Category: Technical and Tactical Skill
Rugby Science Update 11
The purpose of this study was to determine the rates of concussion underreporting in male and female Super League rugby players and to establish why players may not report suspected concussions. Furthermore, the study aimed to establish basic concussion knowledge and awareness of the long-term implications of concussions. This study undertook a cross sectional design. A survey was distributed to all registered men’s and women’s players from Super League teams by the Rugby Football League during the 2022 preseason. A total of 422 players completed the survey. Of the 422 players, 20% did not report concussion-related symptoms to the medical staff during the 2020 and 2021 seasons. One third of all players reported at least one concussion diagnosed by a doctor over the last two seasons. The most common reason for not reporting concussion-related symptoms were that players ‘didn’t want to be ruled out of a match’ and ‘didn’t want to let down team’. 62% of players reported receiving annual concussion education at their clubs. Knowledge about concussion and its potential long term implications improved from the beginning of the players senior club level careers. More than half of the players expressed concern about the potential long-term implications of concussions. The authors encourage medical and performance staff to be involved in concussion education to remove any negative perceptions surrounding concussion reporting.
This study is published in the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport.
The aim of this study was two-fold: to describe the tackle characteristics during a single season, of community-level rugby conducted under the lowered, armpit-level maximum legal tackle height law variation and investigate factors that were associated with ‘high tackles under the new law’, during this season. The tackle analysis was completed throughout the Koshuis rugby competition in Stellenbosch University rugby club’s intra-university competition in 2018 and 2019, comprising of four leagues with 42 teams. The first year of the study used the standard shoulder-level maximum tackle height law and in the second year of the study the maximum legal tackle height was lowered from the ball carrier’s shoulder to the armpit. All matches were video recorded with referees wore Go Pro camera, and injury surveillance was conducted. The tackles were categorised as ‘high tackle under the new law’ or ‘not high’. A total of 108 matches and 14679 tackles were analysed. The results showed that ‘high tackles under the new law’ had significantly greater odds of occurring in the lower leagues. Notably, factors contributing to high tackles under the law variation condition included, lower front-on arm tackler, tacklers in upright positions, and ball carriers dipping into contact, all of which were associated with an increased risk of head injury. In conclusion, these findings support the implementation of a lowered maximum legal tackle height in rugby union. The authors did mention that when lowering the maximum legal tackle height, the ball carrier’s behaviour in the tackle event needs to be considered.
This study is published in the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport.
Coach and player rating of perceived challenge (RPC) as a skill monitoring tool in Rugby Union
The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between player and coach Rating of Perceived Challenge (RPC) for different training sessions over a competitive rugby union season and explore the relationship between player RPC and Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE). This observational study monitored 51 highly trained U21 rugby union players and four coaches over an 11-week competitive rugby season. Throughout the season players were asked for their RPC and RPE ratings 15 to 30 minutes after each team session, split session, and gym session, while the coaches were asked to provide their RPC ratings based on observation. All ratings were collected independently and confidentially. The key finding in this study was that, overall, players’ RPC did not match the coaches RPC, suggesting that the rugby union coaches may be overestimating the technical and tactical challenge of their training sessions. Additionally, forwards had a higher RPC for field sessions, likely due to their additional technical and tactical demands from training scrums, lineouts, and mauls. The authors mentioned that further robust validity studies are needed.
This study is published in the International Journal of Sports Science and Coaching.
Rugby Science Update 8
Professional male rugby union players’ perceived psychological recovery and physical regeneration during the off-season
The aim of this study was to explain the phenomenon of psychological recovery and physical regeneration of male professional rugby union players during the off-season. The study used a qualitative approach to gather the beliefs and experiences of players regarding their mental and physical health and well-being across the off-season period and identify the psychological and physical strategies adopted to recover and regenerate in preparation for the upcoming season. The study interviewed 34 male professional players, and found that the off-season is characterised by three phases that players undergo to preserve their mental and physical health and well-being to recover from the previous season and regenerate in preparation for the upcoming season. These include decompression from previous season, cognitive detachment from the rugby environment and preparation for preseason. Successful progression through all three phases appears to be influenced by variables including the work and life demands a player is encountering at the time, contextual factors such as their health status (ie, currently injured or ill), and their level of experience in the sport (eg, previous experiences of the off-season). The authors recommend players should receive sufficient time (5–6 weeks) in the off-season to progress through the phases of recovery and regeneration to prepare for the upcoming season, with consideration for the impact of work and life demands, contextual factors and experience levels. Also, education should be provided to all stakeholders regarding the importance of the off-season period for well-being (recovery and regeneration), together with strategies that can be used to enhance the quality of this process (ie, physically distancing from work environment to support cognitive detachment from rugby, engaging in development activities that nourish holistic identity and personal skill development). Clinicians should also support, where appropriate, player subgroups at risk of threats to well-being and welfare in the off-season period (long term or recently injured and younger professionals).
