Stephen D. Mellalieu

The influence of match location, quality of opposition, and match status on technical performance in professional association football

Abstract The aim of this study was to examine the effects of match location, quality of opposition, and match status on the technical aspects of performance within a single professional British football team. Forty matches from the 2002–2003 and 2003–2004 domestic league seasons were notated post-event using a computerized notational analysis system with 13 on-the-ball behaviours and corresponding outcomes (successful or unsuccessful) assessed. Log-linear modelling procedures indicated that the incidences of all on-the-ball technical behaviours, with the exception of “set-pieces”, were influenced by at least one of the three situation variables, with both independent and interactive effects found. In contrast, logit modelling suggested that there was no general influence of the situation variables on the outcomes of the on-the-ball behaviours. The findings emphasize the need for notational analysts and coaches to consider the potential independent and interactive effects of match location, quality of opposition, and match status when assessing the technical components of football performance, particularly those relating to behaviour occurrence. Future research should consider the effects of additional situation variables purported to influence the mental, physical, technical, and tactical components of football performance.

Possession as a performance indicator in soccer.

In soccer, the ability to retain possession of the ball for prolonged periods of time has been linked to success (Hook and Hughes, 2001). The accuracy of this assertion was investigated by comparing 24 matches involving successful and unsuccessful English premier league teams within the 2001-2002 season. Specifically the teams’ possessions were analysed depending on evolving match status i.e. whether the team was winning, losing or drawing. All possessions less than 3 seconds in duration were removed from the data as they were not deemed to include significant events pertaining to a teams’ strategy. Successful teams were found to have significantly longer possessions than unsuccessful teams irrespective of match status i.e.winning (p<0.01), losing (p<0.05) and drawing (p<0.01). However both successful and unsuccessful teams had longer durations of possession when they were losing matches compared to when winning. It was concluded that within elite English football possession is related to successful performance but it is likely this is down to differences in individual player’s skill levels rather than specific team strategy.

Self-confidence and anxiety interpretation: A qualitative investigation

Abstract Objectives: To examine performers’ retrospective explanations for the relationship between self-confidence, competitive anxiety intensity, and symptom interpretation toward performance. Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 elite performers to determine how self-confidence levels influenced the perceived effects of pre-competitive anxiety intensity and identify the confidence management strategies used to protect symptom interpretation. Results: Two causal networks were identified, showing self-confidence to influence the relationship between competitive anxiety intensity and symptom interpretation. In the absence of self-confidence, increases in competitive anxiety intensity were perceived as outside of the performers’ control and debilitating to performance. Under conditions of high self-confidence, increases in symptoms were reported to lead to positive perceptions of control and facilitative interpretations. To protect against debilitating interpretations of competitive anxiety, performers reported the use of cognitive confidence management strategies including mental rehearsal, thought stopping, and positive self-talk. Conclusions: The findings highlight self-confidence as an essential quality for elite athletes to possess in order to protect against potentially debilitating thoughts and feelings experienced in competitive situations.

Competition stress in sport performers: Stressors experienced in the competition environment

Abstract We examined the performance and organizational stressors encountered by elite and non-elite athletes within the competition environment. Twelve sport performers (6 elite, 6 non-elite) were interviewed about both performance and organizational-related demands experienced when preparing for competition. The framework presented identifies five performance (i.e. preparation, injury, expectations, self-presentation, and rivalry) and five organizational (i.e. factors intrinsic to the sport, roles in the sport organization, sport relationships and interpersonal demands, athletic career and performance development issues, and organizational structure and climate of the sport) stress sources. A similar quantity of performance (#PS) and organizational (#OS) stressors were encountered by elite performers (#PS = 127; #OS = 72) as by non-elite athletes (#PS = 123; #OS = 74), with some demands being common and others unique to each group. Although the findings suggest that, prior to competing, sport performers encounter more stressors pertinent to performance than those emanating from the organization, these observations highlight that all the demands faced by athletes should be considered when preparing and implementing interventions to manage competition stress.

The development of position-specific performance indicators in professional rugby union

The aim of this study was to construct a valid and reliable methodology for the analysis of performance profiles of individual playing positions within rugby union. Twenty-two matches were sampled from the domestic season of a professional male rugby union team. Key performance indicators for individual positions were developed and notated using a computerized behavioural analysis system. Performance profiles of playing positions containing data from one or more individuals were then constructed to compare intra-positional differences. Significant differences (chi-square) were observed between individuals within all the tested playing positions for the principal performance indicators (passing, carrying and tackling for the forward positions, and passing, carrying, tackling and kicking for the backs). For example, the difference between the two outside-halves in the study (P < 0.001) was illustrated by one of the players having a median of 6 successful carries for the season (95% confidence limits of 13 and 3), whereas the other had a median of 2 successful carries (95% confidence limits of 5 and 1). The findings suggest that while general positional performance profiles appear to exist, intra-positional differences may occur due to variations in an individuals style of play, the decision-making demands of the position and the effects of potential confounding variables. Multiple profiles may therefore be necessary for some playing positions to account for variation in factors such as playing conditions and the strength of the opposition.

