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The utilisation of the Rugby League Athlete Profiling battery for assessing the anthropometric and physical characteristics of rugby league players
Get PDFThe research described in this thesis used a standardised battery of tests called the
‘Rugby League Athlete Profiling (RLAP)’ battery for assessing the anthropometric and
physical characteristics of UK-based rugby league players. The overall purpose of this
research was to determine the utility of the RLAP battery, which involved establishing
the use of RLAP across numerous professional clubs over a three-year period,
determining the measurement properties of the tests included and investigating the
factors associated with a change in the characteristics.
An early version of the RLAP battery existed [called SPARQ] and was provided by the
Rugby Football League with scope to alter this as part of this programme of research.
Before determining if an alteration to the battery was required, it was essential to
understand the tests that are currently used in rugby league for assessing the
anthropometric and physical characteristics of players. As such, the systematic review
initially sought to determine the volume of performance tests used in rugby league
along with their measurement properties. Based on the results, it was evident that a
shorter sprint distance (< 20 m) ought to be included in the battery. It was also clear
that only one field-based method for measuring muscle strength was available, though
had received minimal research. Furthermore, the review highlighted that no rugbyspecific intermittent running test had previously been used and that RLAP was the first
battery to include such a test. Therefore, based on these results, the battery was
rebranded to RLAP, which included a stature, body mass, a 10 m and 20 m sprint test,
a rugby-specific intermittent test, a change of direction test, measures of lower- and
whole-body power.
With the RLAP battery confirmed, it was then used and the reliability (Chapter 4) and
discriminant validity (Chapter 5) of its elements determined. Results indicated that the
RLAP battery is reliable and does not require habituation. Furthermore, the calculation
of the required change, which includes the worthwhile change and random error of
each test, provides researchers and practitioners with a single value that can be used
as an analytical goal to evaluate a true change in characteristics with confidence. All
components of the RLAP battery (except 10 m sprint time) possessed adequate
discriminant validity between youth, academy and senior rugby league players,
suggesting this battery can accurately distinguish between playing standards.
As noted in above, the review highlighted a rugby-specific intermittent test has yet to
be established in the literature before its inclusion in the RLAP battery. Whilst it
appeared to be suitable and, based on Chapters 3 and 4, is reliable and possesses
discriminant validity, the test itself had received no previous attention. Given the
novelty of this test, it was unknown if this test was better associated with the responses
to rugby league match performance and what the physiological responses were to this
test. As such, Chapter 5 sought to determine the concurrent validity of this test and
compare it against the traditional Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery test level 1 (Yo-Yo IR1).
The results indicated the association between prone Yo-Yo IR1 distance and the
external, internal and perceptual responses to simulated match-play was improved
when compared to the Yo-Yo IR1. Chapter 6 demonstrated that starting each 40 m
shuttle in a prone position increases the internal, external and perceptual loads whilst
reducing the total distance achieved. The degree of shared covariance between the
prone Yo-Yo IR1 and Yo-Yo IR1 suggest the rugby-specific test provided insight into
additional characteristics associated with rugby league performance.
In studies that have reported on the anthropometric and physical characteristics, few
have considered the multiple factors that might influence these with no studies
conducted in rugby league. Chapter 7 sought to determine the complex interaction
between anthropometric and physical characteristics that requires careful
consideration by those involved in developing youth and academy athletes. The
results also revealed a number of contextual factors such as season phase, league
ranking, playing age and playing position that can influenced the change in
characteristics over the course of a competitive season. The findings of this study
highlight how some characteristics are impaired towards the end of the season, thus
providing a rationale for considering in-season training loads and the application of
short training interventions to off-set these negative changes.
