Points differentials to date.....SA Super teams

1 Stormers plus 90
2 Bulls plus 77
3 Lions plus 33
4 Sharks plus 18
5 Cheetahs Plus 3
6 Kings minus 232
It is interesting that all the negative points differentials are gathered in 5 teams...Wolves, Jaguares, Reds, Force and Kings.  Second worst the Force at 299, accounting for much of the Bools plus 77.

So we have the Lions held up as the paragon....but they are way behind the Stormers and Bools. Hell they are much closer to the Cheetahs than the Stormers.
You can fool all of the people all of the time.

Mozart, how do the stats change if you take out a high & low outlier?
Another set of figures, show how the Lions rate in s18 compared to the Canes (1 kiwi team) in terms in of:
1. Tries scored, Lions are 5th                              Canes   2nd2. Clean breaks, Lions are 7th,                           Canes    3rd3. Carries Lions are second with 1053                 Canes    First4. Meters gained, Lions are 4th,                         Canes     First5. Defenders beaten, lions are first,                   Canes     3rd6. Tackle success, Lions are 9th                    Canes    8th7. Lineout success, Lions are 3rd                       Canes     First8. Offloads, Lions 6th                                       Canes     8th9. Scrum success, Lions not in the top 10     Canes    4th10. Ruck success, not in top 10.                      Canes    6th
So to play like the 3rd ranked Canes (1 kiwi team) the Lions would have to improve their scrum and ruck su ccess while not giving up their strengths in tries scored, carries & defenders beaten. A bit ironic because the generalisation about kiwi teams (CleverMike in particular) is they don't have good packs. This comparison shows they have to have both a good pack and a good set of backs.  
Stats as published in NZ Herald.
Bulls are not even in top 10 in terms of % scrum success & only have a 94% success rate in rucks - 9th in s18. So it is a myth that they are dominating in the pack.

 JW if you are second in carries and 4th in metres gained, you are not very effective.

If you are 2nd in carries, 1st in defenders beaten and 4th in metres gained, there is a good chance you are going to be in the top half of the table which is exactly where the Lions are.
What JW's stats show is that the Lions fail in the physical stakes....scrums, rucks and defence.....hardly surprising given the make up of their forwards where very few get mentioned as potential Boks.....with only Jaco Kriel their openside being a real Bok contender and new boy Marx as a great prospect at 2.

 Defenders beaten is irrelevant unless it converts to metres gained, in the Luons case it doesn't. The Lions failed against the Canes because their backs kept turning the ball over to a superior backline. The game plan imploded when space was taken away, when Jantjies didn't have the luxury to wonder up to the advantage line and offload.

Defenders beaten is never irrelevant it's the very crux of the game...conversely the Lions beat the Chiefs because their execution rewarded them.