This is study is published in BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine and is open access.
Tackling sport-related concussion: effectiveness of lowering the maximum legal height of the tackle in amateur male rugby – a cross-sectional analytical study
The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of a tackle law variation that reduces the maximum legal tackle height from the line of the shoulder of the ball barrier, to the line of the armpit, on injury, head injury and sport-related concussion (SRC) incidence in amateur community rugby union. The study used a cross-sectional analytical design over the period 2018 (control) and 2019 (intervention) in a South African collegiate student rugby competition – which included 42 teams. Reducing the legal tackle height from the line of the shoulder to the armpit of the ball carrier in community amateur rugby showed a trend towards reducing injuries, head injuries and SRC, however, these injury trends were not statistically different.
This study is published in Injury Prevention and is open access.
Performance indicators associated with match outcome within the United Rugby Championship
This study had 3 aims i) identify performance indicators associated with match outcomes in the United Rugby Championship (URC), ii) compare efficacy of isolated data and data relative to opposition in predicting match outcome, and iii) investigate whether reduced performance indicator statistical models can reproduce predictive accuracy. The study analysed 27 performance indicators from 96 matches during the 2020-2021 URC season. Five key performances indicators differentiated between winning and losing in the URC – kicks from hand, metres made, clean breaks, turnovers conceded and scrum penalties. Kicking was highlighted as a key driver for match success, with the probability of winning higher for a team kicking more than their opposition. Also, team performance data are much more efficient at predicting match outcomes when expressed relative to the opposition’s performance.
This study is published in the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport and is open access.
Scott, G. A., Bezodis, N., Waldron, M., Bennett, M., Church, S., Kilduff, L. P., & Brown, M. R. (2023). Performance indicators associated with match outcome within the United Rugby Championship. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, 26(1), 63-68.
Rugby Science Update 7
Longitudinal study of six seasons of match injuries in elite female rugby union
The aim of this longitudinal study was to describe the incidence, severity and burden of match injuries in elite adult women’s rugby union. Secondary aims were to describe injuries in different positional groupings (forwards and backs) and to describe the type and location of, and game event responsible for, injuries. The study found the incidence of injury was similar to those previously reported for women’s international match play, while lower than the elite men’s competition. Both the mean and median severity of injury were higher than those reported in elite men’s rugby. Concussion was the most common injury diagnosis, with the incidence of concussion increasing over the study period. The tackle event was associated with the greatest burden of injury, with ‘being tackled’ specifically causing the most injuries and concussions.
The study is published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.
The relationship between physical characteristics and match collision performance among elite international female rugby union players
The aim of this study was to investigate which combination of anthropometric and physical abilities explained variance in match collision performance, using both effort and performance variables, in international female rugby union matches. The study collected physical performance and anthropometric data from fifty-one international female rugby union players, and analysed collision actions (categorised as “effort” or “performance” variables) from 20 international matches. Among forwards, acceleration momentum, body mass and skinfolds were positively associated with winning collisions and carrying the ball into contact more frequently, whilst tackle frequency was positively associated with relative leg strength and power output. For the backs, the ability to win collisions was positively associated with relative leg power output, and negatively associated with body mass. Tackle frequency was also associated with maximum upper- and lower-body strength.
This study is published in the European Journal of Sport Science. Woodhouse, L. N., Bennett, M., Tallent, J., Patterson, S. D., & Waldron, M. (2022). The relationship between physical characteristics and match collision performance among elite international female rugby union players. European Journal of Sport Science, 1-10.
Lay of the land: narrative synthesis of tackle research in rugby union and rugby sevens
The purpose of this review was to synthesise both injury prevention and performance tackle-related research to provide rugby stakeholders with information on tackle injury epidemiology, including tackle injury risk factors and performance determinants, and to discuss measures that may improve tackle performance while reducing the risk of tackle injuries. Using a systematic review approach, a total of 177 rugby union studies and 13 rugby sevens studies were identified. The review found that the tackle consistently accounted for more than 50% of all injuries in rugby union and rugby sevens, both at the professional level and at the lower levels, with the rate of tackle injuries higher at the professional level (mean 32/1000 player-hours) compared with the lower levels (mean 17/1000 player- hours). Also, the frequencies of injury between the ball carrier and tackler were not largely dissimilar. A player’s tackle actions and technical ability was also highlighted as a major risk factor for injury and a key determinant of performance. While studies have used evidence-based education, or proposed progressive tackle technique training and law changes to modify player tackle actions and technical ability, it was noted that all three modifiers working in unison (as oppose to separately) will have a higher potential at reducing tackle injury risk while enhancing performance. With the guidance of tackle injury and performance studies, as well as stakeholder engagement, experiential and explorative tackle research also has potential to inspire innovative tackle injury prevention and performance strategies.
This is review is published in the BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine and is open access.
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