Based on negative changes in some anthropometric and physical characteristics
towards the end of the year, Chapter 8 reported on the efficacy of two in-season sprint
interval interventions for enhancing the physical characteristics of rugby league
players. Furthermore, the study provided insight into the sensitivity of the RLAP battery
for detecting changes in the characteristics of rugby league players. The results
highlighted that two weeks of rugby-specific and running-based sprint interval training
appeared affective for promoting the physical characteristics of rugby league players
with minimal deleterious effects on wellness and neuromuscular function. Using the
reliability statistics from Chapter 1, the mean change for prone Yo-Yo IR1 in the rugbyspecific group met the required change whilst changes approached this value for the
running-based group despite contrasting loads. In all, this study demonstrated that
sprint interval training that includes sport-specific actions is a suitable and effective
training modality that can be used in-season. In addition, the result demonstrated how
the prone Yo-Yo IR1 was sensitive to change across the intervention period whilst
others were not sensitive to sprint interval training due to the lack of specificity.
This thesis provides a thorough evaluation of the RLAP battery that can be used by
researcher and practitioners to assess the anthropometric and physical characteristics
of rugby league players. The battery is reliable and possess discriminant validity, while
the prone Yo-Yo IR1 has concurrent validity and is sensitive to change during a lowvolume in-season training intervention. Overall, this thesis provides justification for the
tests included and comprehensively examines the utility of this battery for assessing
the anthropometric and physical characteristics of rugby league players. Practically,
this battery of tests can be used by researcher and applied practitioners in rugby
league with an understanding of the reliability, validity and sensitivity of the tests along
with some factors that might influence the characteristics of players across a season
Distribution, status and recent population dynamics of Alpine ibex Capra ibex in Europe
Get PDFThis is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Brambilla, A. von Hardenberg, A., Nelli, L. & Bassano, B. (2020). Distribution, status and recent population dynamics of Alpine ibex Capra ibex in Europe. Mammal Review50(3), 267-277, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1111/mam.12194. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions.1. Despite its recent successful and well-documented reintroduction history, a comprehensive and current update of the distribution and status of the Alpine ibex Capra ibex is lacking. As some concerns persist about its conservation, a status update appears essential for future conservation and management strategies on a large scale.
2. We provide an exhaustive update of the geographic range of the species, alongside estimates of its current abundance and population trends from 2004 to 2015.
3. We gathered census and distribution data for all the Alpine ibex colonies from management authorities and research groups that monitor them in different countries, and from the literature and publicly available reports. We produced a distribution map, reported the number of individuals observed in the most recent censuses, and estimated global, national, and local population trends using Bayesian hierarchical models.
4. Our model estimated that there were a total of 55297 Alpine ibex in the Alps in 2015 (lower 95% Credible Interval [CrI]: 51157; upper 95% CrI: 62710). The total number of individuals appears to have increased slightly over the last 10 years from the 47000-51000 estimated in previous reports. Positive population trends were observed in Switzerland and Italy, while no trend was apparent in France. For Austria, Germany, and Slovenia, there were insufficient data to estimate a trend. The slopes of the colonies’ trends were positively correlated with the year of colony foundation.
5. The geographic range of the Alpine ibex does not seem to have increased in size in recent years, although the accuracy of the spatial data varies among countries.
6. The periodic and standardised collection of census data for all colonies and a common policy of data-sharing at a European level appear essential for monitoring the global trend of this species and for planning balanced conservation and management actions
High‐order ADI orthogonal spline collocation method for a new 2D fractional integro‐differential problem
Get PDFThis is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Qiao L, Xu D, Yan Y. (2020). High-order ADI orthogonal spline collocation method for a new 2D fractional integro-differential problem. Mathematical Methods in the Applied Sciences, 1-17., which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/mma.6258. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions.We use the generalized L1 approximation for the Caputo fractional deriva-tive, the second-order fractional quadrature rule approximation for the inte-gral term, and a classical Crank-Nicolson alternating direction implicit (ADI)scheme for the time discretization of a new two-dimensional (2D) fractionalintegro-differential equation, in combination with a space discretization by anarbitrary-order orthogonal spline collocation (OSC) method. The stability of aCrank-Nicolson ADI OSC scheme is rigourously established, and error estimateis also derived. Finally, some numerical tests are give
Associate Teachers’ Learning Networks: A Figurational Analysis of Initial Teacher Education
Get PDFPurpose of this paper:
The aim of this paper is to use the lens of figurational sociology to analyse the learning networks of physical education (PE) associate teachers (ATs) in England. More specifically, it aims to develop a more adequate understanding of who is involved in the learning networks and how they influence ATs during their one-year postgraduate initial teacher education (ITE) programme.
