Comparative analysis of tackle performance between Northern and Southern hemispheres in elite rugby union

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Author
Humphreys, Aled
Date
2015Type
Thesis
Publisher
Cardiff Metropolitan University
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
The aim of this study was to compare defensive differences between elite Northern
and Southern hemisphere nations, using in-depth and specific performance
indicators. There has long been a perception that Southern hemisphere nations have
an ascendancy over those from the North, especially as the Northern hemisphere
have just one world cup win out of a possible seven. This study therefore aimed to
determine if tackle performance differed between hemispheres or whether the
Southern dominance was because of other factors.
The study analysed games from the Six Nations (n=10) and Rugby Championships
(n=12) as these competitions contained the top nine countries in the world therefore
the quality of opposition and match importance was high. In-depth performance
indicators were developed and match events were analysed fully, phase-by-phase,
using the software Sportscode Elite (version 8.4.1). Intra-observer reliability was
tested and a kappa value of 0.8 or above was deemed as acceptable and this was
achieved.
Data was analysed within Microsoft Excel (2011) and then ranked in IBM SPSS.
Several significant differences (p<0.05) were found between hemispheres. The
Northern hemisphere made more tackles and had a significantly greater tackle
completion and missed significantly fewer tackles than the Southern hemisphere.
More positive tackles were made in the Southern hemisphere however more
effective tackles were made in the North. Other significant differences were found
regarding the success of back three tackles, the height and height effectiveness of
tackles and the outcomes.
It was concluded that tackle performance between hemispheres were similar
however there were some differences that may explain why the Southern
hemisphere have been dominant in recent years. Although the North had a greater
tackle completion and fewer missed tackles, the Southern hemisphere were more
effective in other areas. They defended the wider channels better and tackled high
more frequently which was shown to be more effective. The Southern hemisphere
were also better at gaining positive outcomes from jackal attempts, which combined
with the aforementioned factors could explain why the South have had an
ascendancy and could help to predict the outcomes of future matches.
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