Exploration of Commonly Used Tests to Assess Physical Qualities in Male, Adolescent Rugby League Players: Discriminative Validity Analyses and Correlations with Match Performance Metrics.

Tests assessing physical qualities are regularly used in youth rugby league teams for various functions. However, the utility of such tests is under-explored in this population. In this way, tests are commonly examined in terms of how well they can differentiate performances between groups that are expected to differ and how they relate to outcomes in actual competitive contexts.

Effects of Different Training Methods on Open-Skill and Closed-Skill Agility in Basketball Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background: Open-skill and closed-skill agility attributes are pivotal for achieving success in basketball. However, systematic synthesis of evidence regarding the effectiveness of different basketball-specific training methods on agility performance is lacking among basketball players in the literature. Consequently, this systematic review with meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of prominent training methods in improving open-skill and closed-skill agility in basketball players.

Tracking What Truly Matters: The Contribution of Game Load, Recovery, and Well-Being to Basketball Performance.

Purpose: This study aimed to explore the relationships of game load, recovery status, and well-being with performance efficiency in basketball players across different performance levels.

Methods: Data from 16 professional male basketball players across 18 official basketball games were analyzed utilizing principal component analysis to reduce dimensionality and identify key factors related to game load, perceived recovery, and well-being associated with performance. Quantile regression was employed to assess the impact of these factors on performance efficiency at different quantiles (10th, 50th, and 90th).

Load distribution across weekly microcycles according to match schedule in a team competing in the Australian national A-League Women's soccer competition.

This observational, longitudinal study compared daily loads experienced in the weekly microcycle for different match schedules among an A-League Women's professional soccer team. Monitoring data were retrospectively accessed from a team (n = 22) competing in the Australian National A-League Women's soccer competition across the 2022-2023 in-season. Internal (session-rating of perceived exertion [session-RPE] and session-RPE load) and external load (total and relative values for total and high-speed running distance) data were acquired from 54 field-based training sessions and 17 matches across a 20-week period.

Multiday Beetroot Juice Ingestion Improves Some Aspects of Neuromuscular Performance in Semi-Professional, Male Handball Players: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Crossover Study.

The aim of this study was to examine the effects of multiday beetroot juice ingestion on neuromuscular performance in semi-professional, male handball players. Twelve handball players competing in the second Spanish national division received 70 ml of beetroot juice (6.4 mmol of nitrate [NO3-]) or 70 ml of a placebo beetroot juice (0.

Training and Game Loads Across Noncongested and Congested Weekly Microcycles During the Regular Season in a Semiprofessional Women's Basketball Team.

Purpose: To quantify and compare loads encountered in individual training sessions and games during noncongested and congested weeks in semiprofessional women basketball players.

Methods: Using an observational, longitudinal design, 12 players from the same team had their external (PlayerLoad, relative PlayerLoad, and total and high-intensity inertial movement analysis variables) and internal load (session rating of perceived exertion [sRPE], sRPE-load, percentage of heart rate peak, and modified summated-heart-rate-zones load) monitored across a regular season. Training and game data were categorized into noncongested (0-1 game) and congested weeks (2-3 games).

Game schedule, travel demands and contextual factors influence key game-related statistics among the top European male basketball teams.

This study examined the effects of game schedule, travel demands and contextual factors on team game-related statistics during a full season. The top 10 teams competing in the 2020-2021 Euroleague basketball season were included where game-related statistics from their respective national competitions and the Euroleague competition were retrieved (761 games). Hierarchical linear regression models were computed to evaluate the effects of distance travelled, game schedule and contextual factors for the previous and current games (league, season phase, opponent level, game outcome, score differential) on key performance indicators (points, shooting, rebounds, assists, turnovers, fouls).

Quantifying the Training Loads and Corresponding Changes in Physical Qualities among Adolescent, Schoolboy Rugby League Players.

