Movement and Physiological Demands of International and Regional Men’S Touch Rugby Matches
MOVEMENT AND PHYSIOLOGICAL DEMANDS OF INTERNATIONAL AND REGIONAL MEN’S TOUCH RUGBY MATCHES 1 1 2,3 3,4 ROBERT P. BEAVEN, JAMIE M. HIGHTON, MARY-CATHERINE THORPE, EMMA V. KNOTT, AND 1 CRAIG TWIST 1Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences, University of Chester, England, United Kingdom; 2Department of Health Professions, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, United Kingdom; 3England Touch Association, England; and 4Department of Health Sciences, Huddersfield University, Huddersfield, United Kingdom ABSTRACT players. These data indicate that performance in men’s touch Beaven, RP, Highton, JM, Thorpe, M-C, Knott, EV, and Twist, rugby is characterized by more relative high-speed running and C. Movement and physiological demands of international and better repeated sprint capacities in higher standard players. regional men’s touch rugby matches. J Strength Cond Res KEY WORDS GPS, team sport, sprinting, elite, sub-elite 28(11): 3274–3279, 2014—This study compared the internal and external match demands imposed on international and INTRODUCTION regional standard male touch rugby players. The study adopted ouch rugby (touch) is an intermittent high- a cohort design with independent groups. Twelve international intensity team sport played globally. Like many 6 6 players (mean age, 27.8 6.2 years; body mass, 72.8 3.7 teams sports, touch players perform frequent peri- kg; stature, 174.5 6 5.4 cm) and 9 regional players (mean age, T ods of high-intensity running (such as sprinting) 25.5 6 5.5 years; body mass 74.2 6 7 kg; stature 174.1 6 separated by periods of low-intensity activity (such as stand- 7 cm) were analyzed during 9 competitive matches from the ing, walking, and jogging) (26).
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