Early visual cues associated with a directional place kick in soccer

The purpose of this paper was to establish postural cues in kicking that may be of use to goalkeepers. Eight male soccer players (age 20.5 +/- 1.1 yrs; height 1.78 +/- 0.053 m; mass 75.18 +/- 9.66 kg) performed three types of kick: a low side-foot kick to the left hand corner of the goal, a low side-foot kick straight ahead, and a low instep kick straight ahead. Kicks were recorded by an optoelectronic motion analysis system at 240 Hz. At kicking foot take-off (about 200 ms before ball contact) the variables which were significantly different and could act as cues were support foot progression angle, pelvis rotation, and kicking hip and ankle flexion. The support foot progression angle was considered to be the most valuable of these variables as its angle coincided with the direction of ball projection. The other variables were less clear in their interpretation and so less valuable for a goalkeeper to use for decision making. Cues appearing after support foot contact were thought unlikely to be of value to a goalkeeper in their decision making. These include kicking leg knee flexion angle, and support leg shank and thigh angles.     

Quantification of training load during one-, two- and three-game week schedules in professional soccer players from the English Premier League: implications for carbohydrate periodisation

Muscle glycogen is the predominant energy source for soccer match play, though its importance for soccer training (where lower loads are observed) is not well known. In an attempt to better inform carbohydrate (CHO) guidelines, we quantified training load in English Premier League soccer players (n = 12) during a one-, two- and three-game week schedule (weekly training frequency was four, four and two, respectively). In a one-game week, training load was progressively reduced (P < 0.05) in 3 days prior to match day (total distance = 5223 ± 406, 3097 ± 149 and 2912 ± 192 m for day 1, 2 and 3, respectively). Whilst daily training load and periodisation was similar in the one- and two-game weeks, total accumulative distance (inclusive of both match and training load) was higher in a two-game week (32.5 ± 4.1 km) versus one-game week (25.9 ± 2 km). In contrast, daily training total distance was lower in the three-game week (2422 ± 251 m) versus the one- and two-game weeks, though accumulative weekly distance was highest in this week (35.5 ± 2.4 km) and more time (P < 0.05) was spent in speed zones >14.4 km · h^?1 (14%, 18% and 23% in the one-, two- and three-game weeks, respectively). Considering that high CHO availability improves physical match performance but high CHO availability attenuates molecular pathways regulating training adaptation (especially considering the low daily customary loads reported here, e.g., 3–5 km per day), we suggest daily CHO intake should be periodised according to weekly training and match schedules.     

Course evaluation matters: improving students’ learning experiences with a peer-assisted teaching programme

In the rapidly changing global higher education sector, greater attention is being paid to the quality of university teaching. However, academics have traditionally not received formal teacher training. The peer-assisted teaching programme reported on in this paper provides a structured yet flexible approach for peers to assist each other in reinvigorating and refining their teaching practice. Academics participated in this national, multi-institutional trial for varied reasons: the majority voluntarily, others to increase low student evaluation of course scores and some as part of a graduate certificate teaching qualification. Here we report on how academics used the scheme, and the teaching areas they focused on. Student evaluation of course scores increased in the majority of courses, suggesting the changes made had a positive effect on students’ learning experiences. The experiences of the multi-institutional trial reported here may benefit others considering such a scheme to reinvigorate and refine teaching practice and improve course evaluation scores.     

Identifying Behaviors to Target During Zoo Visits

Abstract Although many zoos and zoo associations state the capability and importance of influencing the behavior of zoo visitors, the little research conducted to date gives limited support for these statements. Addressing this deficit involves more research, but zoos also need to design communication strategies with the specific purpose of influencing visitor behavior. However, it's important, before designing a communication campaign, that zoos identify which behaviors to target. As a first step toward doing this, five nominal group technique (NGT) sessions were conducted with general staff from three zoos in Australia, as well as an executive body overseeing three zoos and members of a volunteer group for an urban zoo. Following NGT protocol, desired on‐site and off‐site visitor behaviors were identified and their importance prioritized. The most prioritized behaviors are presented here. The discussion in this paper focuses on the efficacy of the NGT sessions, the need for further capacity‐building in Australian zoos, and proposals for some areas of future research.     

