Physical and match performance characteristics of male university field hockey players

Field hockey is predominantly an amateur sport in the United Kingdom and many players will choose to study an academic degree at university. This period of academic study coincides with a key period in the talent identification and development pathway of players, where they can be selected for or progress into junior international and senior international programmes during their studies. Engaging in a high-performance university programme may facilitate the development of players. The aim of the present thesis was to quantify the physical and match performance characteristics of male university field hockey players competing at UK national level, and to examine whether these characteristics developed as players progressed through university.

Quantifying the physical and match performance characteristics of male university field hockey players competing at UK national level revealed comparable profiles to senior international level players reported in the literature. This may reflect the high proportion of junior international players attending university and suggest that high-performance university programmes prepare players well for the potential transition into senior international competition. Whilst physical characteristics such as intermittent endurance capacity and lower body strength were higher in 3rd year undergraduate/postgraduate players compared to 1st year undergraduate players, the match performance characteristics (total and high-speed running distance) of 3rd year players were lower compared to 1st and 2nd year players. Whilst the concurrent development of game understanding (tactical and technical characteristics) in more experienced university players may reduce the running output required to perform at national level, the development of physical characteristics at university may prepare players to achieve this high level of performance repeatedly at senior international level where shorter in-match rotations and between-match periods are likely apparent in tournament matchplay.