How NZ Warriors star Kurt Capewell is making ‘damned lies’ of NRL statistics

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One week after helping Queensland reverse their State of Origin fortunes with victory at Perth, NZ Warriors second-rower Kurt Capewell is still buzzing.

"It was awesome," he confirmed. "Something I'll never get sick of is being in a Queensland team and getting the win was amazing.

"Obviously, we let ourselves down a bit in the second half, but it was awesome to be part of it all again and something I always look forward to."

After the Maroons were totally outplayed at home in Origin I, Capewell was recalled to the starting line-up and let no one down, scoring a first-half try, as they ran up a 26-6 halftime lead and then barely held on, as New South Wales stormed home after the break.

He logged a full 80 minutes, running 11 times for 107 metres, and made 37 tackles, including one gamewinning effort about 90 seconds out from fulltime.

As the Blues threw everything at Queensland, Capewell met barnstorming front-rower Payne Haas head-on, jolting the ball free less than 10 metres from the tryline to snuff out their last real attacking opportunity.

"I thought he was the best player in Origin and I'm so proud of him," enthused Warriors coach and NSW fan Andrew Webster.

Yet, in the build-up to the game, Capewell had to endure considerable social media mocking for a statistic that just doesn't correspond with his yeoman performances, week-in and week-out, for the Warriors.

You see, for all his attributes, Capewell has the dubious distinction of leading the NRL in missed tackles this season - by quite a margin.

In 13 appearances, he has supposedly missed 75 tackles, 16 more than second-placed Wests Tigers hooker Api Koroisau in the same number of games.

Capewell was credited with nine missed tackles in the season-opening loss to Canberra Raiders, eight in a narrow win over the Tigers and hit double figures in the 'Magic Round' win over North Queensland Cowboys.

Online experts - probably NSW fans - took delight in questioning how someone so defensively deficient could earn representative honours, as they anticipated another ignominious Maroons defeat.

Imagine their disappointment, then.

To his credit, Capewell takes the taunting on the chin. Only one number really matters to him - the score.

"You can make of it what you want, if you're into reading stats," he said. "For me, it's something that's in my game and I'd like to get better at.

"No-one goes out there trying to miss tackles, but sometimes you can't help it. I haven't really looked into it.

"I'd like to not miss any tackles, but as long as we're winning, I don't care."

On the other hand, Webster bristles at the inference that his defensive kingpin is somehow a liability.

He is obviously a disciple of American writer Mark Twain, who - in turn - credited former British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli with the statement: "There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics."

"That stat's ridiculous," Webster insisted. "The correlation to winning games… Penrith Panthers were one of the highest missed-table teams in the competition and they were the best defensive team, meaning they conceded the least points.

"If Kurt was the worst tackler in our competition, he wouldn't be in our team. I'd be saying can someone please take him to another team and we'll release him.

"Instead, he's the man of the match in Origin."

According to Webster - a former Panthers assistant - Capewell's unfavourable stats are a result of his pursuit of tackles he has no right making.

"If you're running at me and step me, and I lay a finger on you, or I clip you and you fall over, and the next guy gets on you, they will count that as a missed tackle.

"You might be running to score a try, I'm coming across, dive and lay a finger on you - that's a missed tackle.

"You find players who go after the contest, putting pressure on the opponent, taking time and space away from them, making them pass the ball… they have to move quickly, Kurt clips them and sends them into the other guy, and the play is dead.

"What they want to achieve doesn't work and that's why he's one of the best, because he's constantly going after the contest."

Certainly, his teammates seem to understand his contribution to their collective defensive effort.

"He's huge for our team and does a lot of the little things that you don't really see, as a fan watching, but we know how much work he does," said bench utility Te Maire Martin, who also played a season alongside Capewell at Brisbane Broncos.

"It's contagious and a lot of the other boys are starting to do it. It's something the coaches are driving and it's winning us games.

"He just works hard and doesn't stop moving. He's always competing, he's always in the picture and makes his own luck."

Capewell is thankful for the chance to redeem himself, after his first season at Mt Smart didn't go quite as planned.

"Last season was tough, I had a few injuries and our whole squad had a few injuries, but touch wood, we've been pretty good this year.

"It was never going to happen overnight and something we work at every day."

With the unexpected retirement of former captain Tohu Harris in pre-season, the mid-season move of veteran Dylan Walker to Parramatta Eels and season-ending injury to co-captain Mitch Barnett, Capewell's experience has been a boon to a Warriors programme, where the margins of error are becoming smaller.

Before crossing the Tasman, he reached the playoffs with Cronulla Sharks, Penrith and Brisbane. His last appearance for the Panthers was the 2021 Grand Final victory and his last outing for the Broncos was their 2023 Grand Final defeat.

"He wasn't terrible last year," Webster insisted. "He still got picked for Origin and had a big impact there - he just didn't play as well as we knew he could.

"I'm just happy for all our fans that they get to see the real Capey. He hasn't let anyone down, he's been awesome."

Capewell made his 2020 Origin debut for Queensland at centre and, while he's better known as a second-rower, his versatility has also proved invaluable to the Warriors, with midfielders Rocco Berry (hamstring) and Ali Leiataua (ankles) plagued by injury, and Adam Pompey often pushed to the wing to cover absences there.

"It's challenging, having to defend some pretty fast and agile players, but it's something I've always modelled my game around, being able to play anywhere at any time," he said.

Capewell credits his team's early success - sitting fourth on the NRL table, with a 10-4 record - for his own recall to the Queensland squad, with every likelihood coach Billy Slater will stick with his successful squad for the series decider in Sydney next month.

"A lot of it's got to do with the team I'm playing with and the players around me probably having the best seasons of their careers as well," he said. "A lot of that has to do with the coaching staff and the people around the club.

"I just think we're moving in the right direction here at the Wahs and it's great to be part of."

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