Physical fitness of elite women's rugby union players over a ...

(192 ± 203 m) (Roberts et al., 2008). The greater sprints performed by outside backs
reinforces the generally accepted notion that as “finishers” they require a superior sprinting
ability then other positional groups.
Furthermore, male forwards and backs achieved speeds in excess of 90% maximal velocity
(V max ) at 7.5m•s -1 and 8.5 m•s -1 , respectively (Duthie, Pyne, Marsh, & Hooper, 2006b). For
forwards, many sprints commence from a standing start and typically lasted 2.5 seconds in
which they covered a distance of 15m (Duthie et al., 2006b). This illustrates that conditioning
coaches should train forwards from a standing position and test them preferably over ten
meter splits (0 to 10 m and 10 to 20m), which can be classified as acceleration. When starting
from a jogging speed, elite rugby union backs achieved 100% of V max in which they covered
approximately 40m within five seconds. Hence, the assessment of speed for backs should
include 0 to 10m and 30-40m sprint training from standing and moving starts as this will
assess their acceleration and ability to attain speeds in excess of 90% of V max .
2.4 PHYSICAL FITNESS OF A RUGBY PLAYER
Rugby union is a high contact, dynamic sport in which athletes requires high levels of
physical fitness, which is a composite of aerobic and anaerobic endurance, muscle strength
and power, speed, agility and body composition. For this review, the anthropometric and
physical performance characteristics will be compartmentalized in sections for ease of
discussion.
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