A quick dance through some stats in advance of the Heineken Cup Final.

(a version of this piece was printed in the Irish Examiner on Saturday, May 18th 2013)

Clermont have averaged 521 metres gained with ball in hand over their eight matches in the 2012-13 Heineken Cup. Toulon have averaged a healthy 472, beefed up somewhat by their staggering 912 metres in a nine-try rout of Sale.

Toulon scored a total of 16 tries between their round four and five matches against Sale and Cardiff; in their three Heineken Cup matches since they haven’t crossed the whitewash once, relying instead on fourteen penalties and two drop goals from the boot of Jonny Wilkinson.

In their eight Heineken Cup games Clermont have taken just a single quick lineout. It was in their opponents’ 22.

Julien Bonnaire is Clermont’s main lineout target by some distance with 33 takes; Jamie Cudmore and Nathan Hines are next with 14 each.

Bonnaire also leads the tackle count for Clermont with 84, ahead of Benjamin Kayser (56), Cudmore (54) and Hines (52). Toulon’s top tackler is Carl Hayman with 46.

Both Clermont and Toulon have tackled at an 89% success rate over the competition.

Unusually, Clermont’s top three ball carriers are all backs – Napolioni Nalaga (94), Sitiveni Sivivatu (74) and Wesley Fofana (71). Toulon’s top carriers are more conventional: forwards Chris Masoe (89) and Steffon Armitage (73) with full back Delon Armitage (84) in between.

Clermont fans will have dearly hoped to have their captain Aurelien Rougerie back in the lineup. Despite missing two Heineken Cup games he’s still comfortably their offload leader with 19; Sivitatu is next with 15. Mathieu Basteraud’s 16 leads Toulon.

In their semi-final Clermont’s set piece was almost perfect; just one loss from 22 scrums and lineouts and without giving up a single scrum penalty on the day. Toulon had just 14 set pieces against Saracens, losing three.

Jonny Wilkinson will not be happy that he leads Toulon in Heineken Cup turnovers with 12 in eight games. Clermont’s turnover “leader” is Nalaga with a massive 17 of which 8 were from carrying the ball into touch.

Toulon have a deserved reputation as a team content to sit back and await penalties but in the 2012-13 Heineken Cup they’ve actually only taken three more penalty attempts (31) than Clermont (28).

Clermont’s scrum (10 from 10) and lineout (12 from 12) have been perfect in their own 22. Toulon have reserved their finest scrum work for when they’re in opposition territory, winning 29 of their 30 scrums in their opponent’s half of the field.

Clermont have had a large variance between the lineout results from their first and second choice hookers; Benjamin Kayser has lost just five of his 71 throws (93%) while his understudy Ti’I Paulo has lost seven from just 22 (68%). Toulon’s top two hookers used, Sebastian Bruno and Jean Charles Orioli, have hit 93% and 89% respectively.

When Toulon have got a lineout in the opposition 22 they’ve chosen a full seven man line on 21 of those occasions. Clermont are far more likely to mix it up.

When scrummaging in their opponent’s 22 it’s unlikely that Clermont scrum half Morgan Parra will simply whip the ball away from the base of the scrum. In the 17 times Clermont have cleanly won an attacking scrum in the opposing 22 it was either picked up or passed by their number eight a full 16 times. Toulon are much more likely to go with a break or pass from their scrum half.

Clermont kicked the ball more often in play in their semi-final against Munster (23 times) than in any of their previous seven games. Toulon have averaged 24 kicks per game, kicking the ball at least 23 times on four occasions including a huge 38 kicks from play in their pool match away to Sale.

All stats courtesy of the Amlin Opta Index.