will also take on a whole new dynamic with the launch of a Vodacom United Rugby Championship Top 100 Player Ranking system.
The ranking will identify the most valuable players across the 16 teams at any time during the season. It will analyse every match the players have appeared in during the last 12 months – including the URC, European competitions and internationals – and will pull together everything from a player’s ability to crash past defenders, earn a scrum penalty or even win a crucial turnover on his own try-line in a comprehensive analysis of that player’s contribution to his team.
The new ranking will also be able to focus on skill types to identify the best prop at scrummaging, the best flanker at defending, the best fly half at goal kicking or the best winger at carrying and so on.
All the rankings have been scaled so that an average URC player scores 80, with the very best performers in the league reaching over 90. The URC Top 100 will be available on unitedrugby.com and be updated on a monthly basis.