Movement Patterns in Japanese Female Soccer Players During Matches

Abstract

　Soccer players are required to accelerations, decelerations, and change directions throughout a game. To plan an effective training program to improve those factors that related to it must first be identified from the actual soccer game. The purpose of this study was to investigate the occurrence frequency of accelerations (Acc), decelerations (Dec), and changes of directions (CoD) during the game and their frequency under high intensity events (HIE) circumstances.

　Participants were thirty female soccer players in Japan. All players from university whose team belongs to the first division of university league. Players were categorized in three different playing positions: defenders, midfielders, and strikers. Movement patterns were measured by using Inertial Measurement Units (OptimEye S5, Catapult Sports, Australia), a wearable device so each participant could wear it during the experiment was conducted. Acc, Dec, CoD, the sum of these three, and HIE (>2.5 m/s), were extracted using the manufacture’s software.

　As a result, the mean number of events was 1.0±0.4 Acc/min, 0.8±0.4 Dec/min, 10.4±10.2 CoD/min, and HIE was 0.4±0.2 Acc/min, 0.2±0.1 Dec/min, 0.8±0.5 CoD/min. The midfielders displayed the highest occurrence frequency in the sum of HIE. The result indicates that HIE are dependent on the positional role within a team, and that for soccer coaches, it is important to implement specializing training based on the understanding of the characteristics of female soccer as a sport and on the scientific knowledge that we could acquire from the actual games.