An eye for talent: The recruiters' role in the Australian Football talent pathway

'Goalkeepers are players too': key attributes coaches' look for in talented youth soccer goalkeepers

OBJECTIVE

Currently, there is a gap in knowledge on what the key goalkeeper attributes are during talent identification and selection in soccer. Hence, the objective was to investigate South African coaches' perceptions regarding key attributes of talented youth soccer goalkeepers.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional survey.

METHODS

A total of 173 soccer coaches (130 men and 43 women; Mage = 36.6 ± 10.4 years; Mcoaching experience = 8.4 ± 7.3 years) were purposively recruited to participate in the study. All of the participants completed the Talent Identification Questionnaire in Soccer - Goalkeepers (TIDQS-GK).

RESULTS

The six-component solution identified by the principal component analysis accounted for 68.96% of the total variance. Coaches deemed psychological (e.g. concentration, bravery, self-discipline), physical (e.g. speed, flexibility), social (e.g. coachability, communication), technical (e.g. catching the ball, first touch), tactical (e.g. defensive organisation against set plays) and perceptual-cognitive skills (e.g. decision-making) as important factors in identifying talented goalkeepers.

CONCLUSIONS

The study offers new insights into the key attributes that soccer coaches look for in talented goalkeepers such as concentration, bravery, speed, coachability and decision-making and could direct coaches towards more objective evaluation strategies for informing their decisions.

Visual search strategies and game knowledge in junior Australian rules football players: testing potential in talent identification and development

This study explored video-based decision-making and eye-movement behavior as a complementary method to assess the decision-making skills and knowledge of elite junior Australian Rules (AR) Football players. Performance was measured twice over an 18-month period. This approach tested a practical and reliable assessment of decision-making and game knowledge that does not contribute to physical training load. N = 59 participants were categorized based on their training age groups, U14 (N = 38, Mage 13.37 ± 0.47) and U16 (N = 21, Mage 14.80 ± 0.39). Participants watched 14 brief video clips and provided action choices while wearing eye-movement recording glasses that captured visual search patterns (e.g., fixations). Decision accuracy and speed of decision-making were also recorded. Participants with accurate decisions made significantly faster decisions compared to less skilled players (p < 0.001). Further, skilled participants had significantly fewer fixations of shorter duration compared to less skilled participants at both the initial and follow-up testing sessions (p < 0.0001). This suggests that eye-movement characteristics, remain a relatively stable measure over moderate periods of time. With the ability to differentiate between more and less skilled decision-makers, this proof-of-concept study proposes that examining eye movements in relation to decision-making and game knowledge is a viable tool for Talent Identification and Development (TID) to complement current measures. We provide a platform for further development and research in the quest for efficient and effective talent identification processes.

Predicting successful draft outcome in Australian Rules football: Model sensitivity is superior in neural networks when compared to logistic regression

Using logistic regression and neural networks, the aim of this study was to compare model performance when predicting player draft outcome during the 2021 AFL National Draft. Physical testing, in-game movement and technical involvements were collected from 708 elite-junior Australian Rules football players during consecutive seasons. Predictive models were generated using data from 465 players (2017 to 2020). Data from 243 players were then used to prospectively predict the 2021 AFL National Draft. Logistic regression and neural network models were compared for specificity, sensitivity and accuracy using relative cut-off thresholds from 5% to 50%. Using factored and unfactored data, and a range of relative cut-off thresholds, neural networks accounted for 73% of the 40 best performing models across positional groups and data configurations. Neural networks correctly classified more drafted players than logistic regression in 88% of cases at draft rate (15%) and convergence threshold (35%). Using individual variables across thresholds, neural networks (specificity = 79 ± 13%, sensitivity = 61 ± 24%, accuracy = 76 ± 8%) were consistently superior to logistic regression (specificity = 73 ± 15%, sensitivity = 29 ± 14%, accuracy = 66 ± 11%). Where the goal is to identify talented players with draft potential, model sensitivity is paramount, and neural networks were superior to logistic regression.

