Lyndell Bruce

Despite strong enrolment in sport and exercise science degrees in Australia and the United Kingdom (UK), little is known about the expectations of incoming students. Drawing on expectancy–value and self-efficacy perspectives, this exploratory study compared the pre-arrival confidence and perceived importance of first-year sport and exercise science students in the UK (n = 100) and Australia (n = 45) using the Pre-Arrival Survey (PAS), which assesses learning, community, employability and health and well-being. A mixed-design ANOVA showed that students rated importance higher than confidence in all four areas (η_p² = 0.39), with the largest gaps for learning and community and the smallest for employability. Community was the lowest-rated area overall. The importance–confidence gap was larger among Australian students, reflecting lower confidence, with no evidence of a country difference in importance, and Australian students reported notably lower community confidence (η_p² = 0.11). Gender differences were small, and no gender effect was significant at the multivariate level. Women rated importance modestly higher in a full-sample sensitivity analysis. Because the two national samples differed in recruitment method, timing and size, country differences should be regarded as indicative rather than as evidence of national-context effects. The findings suggest that pre-arrival and induction support that builds students’ confidence, particularly in forming community connections, may be valuable in both countries.

A successful career in the Australian Football League (AFL) is contingent upon both initial drafting to a club and sustained selection in the match-day team. However, selection within professional clubs is often dynamic, where athletes may frequently alternate between AFL competition and reserve leagues. Prior research has highlighted physical and technical differences between selected and non-selected Australian Football athletes; however, these investigations are predominantly limited to pre-draft cohorts, where selection is defined by drafting outcomes rather than sustained professional match participation. This study quantified patterns of AFL selection across multiple seasons and identified distinguishing features of athletes with different selection trajectories. Data were obtained from 119 players at one AFL club over eight seasons, including individual characteristics and match-performance variables. To explore potential differences between selection categories, comparisons of group means were conducted to identify significant differences in variables. AFL selection was largely determined by in-match performance, with match statistics emerging as the most consistent discriminators. Selection at the elite level appears to reflect superior performance across multiple attributes rather than excellence in a single domain. The findings offer practical implications for talent identification, athlete development, and selection decision-making, supporting more informed and transparent processes within high-performance sport environments.

The Rating of Perceived Challenge (RPC) provides coaches with a method of understanding athletes’ perceptions of the technical and tactical demands of training. However, the scale has not yet been validated, which is necessary to support its future use in research and applied sports settings. The present study therefore aimed to evaluate the validity of the RPC in Australian Rules Football training. 22 professional Australian Rules Football players completed four training drills that differed in their physical, technical and tactical requirements (i.e., technical, game-based, physical, and rotation drills). Immediately after each drill, participants provided responses for the RPC, Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE), and NASA Task Load Index (NASA-TLX). The RPC was able to differentiate between drills with differing technical and tactical demands, providing support for its construct validity. Discriminant validity was somewhat supported between the RPC and RPE, however, this was dependent on drill characteristics. Training drills with greater technical and/or tactical focuses showed convergent validity with subscales of the NASA-TLX such as temporal and mental demand. The RPC is valid for measuring challenge in sports training, allowing for researchers and practitioners to monitor and manage perceived challenge at an individualised level.

Advancements in technologies such as 360°video and virtual reality (VR) open new possibilities for how athletes can train their perceptual-cognitive skills. However, few studies have explored the athletes’ perception of these different training approaches qualitatively. Therefore, this study engaged three quarterbacks (QBs) from an Australian American football team in four different sport-specific training approaches (on-field, 360°video, VR, traditional video) and explored their thoughts and preferences in relation to how each could help develop their perceptual-cognitive skills. The developmental QBs participated in semi-structured interviews after each of the training approaches. Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis was used to explore participants’ unique experiences of each approach. Two primary themes were identified, along with secondary themes: ‘Opportunities for training perceptual-cognitive skills’ (sub-themes: Making the best decision; Where to look; Awareness and reflection), and ‘Factors influencing perceptual-cognitive skill development’ (sub-themes: Control of movements; Realism). All participants ranked on-field training as their preferred approach, with two participants then ranking the technologies as 360°video > VR > traditional video, and one participant ordering them VR > traditional video>360°video. The findings can be contextualised through an ecological dynamics framework; specifically, the first theme in relation to affordances for action, while the second theme relates to perception-action coupling and representative learning design. Overall, the study provides unique individual insights on QBs’ perceptions and preferences towards technologies such as 360°video and VR and how they may be utilised to develop perceptual-cognitive skills. Future research should look to build on these findings by examining whether the positive perceptions transfer to actual performance improvements in a longitudinal intervention design.

