Effect of using the additional field player on attack efficiency during 2017 Women's Handball World Championship

Abstract

Background: Rule changes such as the use of the additional field player in the attack to replace the goalkeeper can significantly change the tactical strategies of the handball game. Objective: The aim of this study was to analyze the effectiveness of the use of the additional field player in offensive situations during the positional attack and counterattack suffered by the teams participating in the 2017 Women's Handball World Championship. Methods: The sample consisted of 15 matches in the knockout stage. In total, 1638 attack actions (positioned and counterattack) were identified and analyzed. For the exploratory analysis, we used descriptive statistics, obtaining the frequencies and respective percentages for each category of study variables for both situations: when the additional player was used and when not. Results: Our data showed that teams tend to use goalkeeper substitution by a field player to maintain numerical equality (54.9%), followed by the use to obtain numerical offensive advantage (41.3%). There were no differences in the throwing position (left wing, left back, center, pivot, right back and right wing) between situations with and without the additional field player. There was a significant increase in the number of errors when using the additional field player to gain numerical superiority in attack. In numerical equality and inferiority situations, no difference was found. The analyses also showed more counterattacks with goals and 9-m throws when using the additional field player. Conclusions: The use of the additional player did not bring advantages to the team, as more counterattacks were suffered.

The “Empty-Goal” Rule Change from the Perspective of International-Level Team Handball Goalkeepers

“…Existing data imply that the efficiency of using the empty-goal tactic depends crucially on timing, ability, and the score [ 18 ]. Some studies failed to detect a clear advantage (e.g., [ 16 ]); other suggested that playing with an additional field player during the critical periods of handball matches could change the momentum of the game [ 15 ].…”

“…Krahenbühl et al [ 16 ] analyzed 15 games in the 2017 Women’s Handball World Championship and confirmed that the empty-goal rule is used mainly to offset the numerical imbalance caused by a two-minute suspension. They also reported that there was a significant increase in the number of errors when using the additional field player to gain numerical superiority in attack.…”