Verusco
| Formerly | AnalySport Limited |
|---|---|
| Type | Private company |
| Industry | Software, sports analytics |
| Founded | 1996 (as AnalySport; renamed 2000) |
| Founder | George Serrallach |
| Defunct | 2013 |
| Fate | Acquired |
| Successor | Sports Universal Process SAS (trading as Prozone) |
| Headquarters | , |
| Key people | George Serrallach |
| Products | TryMaker |
| Parent | Sports Universal Process SAS |
Verusco Technologies is a company based in Palmerston North, New Zealand. They supply video analysis software and statistics to rugby union teams,[1] including the Super Rugby franchise the Blue Bulls,[2][dead link] most South African professional teams and other teams in France, Japan, and Australia.[citation needed]
While involved with analysis of the 2007 Rugby World Cup, they discovered that the New Zealand national rugby union team, the "All Blacks," made 57 tackles to Frances' 269, and they had 66 percent possession and 60 percent territory. The playing time, or the time the ball was in play, was the longest of any game Verusco had ever recorded.[3]
The company has analysed 1,500 games since 2000.[3]
History
[edit]Founding
[edit]Verusco Technologies grew out of a video and statistical analysis system developed during the 1990s by George Serrallach, a lecturer in the biotechnology department at Massey University in Palmerston North who had previously built a similar analysis system for association football.[4] Serrallach was introduced to rugby union by All Blacks assistant coach Wayne Smith in 1996, after which the analysis system began to be adapted for the sport.[4] With the assistance of Massey University lecturer David Hadfield, who helped turn the system into a commercial product, the business was incorporated that year as AnalySport Limited. It was renamed Verusco Technologies in 2000, a name said to derive from a word meaning "truth".[4]
Growth
[edit]From 2000, Verusco held a licensing agreement to provide performance analysis to the All Blacks and New Zealand Rugby, a relationship that continued across the 2003, 2007 and 2011 Rugby World Cups.[5] At its peak in the mid-2000s, the company employed around 55 staff and had an annual turnover of approximately NZ$3 million,[4] analysing about 190 matches a year by 2005, including around 60 international tests[4] and, in 2007 alone, 286 matches.[4] By 2006 the company was supplying analysis to 11 of the 14 Super Rugby franchises.[4] Its principal product, TryMaker, was offered in two forms: a "Pro Elite" service coded by Verusco's own analysts, and a "Plus" version that allowed clients to code matches themselves.[4]
2007 Rugby World Cup
[edit]During the 2007 Rugby World Cup quarter-final between New Zealand and France in Cardiff, Verusco's analysis recorded that the All Blacks had made only 57 tackles to France's 269, missing 16 tackles to France's 62.[3] New Zealand won 162 rucks – the highest total recorded at the tournament, against 35 for France – and held 66 per cent of possession and 60 per cent of territory,[3] yet were penalised eleven times to France's two, the lowest number of penalties conceded by a team at a Rugby World Cup since the tournament began in 1987.[3] The match also produced 45 minutes and 13 seconds of continuous playing time, the longest Verusco had recorded up to that point.[3] France won the match 20–18.[4]
End of contract with New Zealand Rugby
[edit]In December 2011, New Zealand Rugby confirmed it would not renew its contract with Verusco, which by then was providing analysis to five Super Rugby franchises and several ITM Cup provincial teams.[5] Serrallach attributed the decision partly to cost-cutting, while NZRU high-performance manager Don Tricker said the change reflected the union's analytical needs rather than cost.[5] A later account described the split as being driven by financial pressures on both sides, noting that individual match analyses cost between NZ$1,500 and NZ$2,000 to produce.[4] Following the end of the contract, Verusco continued to work with the Australian national rugby team and several South African provincial unions.[5] Unable to retain most of its staff after the loss of its principal client, the company subsequently ceased operating in its former form.[4] George Serrallach died on 14 August 2012, aged 76.[4]
Acquisition by Prozone
[edit]In November 2013, Verusco Technologies was acquired by Sports Universal Process SAS, trading as Prozone, a sports performance analysis company based in Leeds, England.[6][7][8] Prozone, part of the Amisco Group, said existing Verusco clients would continue to receive their analytical products and services through its global network.[7] A later account described the transaction as the sale of Verusco's intellectual property to Sport Universal Process, a consortium that also included Amisco and TS Media and was based in Nice, France, and Leeds, England.[4] By 2021, New Zealand Rugby's video analysis was being provided by the American company Hudl.[4]
References
[edit]- ↑ "The influence of match analysis in the modern game". rugby-talk.com. 30 September 2014. Archived from the original on 27 October 2017.
- ↑ "Q&A: Frans Ludeke". SuperSport (South African broadcaster). 17 July 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Lampp, Peter (10 November 2007). "All Numbers In All Blacks Favour - Except Score". Manawatu Standard. Stuff.co.nz. p. 36.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 clubrugby (6 November 2021). "George Serrallach and the Evolution of Rugby Analysis". ClubRugby.nz. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
- 1 2 3 4 "ABs pull the plug on high-tech video analysts". Herald on Sunday. The New Zealand Herald. 31 December 2011. Retrieved 9 September 2026.
- ↑ "Prozone buys All Blacks rugby analysis business | TheBusinessDesk.com". Yorkshire. 21 November 2013. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
- 1 2 "Rugby analyst Verusco acquired by Prozone". Australasian Leisure Management. 17 November 2013. Retrieved 10 September 2026.
- ↑ "Prozone acquires rugby analyst Verusco". SportBusiness. 12 November 2013. Retrieved 10 September 2026.
External links
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