Simplifying e‐book and print production

While XML‐based single‐source publishing is a powerful tool for streamlining the book publishing industry, it may not be the right one for every sector of the industry. For an industry that is part cultural and part industrial, the traditional workflow allows for creativity at every stage and this craft focus still deserves a place in defining how the industry functions. With simple and familiar tools, it can be possible to integrate elements of old and new principles to create a workflow that is streamlined and advantageous without being too radical a shift in practice. This article describes the factors that are important to creating publications in both digital and physical formats.     

The physical demands of professional soccer goalkeepers throughout a week-long competitive microcycle and transiently throughout match-play

ABSTRACT

The physical demands of English Premier League soccer goalkeepers were quantified during training and match-play in a two-part study. Goalkeeper-specific micromechanical electrical systems (MEMS) devices, profiled training and match-day activities throughout one competitive week (n=8; part A). Changes in MEMS-derived outputs were also profiled throughout match-play (100 matches; n=8, 18±14 observations per goalkeeper; part B). In part A, goalkeeping-training elicited the most dives (51±11) versus all activities (all p≤0.030) except shooting-training (p=0.069). Small-sided games elicited the fewest (5±3) dives (all p≤0.012). High-speed distance covered in match (103±72 m) was similar to goalkeeping-training (p=0.484), while exceeding shooting-training, small-sided games, pre-match shooting, and pre-match warm-up (all p=0.012). Most changes of direction (34±12) and explosive efforts (70±18) occurred during goalkeeping-training, with values exceeding match (both p=0.012). In part B, between-half reductions in total distance, but increased high-speed changes of direction and explosive efforts, occurred (both p≤0.05). Excluding the number of high jumps, all variables differed from 0-15-min during at least one match epoch, with more dives (1.3±1.4 vs 1.0±1.1) and explosive efforts (2.5±2.4 vs 2.0±1.8) performed between 75-90-min versus 0-15-min (all p<0.05). These data highlight the differing physical demands of various activities performed by professional soccer goalkeepers throughout a competitive week.     

Influence of recovery time on post-activation potentiation in professional rugby players

Following a bout of heavy resistance training, the muscle is in both a fatigued and potentiated state with subsequent muscle performance depending on the balance between these two factors. To date, there is no uniform agreement about the optimal acute recovery required between the heavy resistance training and subsequent muscle performance to gain performance benefits. The aim of the present study was to determine the recovery time required to observe enhanced muscle performance following a bout of heavy resistance training. Twenty professional rugby players performed a countermovement jump at baseline and approximately 15 s, 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, and 24 min after a bout of heavy resistance training (three sets of three repetitions at 87% one-repetition maximum squat). Power output, jump height, and peak rate of force development were determined for all countermovement jumps. Despite an initial decrease in countermovement jump performance after the heavy resistance training (P<0.001), participants' performance increased significantly following 8 min recovery (P<0.001) (i.e. jump height increased by 4.9%, s=3.0). The findings suggest that muscle performance during a countermovement jump can be markedly enhanced following bouts of heavy resistance training provided that adequate recovery (approximately 8 min) is allowed between the heavy resistance training and the explosive activity.     

Young Children's Comprehension of Temporal Relations in Complex Sentences: The Influence of Memory on Performance

The present study investigated 3‐ to 7‐year‐olds' (N = 91) comprehension of two‐clause sentences containing the temporal connectives before or after. The youngest children used an order of mention strategy to interpret the relation between clauses: They were more accurate when the presentation order matched the chronological order of events: “He ate his lunch, before he played in the garden” (chronological) versus “Before he played in the garden, he ate his lunch” (reverse). Between 4 and 6 years, performance was influenced by a combination of factors that influenced processing load: connective type and presentation order. An independent measure of working memory was predictive of performance. The study concludes that the memory demands of some sentence structures limits young children's comprehension of sentences containing temporal connectives.