Introduction : This study uses an interpretivist approach to examine and understand triathlon coaching practices as they apply to age group (recreational, nonprofessional) athletes in Australia. It explores how coaches utilize the training load process— prescription, measurement, monitoring, and management—and aspects influencing individual coaching approaches, including contextual factors. Methods : Eight Australian triathlon coaches were interviewed using semistructured interviews. Interviews were transcribed verbatim, then coded and analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. Results : Four themes emerged: “Coaching knowledge and training load process,” “Coaching technology-integrated practice,” “Coaches’ interpretation of life load management,” and “Coach–athlete relationship dynamics.” These themes reveal how coaches adapt their practices based on personal experiences, contextual factors, and interactions with athletes, reflecting the complexity of triathlon coaching and highlighting coaches’ continuous learning, technology integration, athlete life load awareness, and communication competency. Discussion : These themes influence coaches’ perceptions of their relationships with their athletes and coaching decisions. Coaches’ knowledge, unique experiences, perspectives, and personal contexts are central to their practice. In deploying their practices and training load processes, coaches must respond to the athletes’ goals, preferences, and life circumstances. Conclusion : In practical terms, understanding these influences will enable coaches to better identify and manage the factors shaping their decisions, leading to more effective and adaptable training strategies. Coaches are then positioned to place greater value in their unique historical contexts but also be aware of the potential biases they may introduce.

This study examined the representativeness of a small-sided game for high-pressure phases of play in Australian football. One elite AF team (age = 23.5 years ± 3.85) completed a training drill designed with modified task constraints (10-versus-10 players and reduced playing space) to replicate the high-pressure of contested phases of matches. Across 11 weeks, player possession data from 11 drills and contested phases of 11 matches were analysed. On average, players completed the drill 5.3 times and participated in 6.9 matches. Environmental and behavioural variables were compared between settings, analysed relative to frequency per minute and as proportions of variable occurrences per minute within contested phases of play. Findings showed significantly higher pressure points in matches (median = 2.34) than in training (median = 2.02). Indeed, matches featured significantly higher frequencies of all high-pressure variables than training. Comparatively, training produced match-like proportions of possessions with physical (median = 28.31%) and closing pressure (median = 13.61%), but also featured a higher prevalence of low-pressure events, such as longer possession durations (median 2–3s = 15.28%, median 3 + s = 15.83%) and disposals with no opposition pressure (median = 9.2%). Training (median = 63.75%) also involved more effective outcomes than matches (median = 49.64%). The drill was not entirely representative of match-like high-pressure phases of play and may have been less challenging. Interestingly, different measures of representativeness provide different results and interpretations. Coaches should be clear on training drill aims and the outcomes they hope to achieve to attain the most meaningful insights.

A notable amount of research in Australian Football describes what separates drafted from non-drafted athletes, however there is limited understanding of how Australian Football League (AFL) listed athletes, progress into the weekly AFL team. This study aimed to understand the perceptions of club staff and elite athletes on what attributes are needed for an athlete to be considered ‘ready’ for selection in the AFL. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 staff members and nine athletes from one AFL club. The specific attributes required by athletes depend on their playing position. Staff generally agreed on the importance of physical and physiological, and technical and tactical attributes, while psychological and performance attributes were also considered in the assesment of readiness. Athletes indicated they needed to possess the psychological, physical, technical, and tactical skills required before they were considered ready. Staff and athletes suggested that to achieve these attributes, athletes needed to be healthy and injury free. Findings suggest that two categories of attributes may exist in the assessment of readiness, the first consisting of attributes considered essential and possessed by a larger portion of athletes, while the second consists of attributes seen as less essential but more impactful to performance. These novel insights provide agreement across the football department about what determines player readiness, in order provide an aligned interdisciplinary approach to developing athletes. Findings also have the potential to benefit playing groups across the league, giving athletes greater clarity of what is expected of them to be considered ready for selection into an AFL team.

