The INSANE Duhan van der Merwe stat streak that ended against France

Scotland winger Duhan van der Merwe’s insane streak came to an end in the Six Nations clash against France this weekend.

The powerhouse back is renowned for leaving defenders in his wake on a weekly basis, but that wasn’t the case at Murrayfield on Saturday.

Rare occurrence

Van der Merwe got his hands on the ball on seven occasions during the fixture but failed to beat a single French defender throughout the 80 minute performance.

It’s an incredibly rare occurrence for the elusive winger as it was the first time in his Test career for Scotland that he failed to beat a defender and just the second time in his international career.

The only other Test match in which Van der Merwe failed to beat a defender was for the British and Irish Lions in the second Test match against the Springboks in 2021.

According to Opta Jonny and Opta Analyst, the speedster has beaten 187 defenders in his previous 35 Tests for Scotland, and during that time, he beat at least one per game.

Duhan van der Merwe’s Scotland career stats as of 13/02/2024.

Duhan van der Merwe’s Scotland career stats as of 13/02/2024.

He has also hit double digits on five occasions, with his best personal tally coming during the 2023 Rugby World Cup pool stage match against Tonga when he beat 14 defenders.

Clearly identifying the threat he possess, France were able to keep Van der Merwe contained for most of the game as he gained just 18 metres from his four carries despite making one clean break.

In contrast, outside of his two tries against Wales in Round One, the winger gained 74 metres and beat three defenders from his nine carries.

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Another masterclass against England?

Next week, Scotland take on England in the third round of the tournament as they put the Calcutta Cup on the line.

He will be determined to make a bigger impact against Scotland’s fiercest rivals as he did last year against the Red Rose.

He dotted down twice in the clash at Twickenham last February and racked up an impressive 11 defenders beaten from just eight carries.

Most defenders beaten in Round Two of the Six Nations

7 – Kyle Rowe (Scotland)

7 – Hugo Keenan (Ireland)

5 – Robbie Henshaw (Ireland)

5 – Thomas Ramos (France)

5 – Josh Adams (Wales)

4 – James Lowe (Ireland)

4 – Calvin Nash (Ireland)

4 – Paolo Garbisi (Italy)

4 – Ange Capouzzo (Italy)

4 – Ben Earl (England)

4 – Alex Mitchell (England)

4 – Freddie Steward (England)