Player Responses to Match and Training Demands During an Intensified Fixture Schedule in Professional Rugby League: A Case Study

Twist, Craig; Highton, Jamie; Daniels, Matthew; Mill, Nathan; Close, Graeme L.

doi:10.1123/ijspp.2016-0390

Cited by 21 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…The original database search identified 1704 records. A total of 30 studies met the eligibility criteria and were included in the review [8–20, 33–40, 42, 43, 45–51]. An overview of the study selection process is presented in Fig.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Multiple study effects and variances from the same study were included in the meta-analysis provided that the effects and variables resulted from independent observations (i.e. National Rugby League and Super League matches [18, 42], or trial and competition matches [43]). All data are presented as mean, or mean ± standard deviation, or mean ± 95% confidence interval (95%CI).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Demands of Professional Rugby League Match-Play: a Meta-analysis

et al. 2019

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Background Rugby league is a collision sport, where players are expected to be physically competent in a range of areas, including aerobic fitness, strength, speed and power. Several studies have attempted to characterise the physical demands of rugby league match-play, but these studies often have relatively small sample sizes based on one or two clubs, which makes generalisation of the findings difficult. Therefore, the aim of this review was to synthesise studies that investigated the physical demands of professional rugby league match-play. Methods SPORTDiscus, CINAHL, MEDLINE (EBSCO) and Embase (EBSCO) databases were systematically searched from inception until October 2018. Articles were included if they (1) recruited professional rugby league athletes aged ≥ 18 years and (2) provided at least one match-play relevant variable (including playing time, total and relative distance, repeat high-intensity efforts (RHIE), efforts per RHIE, accelerations and decelerations, total and relative collisions). Meta-analyses were used to provide pooled estimates ± 95% confidence intervals. Results A total of 30 studies were included. Pooled estimates indicated that, compared to adjustables and backs, forwards have less playing time (− 17.2 ± 5.6 and − 25.6 ± 5.8 min, respectively), cover less ‘slow-speed’ (− 2230 ± 735 and − 1348 ± 655 m, respectively) and ‘high-speed’ distance (− 139 ± 108 and − 229 ± 101 m, respectively), but complete more relative RHIEs (+ 0.05 ± 0.05 and + 0.08 ± 0.04 per minute, respectively), and total (+ 12.0 ± 8.1 and + 12.8 ± 7.2 collisions, respectively) and relative collisions (+ 0.32 ± 0.22 and + 0.41 ± 0.22 collisions per minute, respectively). Notably, when the distance was expressed relative to playing time, forwards were not different from adjustables and backs in slow-speed ( P ≥ 0.295) and high-speed ( P ≥ 0.889) relative distance. The adjustables and backs subgroups were similar in most variables, except playing time (shorter for adjustables, − 8.5 ± 6.2 min), slow-speed distance (greater for adjustables, + 882 ± 763 m) and total relative distance (greater for adjustables, + 11.3 ± 5.2 m·min −1 ). There were no significant differences between positional groups for efforts per RHIE, accelerations and decelerations ( P ≥ 0.745). Conclusions These results indicate the unique physical demands of each playing position and should be considered by strength and conditioning and tactical coaches when planning for professional rugby league performance. Protocol Registration https://osf.io/83tq2/ Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s40798-019-0197-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Demands of Professional Rugby League Match-Play: a Meta-analysis

et al. 2019

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“…Therefore, regardless of the equipment used, a thorough description of the methods and equations that have been used in the study is crucial for its reproducibility. In this context, it is important to highlight that many recent studies have neither presented the PL equation nor included any discussion or interpretation about it; instead, they have only cited definitions from previous research reports (Beenham et al, 2017;McNamara et al, 2015;Twist et al, 2017;Zurutuza et al, 2017). As suggested by other authors (Nicolella et al, 2018;Schelling and Torres-Ronda, 2016), we understand that PL is the summation of all the rates of change in acceleration (or the sum of jerks) of athletes during a training activity.…”

