Effects of Game Location, Period, and Quality of Opposition in Elite Handball Performances

Abstract

The aims of the present study were to identify (i) home advantage in elite handball according to the quality of opponent, (ii) the game periods where the teams score more goals, and (iii) the game statistics associated with the teams' success according to the game's location. The sample comprised 480 regular season games (2007-2009) from the Spanish Professional Handball League. The goals scored and shot effectiveness (6 m, 7 m, 9 m and fast breaks) were analyzed for each 5-min. game period in games between players of balanced and unbalanced quality. The home advantage was 64%, with higher values (71%) in balanced and lower values (55%) in unbalanced games. The 5-min. game periods in which teams scored more goals were the last 5-min. period of each half, especially in the second half. The effectiveness was only different in shots closer to the goal (6 m), which supports the territoriality theory of home advantage.

Influência das variáveis contextuais no desempenho das equipes nos últimos 10 minutos do jogo de handebol

“…Com base no pressuposto de que no decorrer do jogo é possível identi car os intervalos temporais em que o rendimento dos jogadores tem maiores repercussões no resultado nal, os especialistas em análise do jogo procuraram comparar o desempenho das equipes em diferentes períodos da partida, no sentido de distinguir os períodos temporais em que se veri cam as maiores subidas ou quebras no rendimento 7,[11][12] . Por exemplo, V et al 11 analisaram a in uência dos gols marcados em quatro períodos de 15 minutos no resultado nal dos 60 jogos do Campeonato do Mundo de Handebol de Seniores Masculinos de 2003.…”

“…Associando os gols marcados em diferentes períodos da partida ao resultado nal, V et al 11 não tomaram em consideração as características especí cas do contexto competitivo relativas ao equilíbrio do resultado e nível das equipes em confronto; no entanto a literatura especializada comprova a influência significativa destas variáveis contextuais no rendimento das equipes, sugerindo a sua consideração na análise do desempenho coletivo [13][14][15][16][17][18][19] . Nesse sentido, O et al 12 analisaram o efeito do local, período do jogo e da qualidade da oposição no desempenho das equipes de handebol da Liga ASOBAL. Os resultados do estudo sugerem o maior impacto do fator casa (71%) nos jogos entre os adversários próximos no "ranking" e menor (55%) nos jogos em que a qualidade das equipes em confronto foi mais desequilibrada.…”

Match Statistics as Predictors of Team’s Performance in Elite competitive Handball. [Estadística del partido como predictor del rendimiento de equipo en el balonmano de élite].

“…Shot efficiency as a predictor of the result was previously studied by Foretić et al (2010) and Oliveira et al (2012), who found that the winning teams in the Spanish Professional Handball League (2007-09) scored more goals from 6m, 7m, and 9m than losing teams. Similarly Srhoj, Rogulj, Padovan, and Katić (2001) analysed the 1999 Men's Handball World Championship and presented empirical evidence that the final result depended not on the number of throws, but on their quality.…”

“…In team sports, the primary outcome measure of group performance is usually the final result: that is, winning or losing (Hughes and Bartlett, 2002;O'Shaughnessy, 2006;Oliveira, Gómez, and Sampaio, 2012). However, as noted by several authors (Ferrari, Dos Santos, and Vaz, 2014;Gómez, Lago-Peñas, Viaño, and González-Garcia, 2014;Teles and Volossovith, 2015;Vaz, van Rooyen, and Sampaio, 2010), team performance indicators should consider not only the final result but also the number of points scored.…”

Effects of game location, quality of opposition and players’ suspensions on performance in elite male handball. [Efecto según el lugar del partido, la calidad del adversario y de las exclusiones de los jugadores sobre las prestaciones del balonmano masculino de alto nivel].

“…Studying home advantage in elite handball according to the quality of opponent, the game periods where the teams scored more goals, and the game statistics associated, Oliveira, Gómez, and Sampaio (2012) highlighted the fact that territorial behaviors seemed stronger against similarly ranked teams and stronger at the end of each half of the game, as long as the game final outcome was uncertain. Furthermore, studying the effects of numerical difference between the teams on team performance, Prieto, Gómez and Sampaio (2015) showed that when exclusions were sanctioned, the opponents took advantage of their numerical superiority and improved their scoring performance.…”