The numbers behind Courtney Lawes' incredible impact on the Pro D2

With a quarter of the Pro D2 season already played, Courtney Lawes’ CA Brive sit in second place, just two points away from reaching the top. The former Northampton Saints and England star has played a significant role in Brive’s positive start to the season, but how big of an impact has he had? Let’s dig in and find out what the numbers and data tell us.

Age is just a number
The Pro D2 is one of the world’s most demanding competitions, but until now, it seems Lawes has handled the gritty nature of France’s second division well.

The utility forward started in six games out of eight, only missing the visit to Nevers and the visit from US Dax. He was subbed off in three of those six games, having played a total of 391 minutes. Whilst he is not one of the players with the most minutes played overall, he ranks fourth if we only take into account those who are over 33 years of age.

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He started as a lock in four games but has recently moved to the flank, playing on the blindside against Provence and openside versus Biarritz. The change has more to do with Tevita Ratuva’s return to form rather than the necessity of having Lawes play a particular role in the loose forward trio.

With that being said, Lawes’ form has surpassed expectations, especially when he is one of the few forwards above the age of 35 that is able to withstand a full 70-80 minutes. But has this mileage translated into something practical?

Fixture

Pro D2

Valence Romans

42 - 19

Full-time

Brive

All Stats and Data

Jackals and try-saving tackles
One of Lawes’ best stats has been his success in clinching precious turnovers, with an astonishing seven completed jackals, the most of any player from the Pro D2. Three of those were converted into points, as Curwin Bosch successfully kicked from the tee to boost Brive’s chances of winning games. His best game in terms of jackaling was against Aurillac back in September, with the England great securing two clean turnovers and forcing the opposition to concede two penalties for holding the ball on the ground.

Another significant piece of data has been his lineout steals. Lawes has stolen five opposition lineout throws, making himself a nuisance and unbreakable padlock (no pun intended) for the Brivistes. His set-piece knowledge has gifted Brive with a massive upgrade, one that has translated into tries, points and wins.

Finally, Lawes has shone in an unusual area of the game: try-saving tackles. If you are a Twitter/X addict, you might’ve seen his decisive tackle to stop Soyaux-Angoulême’s Enzo Morand-Bruyat just a few inches from the try-line. Lawes’ intervention ultimately saved Brive from a shocking loss.

But this wasn’t his first and only try-saving tackle of the 2024/25 season, as he did the same against Aurillac and Biarritz, putting to good use his tackling skills. Interestingly, Lawes has just an overall 82 per cent tackle success rate, having missed eight out of 42 attempts. Only one of those misses happened inside his team’s 22, showing how his execution has worked well for Brive. He has excelled particularly well next to the whitewash, making for three dominant tackles in that section of the pitch.

These are the main data points from Lawes’ first six outings in the Pro D2. We could also add the 110 metres he ran in 21 carries (an average of 5 metres per carry) or his leadership in guiding the maul, but it’s enough for now.

The negatives: are there any?

Next question: has Lawes in any way had a negative impact on Brive? Overall? No. In some moments? Maybe.

A clear example was a loose pass that Lawes made, that ended up intercepted and resulted in Aurillac’s second try. It didn’t impact Brive though, as they had already bagged a bonus-point win.

Another noteworthy error was a succession of failed tackles against Stade Montois. In a game where Brive were outmatched in every aspect, Lawes, like most of his teammates, missed critical tackles, allowing an energised Mont-de-Marsan to beat them by a considerable margin.

In the grand scheme of things, none of these mistakes or the six penalties conceded outweigh the positive impact Lawes has made since his arrival into the noir et blanc setup, as shown by the data.

This doesn’t mean the utility forward is in the form of his life and ready to contest for a spot in the British and Irish Lions setup, but, if Lawes continues in this trajectory, you would have to consider he has a good chance of getting the call to travel to Australia next July.

The Lawes effect

noun

1 a cumulatively out-of-this-world effect that can prevent any team from conceding a loss or grant a clutching a victory pic.twitter.com/vSWrBBtBAa

— Francisco Isaac (@francisaac87) September 8, 2024

Lawes most notable moments
Vs Oyonnax: a try-saving tackle in the opening five minutes of the second half/ forced two attacking mistakes from Oyonnax in the first half
Vs SAXV: try saving tackle that saved Brive from losing the game in the last minute of the game/ completed two jackals
Vs Aurillac: two lineout steals that led to one try/ failed intercepted pass in the second half/ another two successful jackals made
Vs Stade Montois: Brive’s first three points came from a Lawes’ turnover penalty/ missed two tackles that led to two tries
Vs Biarritz: Brive’s second try came from a maul that Lawes corrected when it seemed to be going nowhere/ stole a five-metre lineout
Vs Provence: no impact on the tries scored or conceded/ stole a five-metre lineout