Section: © Editorial Committee Of Journal Of Human Kineticsmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…Although most of the aforementioned studies have used Catapult equipment and have therefore used its standardized equation to obtain PL values, regardless of their interpretation of the PL metric, the inconsistent and possibly incautious reporting of the PL equation can lead to its misuse and misinterpretation. This is especially problematic if one calculates PL using equipment that is different from Catapult's (e.g., inertial sensors of distinct brands), as has been the case in some studies (Scanlan et al, 2014;Twist et al, 2017;Young et al, 2016). Consider the example of the coaching staff of a club who use the equation presented by Randers et al (2014) to calculate the PL of a certain training activity (e.g., 4-min soccer small-sided game).…”

Section: © Editorial Committee Of Journal Of Human Kineticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Understanding Player Load: Meanings and Limitations

Bredt

Chagas

Peixoto

et al. 2020

Journal of Human Kinetics

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We present a critical reflection on the mechanical variable Player Load, which is based on acceleration data and commonly used in sports. Our motivation to write this paper came from the difficulties that we encountered in the calculation and interpretation of Player Load using our own data, since we did not use the Catapult Sports equipment, which is a merchandise of the company that proposed this variable. We reviewed existing literature in order to understand Player Load better; we found many inconsistencies in PL calculation methods and in the meanings attached to it. Accordingly, this paper presents a brief discussion on the meanings that have been assigned to Player Load, its limitations, and the lack of clear and complete information about Player Load calculation methods. Moreover, the use of arbitrary units and different practical meanings in the literature has associated Player Load with many physical quantities, thereby resulting in difficulties in determining what Player Load measures within the context of sports. It seems that Player Load is related to the magnitude of changes in acceleration, but not the magnitude of acceleration itself. Therefore, coaches and sports scientists should take this information into account when they use Player Load to prescribe and monitor external loads. We concluded that a deeper discussion of Player Load as a descriptor of external load is warranted in the sports sciences literature.

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“…Related research in junior Rugby League players has reported a progressive accumulation of fatigue represented by a reduced capacity to perform high-speed exercise during tournaments where multiple matches were played over a 5-day period [ 12 ]. An investigation more representative of the u20 World Cup schedule (cycle of 4 matches in 22 days vs. 5 matches in 19 days), albeit in professional rugby league players demonstrated fluctuations in running activity with reductions in high-speed and increases in low-speed distance covered in the latter matches [ 13 ]. No information was reported on any potential changes in technical skill-related performance in either study.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exposure time, running and skill-related performance in international u20 rugby union players during an intensified tournament

et al. 2017

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PurposeThis study investigated exposure time, running and skill-related performance in two international u20 rugby union teams during an intensified tournament: the 2015 Junior World Rugby Championship.MethodBoth teams played 5 matches in 19 days. Analyses were conducted using global positioning system (GPS) tracking (Viper 2™, Statsports Technologies Ltd) and event coding (Opta Pro®).ResultsOf the 62 players monitored, 36 (57.1%) participated in 4 matches and 23 (36.5%) in all 5 matches while player availability for selection was 88%. Analyses of team running output (all players completing >60-min play) showed that the total and peak 5-minute high metabolic load distances covered were likely-to-very likely moderately higher in the final match compared to matches 1 and 2 in back and forward players. In individual players with the highest match-play exposure (participation in >75% of total competition playing time and >75-min in each of the final 3 matches), comparisons of performance in matches 4 and 5 versus match 3 (three most important matches) reported moderate-to-large decreases in total and high metabolic load distance in backs while similar magnitude reductions occurred in high-speed distance in forwards. In contrast, skill-related performance was unchanged, albeit with trivial and unclear changes, while there were no alterations in either total or high-speed running distance covered at the end of matches.ConclusionsThese findings suggest that despite high availability for selection, players were not over-exposed to match-play during an intensified u20 international tournament. They also imply that the teams coped with the running and skill-related demands. Similarly, individual players with the highest exposure to match-play were also able to maintain skill-related performance and end-match running output (despite an overall reduction in the latter). These results support the need for player rotation and monitoring of performance, recovery and intervention strategies during intensified tournaments.

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Player Responses to Match and Training Demands During an Intensified Fixture Schedule in Professional Rugby League: A Case Study

Cited by 21 publications

References 25 publications

The Demands of Professional Rugby League Match-Play: a Meta-analysis

The Demands of Professional Rugby League Match-Play: a Meta-analysis

Understanding Player Load: Meanings and Limitations

Exposure time, running and skill-related performance in international u20 rugby union players during an intensified tournament

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