european college of sport science

Saturday, June 27th, 2009
Discussion: Clearly, an argument can be made for officials simply not making the proper violation call, officials are in fact human. However,
it may very well be that officials are simply not as likely to make the travelling violation call. This issue will be discussed from a
pedagogical perspective where teaching the travelling rule and its understanding among youth may in fact be a deviation from the
understood act of travelling in organized basketball. Furthermore, the travelling theme will be discussed from a fair play perspective
(Reddiford, 1998) in that if the assumption is that travelling is a more subjective violation among officials, the outfall may in fact create a
sense of self-deception among players in order to gain an unfair advantage in games where officiating of the act of travelling is subjectively
liberal.
THE TECHNICAL DEMANDS OF ATTACKING AND DEFENDING IN COACHED AND UNCOACHED RUGBY LEAGUE
SMALL-SIDED GAMES
FOSTER, C., TWIST, C., LAMB, K., NICHOLAS, C.
UNIVERSITY OF CHESTER
Introduction: In recent years, small sided-games (SSGs) have emerged as a multi-component training method which can achieve aerobic
conditioning and skill development simultaneously. However, whilst the physiological demands elicited within SSGs have been studied
(Hoff et al., 2002; Hill-Haas et al., 2008) the technical demands of skills performed within SSGs have not been analysed. Furthermore, the
effects of coaching on the skills within SSGs have not been previously examined, despite studies stating that coached SSGs increase
player motivation (Impellizzeri et al., 2006). Accordingly, the purpose of this study was to examine the technical demands of attacking and
defending in coached and uncoached SSGs in junior rugby league players.
Methods: Following ethical approval, 17 junior players from a professional club (age 13.4 ± 1.1 years, stature 1.68 ± 0.11 m, body mass
61.5 ± 14.9 kg) volunteered to participate in eight, four-minute conditioned SSGs. Players engaged in both attacking and defensive roles
(non-contact) and in coached and uncoached conditions. An analysis of attacking and defending skills was carried out using a hand
notation system. Analysis included: game statistics (frequency of tries scored, errors made and set completion percentages), attacking
variables (frequency of attacking involvements derived from the frequency of passes and attacking runs, i.e. dummy runs, hit ups and
pass plays; Eaves and Broad, 2007), defending variables (frequency count of the number of touches). The success rate of passes and
touches was also conducted, taken as the skill outcome and if the skill met pre-set coaching criteria.
Results: Statistical analysis revealed similarities in the mean percentages of successful passes and touches between the coached (84.3 ±
8.4 and 83.8 ± 7.0) and uncoached (79.5 ± 13.2 and 84.4 ± 6.5) conditions, respectively. Moreover, independent t-tests revealed no
significant (P>0.05) differences between the coached and uncoached SSGs for any of the game statistics or attacking or defending variables.
Discussion: Whilst the presence of a coach might be expected to increase the frequency and success rate of both attacking and defending
skills, this study has demonstrated no difference in the skill frequency or success rate between coached and uncoached SSGs. This
finding may reflect the players’ habituation to SSG training and that players possess high skill levels and require no additional motivation.
Furthermore, the findings of this study indicate that skills used in matches and practised traditionally in a closed environment can be
carried out successfully in SSGs in a pressurised game environment.
References
Eaves, S. and Broad, G. (2007). Int. J. Perf. Analysis Sport. 7: 54-66.
Hill-Haas, S, et al. (2008). J Sci Med Sport 11: 487-490.
Hoff, J, et al. (2002). Br J Sports Med 36: 218-221.
Impellizzeri, FM, et al. (2006). Int J Sports Med 27: 483-492.
THE RELATIVE AGE OF ELITE JUNIOR SOCCER AND ICE HOCKEY PLAYERS IN SWITZERLAND
ROMANN, M., FUCHSLOCHER, J.
SWISS FEDERAL INSTITUE OF SPORT MAGGLINGEN
Purpose: Identifying talented athletes at an early age has become one of the major issues in many competitive sports (Abbott & Collins,
2004). The relative age, which refers to the difference in age between children in the same selection year, has a significant influence in
the talent identification process for many sports (Musch & Grondin, 2001). The primary purpose of this study was to determine, if the
relative age effect (RAE) exists in elite junior soccer and ice hockey players in Switzerland.
Methods: 344 Swiss male elite junior ice hockey (age 15.3±1 yr.) and 183 soccer players (age 15.2±1.4 yr.), members of the national teams
U15-U20, were evaluated. The year was divided into four quarters (Q1: January, February, March; Q2: April, May, June; Q3: July, August,
September and Q4 October, November, December). The percentage of players born in the respective quartiles was compared to the
distribution of male births in Switzerland (expected frequencies), which were obtained from the Swiss Federal Institute of Statistics. Statistical
comparisons were calculated using the chi-square test.
Results: The RAE was found with a distribution of Q1=53.0%, Q2=18.0%, Q3=19.7%, Q4=9.3% for soccer and Q1=42.4%, Q2=27.6%,
Q3=19.5%, Q4=10.5% for ice hockey. The month of birth distribution differed statistically significantly from that of the general Swiss male
population for the respective years in both groups (p