An objective method for depicting team performance in elite professional rugby union

Using a two-study approach, we examined a methodology for objectively depicting team performance and form in a professional rugby union side. Study 1 developed standardized indicators to examine a team's performance in a single match relative to their previous matches over a domestic season via a performance report and form chart. This resulted in standardized performance indicators that provided instant and coherent feedback on the team's performance relative to previous standards. Study 2 then utilized this methodology to compare a match between two professional sides, played the following season, to assess the extent to which the performance by one team affected that of the other. Comparison of the two teams' performances, for the match they played against each other, identified a drop in relative performance (against previous standards) for both teams on the same performance indicators. This appeared to be due to the match being a close, hard-fought contest particularly in the tackle and around the gain-line. The findings of the two studies suggest an accurate and viable methodology for depicting team performance that is superior to the global measures previously adopted. Presenting teams' current standardized performances (i.e. form) on a single visual scale also has utility for coaches within an applied setting. Future research should further investigate the effect of one team's performance on another through both individual and team outcomes.     

Stressors in elite sport: a coach perspective

We examined the varying performance and organizational stressors experienced by coaches who operate with elite athletes. Following interviews with eleven coaches, content analysis of the data revealed coaches to experience comparable numbers of performance and organizational stressors. Performance stressors were divided between their own performance and that of their athletes, while organizational stressors included environmental, leadership, personal, and team factors. The findings provide evidence that coaches experience a variety of stressors that adds weight to the argument that they should be labelled as "performers" in their own right. A variety of future research topics and applied issues are also discussed.     

Game management, context effects, and calibration: the case of yellow cards in soccer

Referees in German first-league soccer games do not award as many yellow cards in the beginning of a game as should be statistically expected. One explanation for this effect is the concept of game management (Mascarenhas, Collins, & Mortimer, 2002). Alternatively, the consistency model (Haubensak, 1992) explains the effect as a necessity of the judgment situation: Referees need to calibrate a judgment scale, and, to preserve degrees of freedom in that scale, they need to avoid extreme category judgments in the beginning (i.e., yellow cards). Experiment 1 shows that referees who judge scenes in the context of a game award fewer yellow cards than referees who see the same scenes in random order. Experiment 2 shows the combined influence of game management (by explicitly providing information about the game situation) and calibration (early vs. late scenes in the time course of a game). Theoretical implications for expert refereeing and referee training are discussed.     

Extending validity evidence for multidimensional measures of coaching competency

This study extended validity evidence for multidimensional measures of coaching competency derived from the Coaching Competency Scale (CCS; Myers, Feltz, Maier, Wolfe, & Reckase, 2006) by examining use of the original rating scale structure and testing how measures related to satisfaction with the head coach within teams and between teams. Motivation, game strategy, technique, and character building comprised the dimensions of coaching competency. Data were collected from athletes (N = 585) nested within intercollegiate men's (g = 8) and women's (g = 13) soccer and women's ice hockey (g = 11) teams (G = 32). Validity concerns were observed for the original rating scale structure and the predicted positive relationship between motivation competency and satisfaction with the coach between teams. Validity evidence was offered for a condensed post hoc rating scale and the predicted relationship between motivation competency and satisfaction with the coach within teams.     

Starting with a clean slate: An analysis of member identification with a new sports team

Soccer in Australia underwent a series of changes following a Federal Government inquiry into its future. A report into the Structure, Governance and Management of Soccer in Australia (2003) recommended a process of structural change, aimed at repositioning and re-branding soccer as association football. The restructure yielded the replacement of the National Soccer League with the A-League, five new Australian teams and a concerted attempt to separate soccer from its ethnic ties in the antipodes. This paper examines member identification in relation to a specific A-League club’s members. Using the Sports Spectator Identity Scale (Wann & Branscombe, 1993) to measure sport fan identity in a new team context, a survey of club members of Sydney FC (n = 510), was undertaken. Survey findings indicated that members of Sydney FC reported relatively strong team identification in the first year of the new competition, with some nuanced differences based on age and income. The SSIS demonstrated a good level of fit in relation to a new sports team, although it is evident that rivalries and identification with a new team need time to develop fully.