Development of the Talent Identification Questionnaire in Soccer for Outfield Players (TIDQ-OP): Coaches' perceptions of the key attributes for player recruitment

Talent identification in sports is a complex process, whereby the aim is to identify, select and promote players who are considered to have the necessary skills and competencies (e.g., technical, tactical, and physical attributes) to succeed in senior adult competition. To support this process, this study focused on the development of a questionnaire to assist in the identification of talent among South African youth soccer players. This will establish a measure of the attributes coaches consider important when making talent identification decisions for outfield soccer players. The questionnaire was constructed following established instrument development phases. In phase 1, 61 questionnaire items were generated based on a review of the relevant literature. In phase 2, a panel of experts examined the content validity of the preliminary items. In phase 3, the provisional 59-item questionnaire (Talent Identification Questionnaire in Soccer for Outfield Players; TIDQ-OP) was administered to 173 experienced South African soccer coaches (130 males and 43 females) who ranged in age from 18 to 64 years. In phase 3, the factorial structure of the questionnaire was established through principal component analysis. The final questionnaire consisted of 58 items. These preliminary analyses indicate the usefulness of the TIDQ-OP as a tool to assist South African coaches in the identification and selection of talented players.

The Effect of Environmental Disasters on Endocrine Status, Hematology Parameters, Body Composition, and Physical Performance in Young Soccer Players: A Case Study of the Aral Sea Region

The Aral Sea region (Uzbekistan) is infamous because of the ecological disaster characterized by the disappearance of the Aral Sea due to excessive uncontrolled water intake for agriculture needs. A new desert occurrence, soil and climate aridization led to pesticide and toxic metals environment pollution. The impact of environmental conditions in some areas of Uzbekistan on the health of soccer players is not as noticeable as, for example, the effectiveness of training, so it is not widely discussed in scientific papers. The aim of the present study was to study the features of endocrine status, hematology parameters (e.g., red blood cells (RBC) and hemoglobin (Hb)), and their influence on body composition and physical fitness performance in local young soccer players of the Aral Sea region as the territory of ecological disaster. The study involved 60 male soccer players aged from 18 to 22 years. Participants were divided into two groups: the experimental group (EG), which consisted of 30 soccer players living on the territory of the Aral ecological disaster region, and the control group (CG), which included 30 soccer players, natives of the ecologically favorable region of Uzbekistan. All volunteers had anthropometric measurements, concentrations of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), total testosterone (TT), estradiol (E2), cortisol (C), RBC, and Hb count. Moreover, Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Test Level 1 (YYIRT1) and professional skills tests such as dribbling shuttle test (DSt) and goal accuracy test (GAt) were assessed. When comparing the CG group to the EG group, it was observed that the EG group exhibited statistically significantly reduced levels of TT and E2 (p < 0.05). No significant statistical difference was observed between the two groups in terms of IGF-1 and C (p > 0.05). Regarding hematological parameters, Hb, Ht, and mean corpuscular volume (MCV) were found to be significantly lower in the EG compared with the CG (p < 0.05). Moreover, the distance covered in the YYIR1 test was found to be significantly lower in soccer players within the EG compared with the CG (p < 0.05). Additionally, it was determined that there was no significant difference between the groups in terms of DSt and GAt values (p > 0.05). Lastly, significant differences were observed between the EG and CG in terms of anthropometric characteristics (diameters, skinfold, and somatotype profile) (p < 0.05). The present study showed that the changes in evaluated characteristics might result from the complex influence of endocrine-disrupting chemicals, the content of which is high in the environment of the Aral Sea region. The results obtained may help monitor the health of athletes living in an environmentally unfriendly environment.

Examining the Eye Movement Behaviors Associated With Skilled Decision-Making by Elite Australian Rules Football Players

Exploration of eye-movement behaviors of humans can provide insight into the processes used to inform and make decisions, with a large body of research revealing general trends, especially in the sporting context. Despite this some questions remain within the sport context particularly for elite groups engaged in diverse sports, and the potential for this information to provide for training, development, and performance. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the critical fixation points and durations associated with superior decision-making within an elite group of Australian Rules football players. To achieve this eye-movement behavior (fixations) and associated decision-making skills of (N = 27; Mage = 25.0 ± 3.7 yrs) elite Australian Rules (AR) football players were measured while they watched game-based video clips. The most skilled players made significantly faster decisions compared to less skilled players (p < 0.001), who also had significantly shorter total fixation duration (p < 0.0001). Further, analysis showed that the most skilled players spent more time fixating on potential options within an area of interest (p = 0.003). Thus, within a group of highly skilled group of athletes, distinctions can be made on perceptual-cognitive skills, for outcome decisions and decision processes. That is, skilled decision-makers appear to have more efficient visual search strategies, which may help them process visual information more effectively. Further, examination of these behaviors may aid sport science and coaching staff identify the process that can be refined to increase player ability between and within various teams.

