Physical and technical demands of Australian football: an analysis of maximum ball in play periods

Abstract

Background This study compares ball in play (BiP) analyses and both whole game (WG) and quarter averaged data for physical and technical demands of sub-elite Australian football (AF) players competing in the West Australian Football League across playing positions. Methods Microsensor data were collected from 33 male AF players in one club over 19 games of the 2019 season. BiP time periods and technical performance data (e.g., kicks) were acquired from the Champion Data timeline of statistics, and time matched to the microsensor data. Linear mixed modelling was utilised to establish differences between maximum BiP periods and averaged data. Results The analyses indicated significant differences (p < 0.0001) between maximum BiP and WG data for all metrics and all playing position (half-line, key position, and midfielders). The percentage difference was greatest for very high-speed running (171–178%), accelerations (136–142%), high-intensity efforts (128–139%), and high-speed running (134–147%) compared to PlayerLoad™ (50–56%) and total running distance (56–59%). No significant (p > 0.05) differences were evident for maximum BiP periods when they were compared between playing positions (i.e., half line vs key position vs midfield). Significant (p < 0.0001) differences were also noted between maximum BiP phases and averaged data across all 4 quarters, for each microsensor metric, and all playing positions. Technical actions (e.g., kicks and handballs) were observed in 21–48% of maximum BiP phases, depending on playing positions and microsensor metric assessed, with kicks and handballs constituting > 50% of all actions performed. Conclusions These results show the BiP analysis method provides a more accurate assessment of the physical demands and technical actions performed by AF players, which are underestimated when using averaged data. The data presented in this study may be used to inform the design and monitoring of representative practice, ensuring that athletes are prepared for both the physical and technical demands of the most demanding passages of play.

Replicating Maximum Periods of Play in Australian Football Matches Through Position-Specific Drills

“…Previous research has consistently recommended that training intensities should match, or overload, those recorded during maximum periods of play from competitive matches (5,18,25,26,28). In addition, training drills should be devised and incorporated within training regimens that replicate maximum periods of play (12,15).…”

“…Previous research has shown their data to demonstrate acceptable levels of reliability and validity (20). These events were used to describe BiP periods, which started with an umpire center bounce or throw-in, or where a player returned the ball with a kick in, until a time where the umpire considers the ball to be out of bounds or signals that a goal or behind has been scored, in line with previous research (28). Previous research has reported the identification of these events to show acceptable levels of accuracy among trained coders (19).…”

“…Despite the benefits of individualized training, because of the limitation of resources, the drill intensity was initially devised using positional grouped data. Although this involved averaging data across positions and players, previous research has demonstrated no significant differences in running intensity during maximum BiP periods between playing positions (28). However, the monitoring of drills post session was performed on an individual basis, and any adjustments required at the individual level were made for the next session.…”

“…Technical actions were performed in 21–48% of maximum BiP periods from matches, depending on the playing position and primary microsensor technology metric used to define the BiP period (28). Specifically, kicks (disposing of the ball by any part of the leg below the knee), handballs (disposing [passing] the ball by hand), tackles (using physical contact to prevent a successful disposal), and marks (catching a ball that has been kicked >15 m) contributed to 27–51, 11–39, 0–26, and 7–22%, respectively, of all technical actions performed during maximum BiP periods (28).…”

Physical and technical demands of offence, defence, and contested phases of play in Australian Football

“…Firstly, the players were grouped into three positional groups (backs, midfield and forwards). Despite the use of general positional groups being standard practice within AF research [16,39,40], the running demands of AF players can be delineated further into smaller groups (e.g., half backs and full backs), which may provide a greater level of detail [1]. This would require a substantially larger sample size, which if achieved, may also enable the inclusion of the ruck position.…”