This Month in Research August 2010

1. Bilateral clearance punt kicking in rugby union: effects of hand used for ball delivery

Clearance kicking for distance is a pre-requisite skill in first-grade Rugby Union, but is seldom performed equally well on both sides. To assess kicking performance in a game-like manner, kick direction to the left or right was signalled to an approaching player in a reactive agility test, so that an active choice regarding the kicking foot was required.

Ten kicks were recorded from each of ten right-footed first-grade players, who punted for distance, on the run, toward the left or right far corner flags as signaled.  Read More..

2. Ruck Frequency as a predictor of success in the 2007 Rugby World Cup Tournament

An evaluation of the 2007 Rugby World Cup was conducted to establish if ruck occurrence could predict successful performance. These data were compared with the 6 Nations and Tri Nations competitions of 2007. There were 117 (range 65 – 172) rucks per match.

The knockout stages had a greater number of rucks per game (121 range 71-164) than the pool stages (116 range 65-172). 66% of rucks occurred in the midfield zones, 28% in the attacking and 7% in the defensive zones. Comparisons with the 6 Nations and Tri Nations revealed that there were 20% fewer rucks during World Cup matches.  Read More…

3. The Role of Motion Analysis in Elite Soccer: Contemporary Performance Measurement Techniques and Work Rate Data

The optimal physical preparation of elite soccer (association football) players has become an indispensable part of the professional game, especially due to the increased physical demands of match-play. The monitoring of players’ work rate profiles during competition is now feasible through computer-aided motion analysis. Traditional methods of motion analysis were extremely labour intensive and were largely restricted to university-based research projects.

Recent technological developments have meant that sophisticated systems, capable of quickly recording and processing the data of all players’ physical contributions throughout an entire match, are now being used in elite club environments.  Read More…

4. Time-motion analysis of elite field hockey, with special reference to repeated-sprint activity

Limited information exists about the movement patterns of field-hockey players, especially during elite competition. Time-motion analysis was used to document the movement patterns during an international field-hockey game. In addition, the movement patterns of repeated-sprint activity were investigated, as repeated-sprint ability is considered to be an important fitness component of team-sport performance.

Fourteen members of the Australian men’s field-hockey team were filmed during an international game and their movement patterns were analysed. The majority of the total player game time was spent in the low-intensity motions of walking, jogging and standing. Ream More…

5. Match running performance in elite Australian Rules Football

There is little information describing the match running demands of elite-level Australian Rules Football (AF). The aims of this study were to examine: (1) match running demands; and (2) the influence of periods of increased physical activity on subsequent running performance in the Australian Football League. Time-motion analyses were performed 1–9 times per player from 16 professional AF players from the same club during games in 2005–2007, using portable global positioning systems during 65 matches.

Game movements (standing, walking, jogging, running, higher-speed running, and sprinting) and distances (total distance covered [TD]; low-intensity activity [LIA, distance <14.4kmh−1]; and, high-intensity running distance [HIR, distance>14.4kmh−1]) were collected. Read More…