Assessing the locomotor demands of international men's and women's rugby sevens match-play according to passage of play.

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of discrete passages of play on locomotor demands of international men's and women's rugby sevens matches and their relationship with winning or losing. Thirteen men's and thirteen women's international rugby sevens players wore 10 Hz Global Positioning Systems during twelve Tokyo Olympic games matches (966 observations; 507 for men, 459 for women). Discrete ball-in-play periods were categorised as: 'Single-phase defence', 'single-phase attack', 'multi-phase defence', 'multi-phase attack', 'multi-phase defence to attack', or 'multi-phase attack to defence'. Relative total distance, alongside high-speed (>5.0 m∙s-1), acceleration (>3 m∙s-2), and deceleration (>3 m∙s-2) distances were recorded for each passage. Separately for men and women, linear mixed models examined the effect of passage type and match outcome (win or loss) on locomotor demands, whilst controlling for opposition ranking. In men, relative total distance ranged from 137 m∙min-1 to 174 m∙min-1 for 'multi-phase defence to attack' and 'multi-phase attack', respectively. In women, 'multi-phase attack' elicited the lowest relative total distance (118 m∙min-1), whereas the greatest values (186 m∙min-1) were recorded for 'single-phase defence'. For men, there were significant interactions between match outcome and passage type for relative total (p<0.001) and high-speed (p = 0.006) distance. During 'multi-phase attack', relative total distance was greater for wins versus losses (174 vs 138 m.min-1, p = 0.024). However, for 'single-phase defence', relative total distance was lower for wins (128 vs 164 m.min-1, p<0.001). For women, there were significant interactions between match outcome and passage type for relative total (p = 0.036), high-speed (p = 0.003), and deceleration (p = 0.015) distances. Locomotor responses were influenced by passage type and match result for men and women. Knowing the demands of each passage type may inform training drills targeted at developing match-play-specific physical, technical, and tactical adaptations. Understanding how passages differ between matches won and lost could also inform team technical/tactical preparation including selection.

Assessing climatic, travel, and methodological influences on whole-match and worst-case scenario locomotor demands of international men's rugby sevens match-play.

This study assessed the influence of environmental factors, air travel, and epoch estimation method on locomotor demands of international men's rugby sevens match-play. Eighteen men's rugby sevens players wore 10 Hz Global Positioning Systems (STATsport) during 52 international matches over nine global tournaments (418 observations). Whole-match average speed was recorded, whilst average speed and relative high-speed distance (>5.0 m·s-1) were quantified using FIXED and ROLL methods over 60-420 s epochs (60 s increments) to establish worst-case scenario demands. Linear mixed models compared FIXED versus ROLL estimation methods and assessed whether temperature, humidity, travel duration, number of time-zones crossed, and travel direction were associated with locomotor responses. Temperature and humidity were positively associated with overall and worst-case scenario average speed (effect estimates; b: 0.18-0.54), whilst worst-case scenario high-speed distance at 300 s was also related to temperature (b: 0.19). Easterly air travel compromised overall and 180 and 300 s worst-case scenario average speed (b: -8.31 to-7.39), alongside high-speed distance over 300 s (b: -4.54). For worst-case scenario average speed and high-speed distance, FIXED underestimated ROLL at all epoch lengths (∼9.9-18.4%, p≤0.001). This study indicated that international rugby sevens match-play locomotor responses were greater as air temperature increased but reduced following eastward air travel. Underestimation of demands in FIXED vs ROLL over 60-420 s epochs was confirmed. Such climatic and travel influences warrant the adoption of strategies targeted at maximising performance and safety according to the tournament conditions. Knowing the most demanding periods of match-play facilitates training specificity.HighlightsSelected locomotor responses were reduced following eastward air travel, potentially suggesting interventions to mitigate these effects are warranted.Match-play running responses were greater as air temperature increased. Strategies targeted at optimising body temperature in both warm and cool conditions warrant consideration to promote performance and maintain player safety.Fixed epochs underestimated worst-case scenario average speed (9.9-11.7%) and high-speed distance (11.4-18.4%). Rolling averages may thus be more appropriate for detecting the most intense periods, while duration-specific data provide training targets.