This current study showed that age-category had a significant main effect on all SCRuM test items except sum of seven skinfolds. An additional finding was the significant main effect of playing standard without interaction for body mass, 20-m and 40-m speed, L-run, 60-s push-up, WSLS and passing ability skill tests. However, significant interaction effects between age category and playing standard were observed only for VJ, 2-kg MBCT, Yo-Yo IRT L1, tackling proficiency and running-and-catching ability.
As hypothesised and consistent with previous studies [8,9,10, 20, 27, 34, 39,40,41,42,43,44], body mass, height, all physiological characteristics and game skills increased with age. These findings provide evidence on the relative sensitivity of these SCRuM test items in effectively discriminating younger rugby and non-rugby participants (U16 s) from older adolescent rugby and non-rugby groups (U19 s). Since U19 s were significantly older compared to U16 s in the present study, age-category differences in anthropometric and test performances could be largely attributed to the normal processes related to growth and maturation that occur during the adolescent period [17, 38, 45, 46]. In the current study, U16 s were, on average, commencing puberty (YPHV = 0.24 ± 0.87 years) whilst U19 s players were approximately 2 years post-peak height velocity (YPHV = 1.78 ± 0.56 years). It is possible that the complex biological events that occur post puberty could explain the observed superior scores for the older participants. Changes in nervous and endocrine systems, muscle and bone morphology, and alterations in metabolism have been reported to be responsible for coordinating anthropometric and physiological alterations [47, 48]. Specifically, large increases in androgens (serum testosterone) concomitantly associated with proliferation of type 2 muscle fibres, muscle hypertrophy (especially in the thighs, calf, upper arms and chest), enhanced neuromuscular firing patterns, and changes in bone length (femur) could collectively explain the higher scores for body mass, stature, muscular upper-and-lower body muscular strength and power, endurance, agility, and speed for U19 s [17, 49]. However, it is also possible that improvement in SCRuM test items with advancing age category could reflect differences in playing experience, training or a combination of the two [8, 42]. For the present study, U19 s had significantly greater playing experience than U16 s and included rugby groups with regular exposure to strength and power resistance training. Resistance training has been shown to increase resting testosterone levels, possibly contributing to the anabolic process during the adolescent growth spurt [47]. In addition, expected higher playing intensities with advancing age, exposure to longer matches (U16 = 60 min vs. U19 = 80 min) and training sessions (U16 = 10 h/week vs. U19 = 15 h/week) for U19 rugby participants may partly explain their superior physiological capacities and better rugby-specific game skills compared to their U16 counterparts.
The present study showed no significant differences for sum of seven skinfolds between U16 s and U19 s age categories. These findings are expected and comparable to related studies [8, 9, 11, 17, 45]. These results were observed despite the significant and large practical differences observed in chronological age, playing experience, biological maturity, body mass and height between U16 s and U19 s. This outcome probably suggests greater stability of skinfolds for schoolboy athletes with increasing age [19] thus dismissing the possible influence of age and the impact of growth processes on skinfold development after U16 age category. In contrast to the study hypothesis that elite rugby players would have a reduced sum of seven skinfolds by virtue of exposure to higher playing intensities, playing standard had no significant main effect on skinfolds. However, in support of these findings, Gabbett et al. [18] also found no significant difference in the sum of seven skinfold thickness between elite and sub-elite players involved in competitive U16 RL. Till et al. [37] also showed no differences among amateur, academy and professional junior RL players albeit at U13 level. A lack of difference in sum of skinfolds has previously been attributed to large interindividual variation within team squads of adolescent groups especially rugby [11], mainly due to the accommodative nature of the sport to all interested school children of various body sizes and shapes.
Although rugby players performed better than non-rugby players, possibly reflecting different speed requirements between rugby and cricket, the present study showed no significant difference in 20-m and 40-m speed tests between elite and sub-elite rugby players. These findings are consistent with previous studies [12] but also contradict others [43]. Speed is regularly listed as an important physiological characteristic in rugby, allowing for players to move fast in attack and defence and has been linked to match success and effective performance of game skills such as tackling [19, 27]. Lack of speed differences between rugby playing standards probably dismisses 20-m and 40-m sprinting abilities as important determinants of higher playing standards in Zimbabwe schoolboy rugby or shows its equal importance in both competitive leagues and the need for continued training. In addition, possible similar exposure to sprinting activities during training [12] and equal proportion of forward and back players in the rugby groups shown in this present study could also account for the lack of difference.
