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The aim of this research was to determine the difference in physical performance of soccer players across different playing positions in team. A total of 75 adolescent male soccer players (aged 14.2±0.4 years) that participated at the highest level of competition in Serbia of their age were recruited. They were tested for speed, change of direction speed (COD), and reactive agilty. Reactive agilty with live testers was able to distinguished forwards from both groups, midfielders (diff = 0.0960, 95%CI = 0.0343 to 0.1577, p < .01) and defenders (diff = 0.0970, 95%CI = 0.0328 to 0.1612, p < .01). Our results highlight that even in adolescent soccer players there is an influence of playing position on physical qualities

The ability to differentiate players according to their level is not clearly defined. There is evidence that youth soccer players classified as elite and non- elite differ in body size and maturity (Malina, 2003). but also in strength, flexibility and soccer-specific skills (Hansen et al, 1999 ; Rosch et al., 2000). However, studies that aimed to determine the level differences in speed, change of direction speed (CODS) and agility are missing. We investigated level differences in speed, change of direction speed and reactive agility in a group of trained adolescent soccer players. Methods: A total of 75 adolescent male soccer players (aged 14–18 years) were recruited. The players were grouped on the basis of level of play to elite, sub-elite and amateur players. Players were tested for 5, 10-m sprint, and 20-m sprint, COD and Reactive Agility Test containing light- based (RAT-Light) and opponent-based stimuli (RAT- Opponent). Results: Elite players had faster reaction time RAT-Opponent (p ≤0.01) compared to sub-elite and amateur players. Moreover, elite players showed faster time during RAT-Light (p ≤0.01) but only compared to amateur players. Conclusion: This study does not recommend to use of agility full time and CODS as indicators to assign the players level differences in adolescents. On the other hand, we can conclude that reaction time in agility test can be a significant factor that differentiate between adolescent soccer players considering their level

Purpose: A lack of physical exercise has been noticeable from an early age. Such behavioral patterns lead to obesity and other health problems. This study aimed to determine differences in exercise motivations regarding participants’ educational levels. We assumed that there would be significant differences in exercise motivation between groups with different levels of education. Methods: The study was conducted on a sample of 138 men and 80 women. One hundred eight of them had higher education (HE) and 110 had lower education (LE). The measuring instrument for this research was the Questionnaire for motivation factors for physical activity. The questionnaire consists of thirteen factors for exercise motivation. We calculated the correlation among factors with Person’s corrleation coefficient and between- group differences with the Mann-Whitney test. Results: Both groups stated that the motivation factor „To feel in good shape physically“ has the highest rating and the factor „To get together and meet new people“ the lowest for their engagement in physical activity. When we look at statistically significant differences between the HE and LE, seven factors were rated with a higher score in the HE population compared to the LE population. Conclusions: Information about differences in exercise motives is essential for finding ways and motives to engage as many people as possible in some form of physical exercise. Our study demonstrated that the population with higher education has stronger motives for exercise participation.

One of the key issues in physical activity research is the determination of motives for exercise participation man and woman. PURPOSE: The aim of this research was to determine the gender differences in motives for exercise participation in men and women. METHODS: The participants were 138 men and 80 women involved in organized physical activities through different fitness training centers in Zagreb. Campbell’s Questionnaire with 13 items for motivation was used in order to determine the motives for exercising in people aged 18 to 76 years. Differences in the motivation of men and women were tested by the Mann-Whitney test. RESULTS: Statistically significant gender differences were found in four factors of motivation: to look good (p=0.02), to relax (p=0.01), to control or lose weight (p=0.01) and to seek adventure and excitement (p=0.02). Additionally, men and women differ according to education, job and their willingness to pay for exercising. CONCLUSION: Men and women show differences in motives for exercise, especially concerning the exercise organized in fitness training centers.

Purpose: The aim of our research was to determine the effects of small-sided games on passing accuracy and explosive strength in primary school children. The authors hypothesized that this program might significantly improve passing and explosive power in children. Methods: Forty-eight primary school children participated in this study (12, 26±1, 01). They were tested for lower body explosive power and passing accuracy. Players were randomly allocated into a small-sided games group (n = 24) and instructional group (n = 24). Each player participated in a 12-week training program that included 2 organized court training sessions per week. Results: There was statistically significant difference pre- to post-training (p < 0.01) in Block and Spike jump after 12 weeks of SSG training. In SJ and CMJ results revealed a statistically significant difference between groups pre- to post-training (p < 0.05). Both groups made significant increases in passing accuracy with significant interaction effect between the groups. Conclusion: Small-sided games implemented in primary school education appears to be an effective way of improving explosive strength and passing accuracy. The results of this study indicate that SSG method was more effective for improving passing and lower body explosive power than traditional instructional school programme.