Physical fitness tests as an indicator of potential athletes in a large sample of youth

BACKGROUND

Promoting youth sports participation is an excellent strategy to improve health and high-level sports competition around the world.

AIMS

The aim of this study was to analyse the potential of commonly used physical-fitness (PF) tests to discriminate against athletes from non-athletes in young populations.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

One thousand eight hundred and thirty-one youth people were analysed (boys: 514 non-athletes and 401 athletes; girls: 722 non-athletes and 194 athletes) aged 10-18 years (y). Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), muscular fitness (MF), agility and speed were tested using PF tests.

RESULTS

Application of receiver operating characteristics curves was used to assess the discriminatory potential of each PF for distinguishing athletes from non-athletes, with an area under the curve (AUC) higher than 65% (0.65). In the oldest groups (≥16 y), the speed test at 20 m in boys (AUC = 0.70) and horizontal jump test in girls (AUC = 0.75) were the best discriminators, while the push-up-test (AUC 10-11 y boys = 0.68, AUC 14-15 y boys = 0.68, AUC 10-11 y girls = 0.73, AUC 12-13 y girls = 0.87) and the PACER (AUC boys: 12-13 y = 0.68 and AUC girls 14-15 y = 0.73) appeared to be better discriminators than other PF tests, for the younger age-groups.

CONCLUSION

The speed-test at 20 m and the horizontal-jump were the best PF to identify older adolescents with athletic potential, while the PACER and push-up tests were the most discriminatory for the younger adolescents.

Physical and Anthropometric Characteristics Do Not Differ According to Birth Year Quartile in High-Level Junior Australian Football Players

The aim of this study was to explore differences in the physical fitness and anthropometric profiles between birth year quartiles of players attending the Australian Football League (AFL) National Draft Combine. Date of birth, anthropometric, 20 m sprint, vertical and running vertical jump, AFL planned agility, and 20 m Multi-Stage Fitness Test (MSFT) data were obtained for players selected to attend the Combine between 1999 and 2019 (n = 1549; Mage = 18.1; SDage = 0.3). The underlying density distributions of the data were visually explored using violin plots overlaid with box and whisker plots. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was then used to model the main effect of birth quartile (four levels) on the physical and anthropometric scores. Results showed that physical and anthropometric test scores did not significantly differ according to birth quartile (V = 0.008, F = 0.880, p = 0.631). We conclude that the physical and anthropometric profiles of high-level junior Australian Football players were similar according to birth year quartile across the modeled period. Therefore, how players utilize their physical and anthropometric attributes during game-play via contextualized, representative assessments, such as small-sided games, should be considered when examining potential causes of a RAE.

Coaches' Assessment of Players Physical Performance: Subjective and Objective Measures are needed when Profiling Players

This mixed methods study aimed to assess the agreement between coaches ranking of youth rugby league players compared against objective physical performance data and gather coaches' subjective descriptions of their players performance. Five hundred and eight male rugby league players (U16 n = 255, U18 n = 253) completed a fitness testing battery of anthropometric and physical performance measures. Subsequently, 22 rugby (n = 11) and strength and conditioning (S&C) coaches (n = 11) ranked each player's physical qualities using a 4-point Likert scale (1 - top 25%; 2-25-50%; 3-50-75%; and 4 - bottom 25%) and described their performance. U16 S&C coaches displayed fair agreement when assessing players body mass (39.3%, κ = 0.20). U18 rugby coaches demonstrated fair agreement for strength and size (42.5%, κ = 0.23) and body mass (48.7%, κ = 0.31) whilst both U18 rugby and S&C coaches showed fair agreement levels for endurance (39.8%, κ = 0.25, 44.3%, κ = 0.29), respectively. Three higher-order themes were identified from coaches' descriptions of players including physical, rugby and attitude characteristics when evaluating performance. Overall, coaches cannot accurately assess players physical performance against fitness testing data. Though, findings suggest coaches adopt a multidimensional approach when evaluating players performance. Practitioners within talent development systems should utilise both objective and subjective assessments when making decisions regarding players performance.Highlights Rugby and S&C coaches cannot accurately assess all aspects of players physical performance.The greatest assessment agreement was for body mass, strength and size, and endurance, while the poorest were for strength, acceleration, and maximum speed.Rugby and S&C coaches considered rugby, physical and attitude attributes when evaluating players.Findings highlight the complex nature of physical profiling. Subjective and objective measures are required to provide an accurate description of players physical performance.

