Pitch of the week #2: Measuring Efficiency in the NRL

Daniel Murray recently graduated with a Double Bachelor of Commerce and Science majoring in Finance and Mathematics. He’s also an avid NRL fan. The next logical step? Combine the two into a unique research project that’s sure to have footy fans on the edge of their seats. Daniel aims to unravel just what makes a football team tick. Fans argue over won-lost records, number of tackles and field goals, while coaches talk about teams “living up to their potential” in post-game media conferences. What if there was a quantitative way to measure a team’s potential? Using a stochastic frontier model, Daniel hopes to do just that.

Using quality data from the Australian National Rugby League organisation, Daniel plans to turn game statistics from the last decade into an assessment of team efficiency. It’s a model that will soon see him popular with NRL clubs across the country and investors around the world. Daniel’s model will provide data for individual teams to assess their ability to improve and to evaluate current inefficiencies. As each football season becomes more and more unpredictable in outcome, understanding how improvements in efficiency ratios can influence a team’s victory capacity will play an enormous role in the success of a club. 

Read Daniel’s full pitch here.