Influence of Competition on Vertical Jump, Kicking Speed, Sprint and Agility of Young Football Players

Abstract

The objective of this study was to analyse the influence of competition level (elite group [EG] and sub-elite group [SG]), on the Counter Movement Jump (CMJ), Kicking Speed (KS), sprint and agility in young football players. The subjects were 79 young football players (14 to 18 years old), from Andalusian football teams with mean parameters of 15.68 years (age), 1.74m (height), 64.93kg (weight) and 21.38kg/m² (Body Mass Index [BMI]). The results of the Analysis of Covariance showed that players in the EG performed better than the SG on all variables, after adjusting for age and BMI (p≤0.028). It was concluded that competing in a higher football division, involves higher performance levels for CMJ, KS, sprint speed and agility. This may suggest that training programmes are more effective and accurate at higher competition levels. Physical fitness could be a key factor in determining the level of a player at these ages. These football-specific skills could be used for designing and evaluating training programmes to improve the level of conditioning.

Keywords: Power, Strength, Football-Specific Skills, Football Division, Young Players