Physiological and anthropometric characteristics of starters and non-starters and playing positions in elite Australian Rules football: a case study

Abstract

A purpose of this study was to determine if pre-season anthropometric and physiological measures were significantly different for the players from one Australian Football League (AFL) club selected to play in the first game of the season compared to the players not selected. Another purpose was to compare fitness test results for defenders, forwards and mid-fielders in the same AFL club. Thirty-four players were tested for isolated quadriceps and hamstrings strength, leg extensor muscle strength and power, upper body strength, sprinting speed, vertical jump (VJ), endurance, skinfolds and hamstring flexibility. The starters who were selected to play the first game were a significantly older and more experienced playing group, and were significantly better (p < 0.05) in measures of leg power, sprinting speed and the distance covered in the Yo Yo intermittent recovery test compared to the non-starters. Although there were trends for the superiority of the starters, the differences in lower and upper body strength, VJ and predicted VO2max were non-significant. The forwards generally produced the worst fitness scores of the playing positions with the midfielders having significantly lower skinfolds and the defenders possessing better hamstring strength and VJ compared to the forwards. It was concluded that some fitness qualities can differentiate between starters and non-starters, at least in one AFL club. Comparisons of playing positions and the development of fitness norms for AFL players require further research.

Reliability and Usefulness of Linear Sprint Testing in Adolescent Rugby Union and League Players

“…Linear sprint testing is common for athletes (3,4,17,24,32). It is assumed that distances of 5 to 10 m can be used to assess an individual's ability to accelerate, while maximal velocities are considered to manifest between 20 and 40 m (3,4,32).…”

“…It is assumed that distances of 5 to 10 m can be used to assess an individual's ability to accelerate, while maximal velocities are considered to manifest between 20 and 40 m (3,4,32). While sprint time in isolation may not be considered a discriminate physical quality, it has been highlighted as influencing whether players start in Australian rules football (AFL), alongside measures of leg power, and high intensity running ability (32). To this end, it is used in the physical testing battery designed to distinguish the best American Football prospects in the draft (24).…”

Relationship Between Physical Capacity and Match Performance in Semiprofessional Australian Rules Football

“…This can include selection in a specific team (team selection), number of games played at a specific level (career success), subjective voting by coaches after performance (coaches' votes) and measurements of physical indices and/or game contributions during competitions (match performance). Studies have investigated the relationship between physical fitness capabilities and career success, team selection or playing status in variety of sports (3,7,10,12,13,19,21,22).…”

The effects of sodium bicarbonate supplementation on asoccer specific conditioning test in division III soccer players

“…Several other researchers have also reported that NaHCO3 ingestion in highly trained athletes did not improve performance. 25,30 Collegiate soccer players were recruited for this study because: soccer players regularly perform running with sharp changes in direction, the in season soccer training program is comprised of a high volume of high intensity interval training and thus the athletes would be expected to have highly developed glycolytic capacities 31 , the protocol used was designed specifically to test the anaerobic fitness of soccer players 22 , and, group homogeneity should result in lower within group variability during repeated measures. According to Bangsbo et al 22 the mean distance to fatigue in the Yo-Yo IR2 by moderate-elite soccer players is 1100 m. In the present study, the grand mean for distance to fatigue was 1275 m. In addition, participants in the present study had a mean VO2PEAK of 59.14 ml/kg-min, which is similar to values reported by Young et al 31 for professional Australian Rules Football players.…”