Background: Youth athletes may have reduced opportunities for sufficient sleep, and often report poor mental health and wellbeing. Hypothesis: Most youth athletes obtain less than recommended duration and quality of sleep, with associated reduced wellbeing. Study Design: Prospective observational study. Level of Evidence: Level 3. Methods: Sleep was monitored in 98 youth athletes (15.19 ± 2.08 years) for 8 consecutive weeks. Wellbeing was self-reported weekly using the Multicomponent Training Distress Scale (MTDS) and the Short Recovery Stress Scale (SRSS). Results: Adolescent athletes averaged 7.0 (±1.1) hours sleep per night, but did not meet recommended daily sleep duration (ie, ≥8 hours) on >80% of nights studied. Significant sleep disturbances were detected in 40% of participants. Total sleep time measured via actigraphy was associated negatively with MTDS depression (all values given as [β; CI)] (−0.50; −0.95−0.05), stress (−0.78; −1.23−0.33) and sleep disturbance (−0.62; −0.97−0.27) subscales and overall score (−2.57; −4.27−0.87), and the SRSS stress subscale (−0.82; −1.50−0.15) ( P < 0.05). Subjective sleep quality measured via sleep diaries was associated positively with all MTDS scores including depression (0.85; 0.50-1.19), sleep disturbance (1.04; 0.72-1.35), and physical symptom (0.60; 0.13-1.08) subscales, and the SRSS stress subscale (1.67; 0.91-2.43), and negatively with SRSS recovery subscale (−1.02; −1.64−0.41). Fatigue ratings before bed and upon awakening were associated positively with all MTDS subscales and the SRSS stress subscale (1.23; 0.74-1.71) (1.26; 0.79-1.74) ( P < 0.05). Conclusion: Many adolescent athletes do not meet current sleep recommendations, and inadequate duration and/or quality of sleep in this population is associated with poorer self-reported wellbeing. Clinical Relevance: Education surrounding sleep in youth athletes should emphasize the importance of adequate sleep, alongside the maintenance of regular sleeping patterns to promote wellbeing and mental health.

Context: The lack of consensus on the best approach to assess the fatigue and readiness status of swimmers has led to an increased risk of maladaptation, overtraining, and suboptimal readiness to perform. Subjective athlete monitoring is prominent in swimming but is prone to bias, distortion, and misinterpretation. Heart-rate variability (HRV) has gained attention from swimming practitioners as an objective monitoring tool for assessing physiological status. Objectives: The aim of the study was to investigate the validity of HRV in detecting changes in physiological status between overload, recovery, and taper training phases in elite swimmers. Methods: Eleven state- to international-level swimmers were recruited for the study. Retrospective routine HRV, training, and competition data were accessed for 5 months leading into the Tokyo 2020 Olympics national trials. Linear mixed models examined the relationship between training phase, swimming performance, and 3 HRV metrics (average of all normal R-R intervals [AVNN], root mean square of successive R-R intervals [rMSSD], and rMSSD/AVNN). Results: rMSSD/AVNN was significantly higher in overload training compared with regular training (mean difference = 0.020, P = .002; effect size = moderate). No statistical difference was found for rMSSD or AVNN between training phases (P > .05). Descriptive analyses revealed intraindividual and interindividual variability in HRV response to training phase. Successful swimmers reported higher parasympathetic dominance in early taper followed by increased sympathetic activity leading into competition. Conclusion: The findings suggest that a ratio measure between parasympathetic tone and modulation may provide a more comprehensive evaluation of an athlete’s physiological status compared with a sole parasympathetic modulation or tone marker. Further research is recommended to improve our understanding of the autonomic nervous system’s response to overload and taper training phases.

Summary: Sleep is important for youth athletes, supporting sport‐related recovery and performance, as well as growth and development. Sleep may be influenced by training factors; therefore, this study aimed to characterise youth athletes' sleep, and examine associations between training load, schedule and frequency, and sleep. Twenty‐six youth basketballers (age: 14.22 ± 0.74 years, 13 male, 13 female) from a high‐performance sporting school were monitored for a period of 8 weeks. Sleep measures (via actigraphy and sleep diaries) were collected alongside training diaries (recording time, duration and perceived exertion). Youth athletes who finished training after 20:30 hours had significantly less total sleep time than when training finished before 20:30 hours. Higher daily total training duration was associated with decreased total sleep time. There is a potential contradiction with findings related to the number of sessions per day, as participants who completed two training sessions in a day had more sleep than those who completed one session per day; but this was not observed for athletes with three sessions per day. Participants had large intra‐individual variations (mean intra‐individual standard deviation) in bedtime (1.06 hr) and sleep time (0.84 hr). In conclusion: (1) late night training sessions appear to reduce total sleep time and should be avoided in youth athletes; (2) total daily training duration had a greater negative effect on sleep than session frequency; and (3) participants’ large intra‐individual variation in bedtime may reduce sleep quality and efficiency.