Objectives: The adolescent development period is critical for rugby league athletes, given the physical growth, neuromuscular adaptation, and skill acquisition that occurs. Secondary schools play an important role in the development of adolescent rugby league players; however, players may be selected into rugby league academies and development programs outside of school, as well as participating in additional sports. In turn, the training loads these young athletes accrue and the implications of these loads are currently unknown.

The Retest Reliability of Common Tests to Assess Physical Qualities in Adolescent Rugby League Players.

Purpose: Rigorous evidence concerning the reliability of physical tests among young athletes is lacking. Therefore, this study aimed to comprehensively determine the retest reliability of the most commonly used tests to assess physical qualities in adolescent rugby league players, and to provide the standard error of measurement and minimal detectable change for each test to support objective athlete monitoring.

Method: A repeated-measures design was employed with 50 adolescent, schoolboy rugby league players (16.

The reliability and discriminant validity of physical, technical, and perceptual-physiological measures during a game-specific basketball activity simulation protocol.

Activity simulation protocols offer useful applications in research and practice; however, the specificity of such protocols to basketball game-play is currently lacking. Consequently, this study aimed to develop a game-specific basketball activity simulation protocol representative of typical playing durations and assess its reliability and discriminant validity. The simulation protocol was modified from an original version (i.

Home-Court Advantage is Greater for Teams Competing at Higher Playing Levels: An Exploratory Analysis of Spanish Male Basketball Leagues.

This study aimed to (i) compare the extent of home-court advantage (HA) and home win percentage (HW) between Spanish basketball leagues across different playing levels (i.e., leagues) and (ii) analyze the influence of team ability on HA and HW within each playing level.

Intensity Zones and Intensity Thresholds Used to Quantify External Load in Competitive Basketball: A Systematic Review.

Background: Despite widespread use of intensity zones to quantify external load variables in basketball research, the consistency in identifying zones and accompanying intensity thresholds using predominant monitoring approaches in training and games remains unclear.

Objectives: The purpose of this work was to examine the external load intensity zones and thresholds adopted across basketball studies using video-based time-motion analysis (TMA), microsensors, and local positioning systems (LPS).

Methods: PubMed, MEDLINE, and SPORTDiscus databases were searched from inception until 31 January 2023 for studies using intensity zones to quantify external load during basketball training sessions or games.

A comparison in knee flexor and extensor strength following ACL reconstruction in international, male soccer players receiving patellar tendon or hamstrings grafts.

The aim of this study was to compare knee extensor and flexor strength recovery following anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction between bone-patellar tendon-bone (BPTB) and hamstring tendon (HT) grafts in international male soccer players undergoing comparable 6-month rehabilitation programmes. Seventeen players underwent ACL reconstruction with either an autogenous BPTB graft or HT graft. Knee extensor and flexor peak torques were measured at 3 months and 6 months in the injured and contralateral legs following surgery using isokinetic dynamometry.

Weekly Fluctuations in, and Associations Between, Salivary Hormone Responses, Load, and Well-Being During the Pre-season in Professional Male Basketball Players.

Kamarauskas, P, Scanlan, A, Ferioli, D, and Conte, D. Weekly fluctuations in, and associations between, salivary hormone responses, load, and well-being during the pre-season in professional male basketball players. J Strength Cond Res 38(1): 128-135, 2024-This study aimed to (a) quantify weekly fluctuations in hormonal responses (testosterone [T], cortisol [C], and their ratio [T:C]), external (PlayerLoad [PL] and PL·minute-1) and internal (session rating of perceived exertion load [sRPE-load], summated heart rate zones [SHRZs], and percentage of maximal heart rate [%HRmax]) load measures, and well-being measured using a self-reported questionnaire and (b) determine the associations between weekly changes in hormonal responses and load measures with weekly changes in well-being during the pre-season phase in basketball players.

Waking Up to the Issue! Research Inattention and Sex-Related Differences Warrant More Sleep Studies in Female Athletes.

