Brownlee, T, O'Boyle, A, Morgans, R, Morton, JP, Erskine, RM and Drust, B (2018) Training duration may not be a predisposing factor in potential maladaptations in talent development programmes that promote early specialisation in elite youth soccer. International journal of Sports Science and Coaching. ISSN 1747-9541

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Abstract

Purpose To determine whether training duration is a predisposing factor in potential maladaptations in talent development programmes that promote early specialisation in elite youth soccer. Methods Training times and type of 184 elite soccer players, from the under-9 to under-21 age groups (age 9.4 to 18.4 yrs; stature 1.38 to 1.82 m; body mass 32.2 to 76.2 kg) were recorded. Results Total training time progressively increased between the under-9 (268 ± 25 min/week) and under-14 (477 ± 19 min/week) groups with the majority of training time (96.5 ± 3.9%) consisting of soccer training and matches. Total training time then subsequently reduced from under-14 to under-15 (266 ± 77 min/week) groups, with no differences in training time between under-15 and under-21. Only under-15 to under-21 players completed resistance training; this inclusion coincided with a reduction in soccer training and match play when compared to time spent in these activities for younger groups (73.8 ± 3.2% of total training). Conclusion Data suggest that although the majority of training is focused on technical development, the training duration as a whole is unlikely to contribute to potential maladaptations in talent development programmes in elite youth soccer.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	11 Medical And Health Sciences, 17 Psychology And Cognitive Sciences
Subjects:	G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GV Recreation Leisure > GV561 Sports > GV711 Coaching G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GV Recreation Leisure > GV561 Sports
Divisions:	Sport & Exercise Sciences
Publisher:	SAGE Publications
Date Deposited:	07 Mar 2018 10:16
Last Modified:	04 Sep 2021 02:57
DOI or ID number:	10.1177/1747954117752127
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/8210

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