The aim of our research is to determine the effects of small-sided games training on accuracy in young female volleyball players. Forty-two youth female volleyball players participated in this study. Players were tested for overhead and forearm passing, setting, serving and serving under pressure. Small-sided games and instructional training were performed at the beginning of the season and added to the volleyball practice sessions three times a week for a total duration of 12 weeks. Small-sided games training induced significant (p

Research in soccer players concerning relation of match activity and fitness tests have provided questionable results. Therefore, the purpose of this cross-sectional study was to examine the relationship between fitness tests and match activity among junior soccer players. Thirty seven junior soccer players were randomly selected using stratification criteria: age and playing role. Anaerobic fitness was measured by laboratory and field tests. In addition, total distance covered and distance covered during high- intensity actions during the match was determined. The total distance covered was significantly associated with RAST (0.53) and Wingate test (0.88). In addition, the RAST test was significantly related to HIR and sprinting. However, no significant relationship (p>0.05) was found between all sprint tests and match activity during soccer matches. The significant relationship between anaerobic fitness tests and high-intensity activities and total distance in elite soccer league matches demonstrates the need to adequately prepare players for the running demands of competition. The findings of this study clearly demonstrate that anaerobic fitness, as determined by commonly used field and laboratory tests, is related to physical match performance in junior male soccer players.

The aim of the present investigation was to verify the responses of haematological and iron concentrations in Croatian U-21 soccer players following an official soccer match. A group of 19 trained, healthy male soccer players from the U-21 category of the Croatian soccer association took part in this study. An analysis of red blood cell concentration (RBC), haemoglobin (Hb), haematocrit (Htc), mean corpuscular volume (MCV), mean cell haemoglobin (MCH), mean cell haemoglobin corpuscular (MCHC), and Thrombocytes was performed to indicate the haematological status. In addition, iron, total iron binding capacity (TIBC), the unsaturated iron-binding capacity (UIBC) and ferritin analyses were obtained immediately after the soccer match. A significant decrease in Hct (%) was observed immediately after the game. However, there were no significant changes in the haemoglobin levels. Iron concentration increased significantly (p< 0.01) after the soccer match. Ferritin levels were also higher at the end of the match compared to baseline measures. It can be reported that a soccer match may induce an iron increase immediately after the game which was contradictory to recent studies. In summary, this study provided a valuable opportunity to study biochemical parameters that could lead to a possible illness, injuries and severity in match-play.

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of gymnastics program in school on health related fitness in adolescent pupils. The study involved 58 adolescent pupils (14.82±0.44 years) attending the first grade at high school involved in a 12 week of gymnastics classes. The variables were selected within the battery of tests Eurofit, measuring abdominal strength, flexibility, aerobic fitness and upper and lower body strength, speed and agility. The results showed average initial level and later dynamic increase in the physical fitness of the participants. Pre-test to post-test values showed significant improvements in all tested variables (p

Vertical jump height has been identified as a critical component in the sport of volleyball. Therefore, improving vertical jump in volleyball should be the main objective for all coaches. The main objective of this study was to determine the effects of plyometric training methods on jumping ability in female junior volleyball players. Sixty female volleyball players (mean ± SD age, 17 ± 6 months) participated in this study. The experimental group conducted six weeks of plyometric training method for developing explosive leg power. Players were tested for Attack and Block jump test with and without approach. There were significant interaction between the groups for right foot block jump and left foot block jump. Plyometric training induced significant improvements in RFBJ (p0.05) in any Spike and Block jump test. In conclusion, completion of a 6 week plyometric training program improved selected Block jump tests in female junior players. However, there were no significant changes in Attack jumps following the plyometric training program.

The aim of the present study was to assess the effects of sand volleyball training program on physical performance in young indoor volleyball players. Twenty adolescent male volleyball athletes (16±1 years) consented to participate in program and lower- body power and body composition testing. The participants performed the Attack, Block jump tests and Standing Broad jump test for lower-body power. One cycle of six weeks was analyzed during off-season (2014). Players were involved in specialized sand volleyball training program and exercise were selected based on previous experience and according to performance analysis in beach volleyball studies. There were no significant differences between pre-training and post- training for Block jump and Standing broad jump. However, there was a significant (p ≤ 0.05) improvement in Spike jump. Training program did not induced significant changes in body composition. The differences in intensity of training, training volume and sample size could be a reason of the discrepancy in results compared to previous studies. However, this kind of study could provide practical application for coaches and sport researchers.

Field and laboratory based physiological testing has become common among competitive field soccer players. However, how performance in such tests relates to performance during game play remains undetermined.Therefore, the purpose of this cross-sectional study was to examine the relationship between aerobic fitness and match performances among junior soccer players. Thirty seven junior soccer players were randomly selected using as stratification criteria age and playing role. Aerobic fitness was measured by laboratory and field tests. In addition, total distance covered during the match was determined. The total distance covered was associated with all variables of aerobic fitness. In addition, regression analysis showedthat all tests for assessing aerobic fitness had significant impact on that criterion variable Total distance. Results showed that soccer players must have well physiological profile which allows them to achieve great sport results on important competitions.