Stat Attack: Sharks the sunlight specialists; Roosters dominate at night

Cronulla are the most lethal team in 2018 in games that kick-off in the daytime while the Roosters are toughest to overcome in night games.

NRL.com Stats has crunched the numbers on each club's records for day games versus night games and discovered that certain teams perform better or worse than their ladder positions would suggest.

The Sharks and Rabbitohs in particular will be hoping for as many daytime finals games as possible.

Cronulla have won six from seven (85.7% win rate) in day games but barely half their games (eight wins, seven losses, 53.3%) for night time games.

Similarly, Souths have won five from six (83.3%) during the day but come back to the pack at night with 10 from 16 at 62.5%.

The Roosters (10 from 14, 71.4%) and the Storm (12 from 17, 70.6%) are the two best night time teams; while their records aren't drastically worse for day games, the fact some of their fellow finalists much prefer day games should be enough to have them hoping for later kick-offs.

The Roosters are five from eight (62.5%) during the day while Melbourne are three from five for 60%.

The Dragons and Warriors should have a slight preference for night games while Penrith are marginally better off during the day.

The other top-eight side, Brisbane, unsurprisingly have a very small sample size of day games with one win from three starts (33.3%), which in itself could give them a preference for a later kick-off (12 from 19 at 63.2% in night games).