Change-of-direction deficit vs. deceleration deficit: a comparison of limb dominance and inter-limb asymmetry between forwards and backs in elite male rugby union players

Bishop, Chris ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1505-1287, Clarke, Richard, Freitas, Tomás T. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8571-3189, Arruda, Ademir F. S., Guerriero, Aristide, Ramos, Mauricio S., Pereira, Lucas A. and Loturco, Irineu ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1309-2568 (2021) Change-of-direction deficit vs. deceleration deficit: a comparison of limb dominance and inter-limb asymmetry between forwards and backs in elite male rugby union players. Journal of Sports Sciences, 39 (10) . pp. 1088-1095. ISSN 0264-0414 [Article] (doi:10.1080/02640414.2020.1857578)

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Abstract

The aims of the present study were to: 1) determine whether limb dominance and inter-limb asymmetry were the same across both change of direction (COD) and deceleration (DEC) deficits and, 2) determine the association between the COD and DEC-deficits and other physical performance tests in elite male rugby union players. Twenty five players performed a series of bilateral jumps, linear and COD speed tests at the end of the pre-season period. COD and DEC-deficits were calculated for both left and right sides, and inter-limb asymmetry thereafter. Kappa coefficients revealed moderate levels of agreement in limb dominance between COD and DEC-deficits (Kappa = 0.41 on left; 0.48 on right). For the direction of asymmetry, perfect levels of agreement (Kappa = 1) were evident between 505 time and COD-deficit, but only moderate levels of agreement (Kappa = 0.41) between other asymmetry measures. Pearson’s r correlations showed moderate to large relationships between jumps and linear (r = -0.42 to -0.68) and COD speed (r = -0.41 to -0.58), but not with the COD-deficit (r = 0.15 to -0.31), DEC-deficit (r = 0.01 to -0.32) or asymmetry (r = 0.16 to -0.29). When analyzing by playing position, backs were significantly faster than forwards over 15-m (ES = -0.86) and across all jump tests (ES = 0.86-0.94), with the exception of the squat jump. This study is the first to provide a direct comparison of the COD and DEC-deficits and highlights that limb dominance and asymmetry cannot be guaranteed between tasks.

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