Understanding sleep patterns and behaviors of athletes is essential for developing targeted sleep-based interventions for implementation in practice. However, more than double the number of sleep studies have examined male athletes compared with female athletes, making the current understanding of sleep patterns, behaviors, and interventions among athletes disproportionately indicative of men. Consequently, this review demonstrates the need for more female-specific sleep data among athlete populations due to research inattention and sex-related differences.

Injury incidence among adolescent and senior basketball players: a prospective study in 19 teams across an entire season.

Objective: To quantify and compare injury incidence between national-level, adolescent and regional-level, senior, male basketball players competing in Serbia overall and according to injury mechanism (contact, non-contact, or overuse), exposure setting (training or games), and history (new or recurrent).

Methods: A total of 218 male basketball players from 19 teams (106 senior and 112 adolescent players) volunteered to participate in the study. Descriptive data regarding game and training injury incidence were gathered across all players and reported per 10,000 athlete-exposures (AE) with 95% confidence intervals.

What Tests are Used to Assess the Physical Qualities of Male, Adolescent Rugby League Players? A Systematic Review of Testing Protocols and Reported Data Across Adolescent Age Groups.

Background: Understanding the physical qualities of male, adolescent rugby league players across age groups is essential for practitioners to manage long-term player development. However, there are many testing options available to assess these qualities, and differences in tests and testing protocols can profoundly influence the data obtained.

Objectives: The aims of this systematic review were to: (1) identify the most frequently used tests to assess key physical qualities in male, adolescent rugby league players (12-19 years of age); (2) examine the testing protocols adopted in studies using these tests; and (3) synthesise the available data from studies using the most frequently used tests according to age group.

The discriminative, criterion, and longitudinal validity of small-sided games to assess physical fitness in female basketball players.

The validity of small-sided games (SSG) for assessing physical fitness was evaluated in 21 female basketball players from senior ( = 8), under-18 years ( = 6), and under-16 years ( = 7) age categories. Players underwent fitness testing (countermovement jump [CMJ], agility T-test, repeated-sprint ability (RSA) test, and Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Test [YYIRT1]) and 3vs3-SSG before and after a 6-week preseason. Player demands were monitored during SSG using local positioning system and heart rate technology.

A comparison of activity demands between trial matches and in-season matches across multiple teams and seasons in semi-professional, male rugby league players.

Trial matches are frequently used for team preparation in rugby league competitions, making it essential to understand the demands experienced to assess their specificity to actual competition. Consequently, this study aimed to compare the activity demands between pre-season trial matches and early in-season rugby league matches. Following a repeated-measures observational design, 39 semi-professional, male rugby league players from two clubs were monitored using microsensors during two trial matches and the first two in-season matches across two consecutive seasons.

Sport-related differences in QT dispersion and echocardiographic parameters in male athletes.

The aim of this study was to compare QT dispersion (QTd) and echocardiographic parameters in male athletes competing across different sports (long-distance running, volleyball, football, powerlifting, and bodybuilding) and a control population. Significant moderate-strong differences (p < 0.001, [Formula: see text] = 0.

Sleep Patterns Fluctuate Following Training and Games across the Season in a Semi-Professional, Female Basketball Team.

Quantifying athlete sleep patterns may inform development of optimal training schedules and sleep strategies, considering the competitive challenges faced across the season. Therefore, this study comprehensively quantified the sleep patterns of a female basketball team and examined variations in sleep between nights. Seven semi-professional, female basketball players had their sleep monitored using wrist-worn activity monitors and perceptual ratings during a 13-week in-season.

The incidence rate of ACL injuries and ankle sprains in basketball players: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: To quantify the incidence rate of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries and ankle sprains according to player sex, playing level, and exposure setting (training vs. games) in basketball players.

Methods: PubMed, MEDLINE, Google Scholar, and ScienceDirect were searched.