Nationwide Subjective and Objective Assessments of Potential Talent Predictors in Elite Youth Soccer: An Investigation of Prognostic Validity in a Prospective Study

Recent studies have provided empirical evidence on the prognostic relevance of objective performance diagnostics in the soccer talent identification and development process. However, little is known about the prognostic validity of coaches' subjective evaluations of performance. This study evaluated objective and subjective assessments within a nationwide talent development program and addressed motor, perceptual skill, and personality-related performance factors. Male players (N = 13,869; M_age = 12.59 ± 1.07 years) from the age groups U12 to U15 of the German soccer talent development program participated in this study. Participants completed an objective motor diagnostic (sprint, agility, dribbling, ball control, juggling) and were subjectively rated by their coaches (kicking skills, endurance, individual tactical skills, psychosocial skills). All nine predictors were assessed with sufficient psychometric properties (α ≥ 0.72; except dribbling and ball control: α ≥ 0.53). Players' success three seasons later was operationalized by achieving professional youth academy level or not (success rate, 9%). Independent-samples t-tests analyzed univariate mean group comparisons between future selected and non-selected players. Logistic regression models examined the multivariate prognostic validity of all assessments by predicting success with subjective (model 1), objective (model 2), and both groups of predictors (model 3). Confirming the univariate prognostic validity, future selected outperformed non-selected players regarding all predictors (each p < 0.001, except for agility in U15: p < 0.01). Tactical skills, kicking skills, and sprint were of highest predictive value (d ≥ 0.61 in each age group). Multivariate results provided empirical evidence for the subjective (7% ≤ Nagelkerke's R² ≤ 11%; each p < 0.001) and objective (8% ≤ Nagelkerke's R² ≤ 13%; each p < 0.001) assessments' prognostic validity. However, model 3 revealed the best statistical explanatory power in each age group (0.15 ≤ Nagelkerke's R² ≤ 0.20; p < 0.001). In this combined assessment model, sprint, tactical skills, and dribbling were found to be the most predictive variables. In conclusion, this study reinforces the call for multidimensional diagnostics integrating objective and subjective assessments. Future research is needed to address the demands for longitudinal analyses of subjective ratings, the integration of biological maturation, and empirical evidence for female soccer.

How soccer scouts identify talented players

Scouts of soccer clubs are often the first to identify talented players. However, there is a lack of research on how these scouts assess and predict overall soccer performance. Therefore, we conducted a large-scaled study to examine the process of talent identification among 125 soccer scouts. Through an online self-report questionnaire, scouts were asked about (1) the players' age at which they can predict players' soccer performance, (2) the attributes they consider relevant, and (3) the extent to which they predict performance in a structured manner. The most important results are as follows. First, scouts who observed 12-year-old and younger players perceived they could predict at older ages (13.6 years old, on average) whether a player has the potential to become a professional soccer player. This suggests that scouts are aware of the idea that early indicators of later performance are often lacking, yet do advise on selection of players at younger ages. Second, when identifying talented players, scouts considered more easily observable attributes, such as technical attributes. However, scouts described these often in a broad sense rather than in terms of specific predictors of future performance. Finally, scouts reported that they assess attributes of players in a structured manner. Yet, they ultimately based their prediction (i.e. final score) on an intuitive integration of different performance attributes, which is a suboptimal strategy according to existing literature. Taken together, these outcomes provide specific clues to improve the reliability and validity of the scouting process. HighlightsBased on a large sample of soccer scouts, we examine three issues that are important in the process of identifying talented soccer players: The age at which good performance predictions can be made, which attributes are relevant predictors, and how performance predictions are formed.Scouts who observe players in young age cohorts believe that the age at which they can predict performance is older than the players they typically scout, suggesting that they are aware that early indicators of performance are often lacking.Technical performance attributes are considered as most important performance predictors by scouts, but these are often described in a broad - rather than specific - sense.Scouts indicate that they predict performance in a structured manner, but form their overall performance prediction on an intuitive integration of different performance attributes, which can be a suboptimal approach.