Recent developments in competitive anxiety direction and competition stress research

The area of competitive anxiety continues to be extensively researched with considerable attention focused on the notion of ‘direction’. The purpose of this review is to demonstrate how the study of direction has advanced our understanding of the competitive anxiety response through providing an overview of the existing research, and emphasizing why sport psychologists investigated the underlying mechanisms of performers’ facilitative interpretations of anxiety symptoms. Finally, we discuss how direction has been integrated into Lazarus (1990, 1991a); Lazarus & Folkman, 1984) transactional perspective of stress, and how this may be used to inform future research into the broader area of competition stress.

Game location effects in professional soccer: a case study.

Game location effects (home versus away) upon technical and tactics-related behaviours were investigated in a professional English soccer team. Matches (n=30) from the 2004-05 domestic season of a top five side from the English Premiership league were notated post-event via a computerized system and compared as a function of game location using non-parametric analysis procedures. An overall home advantage was found for the sample in relation to home-winning and home-goal percentage. For technical performance the team exhibited more successful behaviours, such as tackles, passes and aerial challenges, at home than away. For tactics-related behaviours, more aerial challenges, corner kicks, crosses, passes, dribbles and shots on goal were performed at home in the attacking third of the pitch. In addition, more goal kicks, interceptions, aerial challenges and clearances were performed in the defensive third when playing away. These findings suggest that game location effects may exist at a strategic level within individual teams. Future research should consider the influence of other confounding variables such as weather conditions, game status, team form and opposition quality.

Team performance indicators as a function of winning and losing in rugby union.

The construction of a valid and reliable methodology for the analysis of team performance indicators within rugby union is presented. Twenty matches were sampled from the domestic season of a professional male rugby union team and notated using a computerised behavioural analysis system. A comprehensive list of twenty-two team performance indicators were developed via expert coaches and analysts. Examination of each indicator using Mann-Whitney U analysis revealed statistical differences between winning and losing performances for only two of the identified team indicators (lineouts won on oppositions throw and tries scored). Practical differences were visible within other indicators including increases in the percentage of turnovers won (mdn= 71.88, 95% confidence limits= 88.89 and 33.33 when winning, and mdn= 47.25, 95% confidence limits= 72.22 and 30 when losing). The findings highlight a number of team factors which contribute to winning matches. Subsequent combination of these variables may be used to develop a model to predict future performance within rugby union.

Analysis of strategies in soccer as a function of European and domestic competition

Existing investigations of strategies in soccer using notational analysis have traditionally focused upon nomothetic analysis of international competitions such as World or European Championships (i.e., Luhtanen et al., 2001; Yamanaka, et al., 2001). To enhance the applied benefit of notational analysis idiographic assessment of teams, strategies are required to establish meaningful normative profiles (Hughes et al., 2001). A need also exists to examine individual player behaviours to determine potential influences upon team strategies. The aim of the current study was to assess the strategies of a team in both domestic and European competition over a competitive season. Matches of a British professional soccer team were analysed using a computerised behavioural measurement package with regard to frequency and duration of possession in designated areas of the soccer field. European matches were characterised by more play in pre-defensive areas at the expense of pre-offensive areas compared to domestic matches. Attacking play was found to occur more frequently down the right hand side of the pitch in domestic compared to Europe. Variability was also observed between ball possession and passing difficulty made by individual players in each pitch area. The findings suggest that differences in tactical strategies are evident at both individual and team levels as a function of the nature of the competition. Individual roles therefore appear to be dictated by playing position, team tactics and game circumstances.

Competitive experience and performance status: an investigation into multidimensional anxiety and coping

Abstract In this study, we examined the influence of competitive experience (high vs. low) and performance status (current-elite vs. past-elite) upon athletes’ (N=217) multidimensional trait anxiety, self-confidence, and coping responses. Significant interaction effects showed that the current-elite group, with high experience, had the highest levels of self-confidence and most facilitative interpretation of worry symptoms. Independent variable analysis revealed that the high-experience group reported lower somatic anxiety levels than their low-experience counterparts, and viewed the use of problem- and avoidance-focused coping strategies as more and less effective respectively. Current-elite performers reported lower worry intensity and more facilitative interpretations of somatic anxiety than the past-elite performers, as well as the use of more effective problem-focused and positive emotion-focused coping. The findings highlight competitive experience and performance status as important variables in the study of multidimensional anxiety and coping.