Design/methodology/approach:
A total of 35 ATs within a university ITE partnership took part in the study during the final phase of their postgraduate programme. Questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were used to examine the nature and impact of the interdependent relationships that they had developed with other individuals and groups. A process of content analysis was used to identify and analyse patterns in the data.
Findings:
Mentors have the most influence over ATs. They support the inclusion of the ATs within the PE department, but elements of the mentors’ role are contradictory and can unintentionally hinder the ATs’ teaching. Mentors, teachers and tutors also share a common social habitus that ensures a degree of conformity within the PE community. New experiences tend to reinforce ATs’ existing beliefs about the nature and practice of teaching PE.
Research limitations/implications (optional):
Practical implications (optional):
These findings have implications for providers of ITE in deciding who is involved in mentor training and how it is approached. If ATs are to be introduced to more innovative teaching approaches that promote change, then tutors need to collaborate with mentors and teachers to develop awareness of their often-unplanned influence.
Social implications (optional):
What is original/value of paper:
Applying the distinctive, and more generally sociological, concepts that make up the figurational perspective helped to develop a more adequate understanding of the ATs’ learning networks. It provided an insight into the changing relationships that ATs have with their mentors and other individuals who work within the school and university context
Death and memory in fragments: Project Eliseg’s public archaeology
No full textThe public archaeology of death has frequently focused on the ethics and practices of excavating, displaying and curating human remains and mortuary contexts. Yet the focus of investigation is often restricted to whole, articulated bodies and tangible, complete monuments. Far fewer discussions have tackled the complex challenges of engaging the public with fragmented, partial human remains, ephemeral mortuary material cultures and dislocated funerary monuments. Equally, few studies have tackled the distributed nature of mortuary and memorial traces through their artistic representation and replication. This article addresses the challenges of Project Eliseg’s (2010–present) public archaeology when fragmentation, absence and distribution – both temporally and spatially – pervade the mortuary and memorial archaeology under investigation. We address how the public outreach of our fieldwork both succeeded and faced challenges to engage local people with the monument itself, partly because the monument is fragmented in multiple regards and partly because it is not primarily or exclusively in situ, but is instead both materially and conceptually elsewhere within the landscape of Wales and beyond
Making sense of complexity: a qualitative investigation into forensic learning disability nurses' interpretation of the contribution of personal history to offending behaviour
Get PDFAn article exploring the relationship between an individual's personal history and social background and eventual offending behaviour.Background: There is growing recognition that an individual’s personal history can be extremely influential in shaping his/her future experience, though there has been limited exploration in the context of learning disability and offending behaviour.
Method: Research questions related to participant interpretation of offending behaviour and individual and service responses. A series of focus groups comprising learning disability forensic nurses were conducted across all secure settings, high, medium and low.
Results: Three themes were produced: interpreting offending behaviour; the impact of personal history; responding therapeutically. The difficulties relating to understanding the relationship between offending behaviour and personal history significantly informed the construction of the most effective therapeutic relationships.
Conclusions: An increased focus on the impact of someone’s background might inform nursing as it seeks to deliver care to individuals with increasingly complex needs in a time of service transition
Some Observations on Human-Landscape interactions in Almería
Get PDFExtended abstract of Keynote presentation delivered at EcoDesert Symposium, Almería, February 2019
Divine Imaginaries: The Turn to Literature in the Feminist Theology and Spirituality
No full textAt least since beginnings of the second wave of the women’s movement, feminist theologies and spiritualities have turned to the literary world, particularly women’s writing, as a resource. The novels, poetry, prose, and drama authored by women have been used by feminist scholarship to critique the patriarchal and androcentric language, teachings, doctrine, and scriptures of religious traditions, and to reimagine the sacred in ways that validate, recognize, and speak to women’s spiritual lives. In this chapter, I discuss religious feminism’s very literary disposition, and the ways it has harnessed women’s creative written worlds. First, I highlight two connected reasons for the ‘turn to literature’ - the dissatisfaction with Christian scripture and the desire for an alternative set of ‘sacred texts’ to inspire and generate new theological and spiritual insights – drawing on feminists whose work draws together religion and women’s literature. Second, the chapter highlights that while the use of literature has been vital in the development of feminist religious thinking, the reading strategies adopted have tended to rely on the often problematic categories of women’s experience and authorship. This can mean that feminist literary spiritualities have been guilty of essentializing women’s religious identities, and by preferring women’s writing as its sacred texts has limited literature. Finally, the chapter suggests that despite the prevalence of literature in feminist theology, actual, embodied women readers are a neglected but important part of the turn to literature
Assessment of energy availability and associated risk factors in professional female soccer players
Get PDFThis is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in European Journal of Sport Science on 6-8-2020, available online: https://doi.org/10.1080/17461391.2020.1788647This study aimed to assess energy availability (EA), alongside possible risk factors of reduced or low EA of professional female soccer players during a competitive season. Thirteen players (age: 23.7 ± 3.4 y, stature: 1.69 ± 0.08 m, body mass: 63.7 ± 7.0 kg) engaged in a 5-day (two rest days, one light training, heavy training and match day) monitoring period. Energy intake (EI) and expenditure during exercise (EEE) were measured. EA was calculated and categorised as optimal, reduced or low (≥45, 31-44, ≤30 kcal·kg FFM-1·day-1, respectively). Relationships between EA and bone mineral density, resting metabolic rate (RMR), plasma micronutrient status, biochemical markers and survey data were assessed. EA was optimal for 15%, reduced for 62% and low for 23% of players. Higher EA was observed on rest days compared to others (P0.05). Survey data revealed 23% scored ≥ 8 on the Low Energy Availability in Females Questionnaire and met criteria for low RMR (ratio <0.90). Relationships between EA and risk factors were inconclusive. Most players displayed reduced EA and did not alter EI or carbohydrate intake to training or match demands. Although cases of low EA were identified, further work is needed to investigate possible long-term effects and risk factors of low and reduced EA separately to inform player recommendations
Exploring the impact, value and limitations of reflective practice groups for clergy in a Church in Wales diocese
Get PDFThis is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Mental Health, Religion and Culture on 3rd September 2020, available online: https://doi.org/10.1080/13674676.2020.1789571This research explores the impact, value and limitations of reflective practice groups for Clergy in a Church in Wales diocese. The aims were to explore what participants of reflective practice groups experience as the impact, value and limitations of their groups, and to better understand any implications for delivery of reflective practice groups for Clergy. Two focus groups comprising of the participants from two reflective practice groups from a diocese in the Church in Wales were interviewed, and the data analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Two superordinate themes emerged along with ten subordinate themes. The key findings are that the participants of both groups clearly found them to be a valuable experience and self-defined the impact on their ministries as: creating more reflective clergy; developing greater wisdom; building and gaining affirmed strategies that they could take back into relationships within their parishes; enabling a different perspective to be gained on management expectations; development of self-preservation strategies for coping with those expectations; improvement in practice and relationships within their work; improving their priestly skills; managing boundaries more appropriately; approaching meetings more positively; managing situations in more helpful ways; and discerning what God may be saying in certain situations
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