The L-run test failed to discriminate between elite and sub-elite rugby players, and also between sub-elite and non-rugby players. These findings were also shared by previous studies. Gabbett et al. [50] showed that first and second senior grade rugby league players had similar L-run agility scores. Among U16 rugby league players, Gabbett et al. [18] also showed no significant difference in agility scores using the 5–0-5 test between elite and sub-elite rugby league players. The 5–0-5 test utilised in the study by Gabbett et al. [18] involved players performing a speed and agility shuttle run through timing gates. Till et al. [37] also showed similar 5–0-5 agility test scores between academy and professional rugby league players for U13 s, U14 s, and U15 s. Given the reported strong correlation between speed and agility [50], the lack of differences between elite and sub-elite in sprinting shown in the present study could account for the similar agility scores. The significant main effect of playing standard on agility shown in this study emanated from the test validity in differentiating elite players from non-rugby players. Similarly, Till et al. [37] showed that “professional” rugby league players had superior agility test scores compared to the amateurs, however this comparison was for the U14 players. A possible explanation for our finding could be observed differences in speed, playing experience and biological maturity between elite rugby players and non-rugby players.
Greater strength scores were observed for rugby players when compared to non-rugby players. However, there were no significant differences between elite and sub-elite rugby players for the 60-s push-up and WSLS strength tests. There are no studies to the authors’ knowledge that have compared strength performances according to playing standard in junior RU using these tests. However, lack of differences in player composition, maturation, chronological age and playing experience probably explains similar findings for the upper-and-lower muscular strength between elite and sub-elite rugby players. An alternative explanation for the finding could be that these characteristics are equally important for all junior rugby players, irrespective of playing standards. However, when U19 rugby players were assessed for upper-and lower body muscular strength using 1RM BP and 1RM BS, respectively, the results showed a significant difference between the elite and sub-elite players for absolute and relative strength (Table 2). Consistently, Jones et al. [12] showed that professional regional academy U18 RU players representing higher playing standard had superior bench press scores for upper body muscular strength than school-level players. Till et al. [51] also showed that future professional players aged between U17 and U19 had heavier back squat scores when compared with the academy players. However, with the cross-sectional nature of the present study, it is not clear whether our results indicate that stronger U19 schoolboy rugby players are preferentially selected for the elite team resulting in higher measures, or there is increased volume of training muscle strength prevalent in the elite league facilitating greater development of the characteristic when compared to the sub-elite players. It is also possible that both factors could have contributed to this effect. Overall, the present study results expose the poor discriminative validity of both the 60-s push-up and WSLS in differentiating elite and sub-elite rugby players at the U19 level when compared to the 1RM BS and 1RM BP. It suffices, however, to recommend the use of 60-s push-up and WSLS when comparing rugby versus non-rugby players.
Few studies have compared junior rugby players across annual age-categories and playing at different competitive levels for passing ability technical proficiencies. Investigating the relationship between physical fitness and playing ability in rugby league players, Gabbett et al. [23] assessed basic passing based on a skill criteria applied by expert rugby coaches. Similarly, this present study, with a modified passing ability test with eight technical elements for participant evaluation, showed that elite rugby players had superior passing skills compared to sub-elite rugby players. These findings are consistent with previous studies and reflect the importance of passing ability for the attainment of elite status in schoolboy rugby. Gabbett et al. [23] showed that first grade rugby league player had better basic passing skills when compared to third grade players. These differences were attributed to the differences in age (23.7 ± 4.3 years vs. 17.8 ± 1.5 years), and playing experience (16.3 ± 6.7 years vs. 9.4 ± 4.3 years) between the first and third grade players. The present study showed no differences in age, maturity and playing experience between the elite and sub-elite rugby players negating the possible influence of these factors in accounting for the differences observed in the cohort of Zimbabwean schoolboy rugby players. However, with the higher level of proficiency expected in elite rugby and the important role of passing in rugby, it is possible to speculate that enhanced training of pass execution in elite competition is emphasised more than in sub-elite resulting in better passing ability. However, as a limitation, this study did not capture specific details with regards to the actual training content for game skills for rugby players. Future studies may investigate differences in training content by playing standards and see how that influences player performances on game skills such as passing.
The Yo-Yo IRT L1 test scores improved with increasing playing standard among U16 s but failed to distinguish elite from sub-elite rugby players at U19 level. These findings seem to suggest that endurance qualities have a greater impact in determining higher playing standards in U16 RU than in U19 RU. Possibly, increasing playing intensity at U19 level warrants rugby players regardless of playing standard to possess highly developed endurance qualities to cope with the intermittent high-intensity running episodes. However, simple main effect analysis showed greater cross-sectional differences between the age categories for Yo-Yo IRT L1 test scores among sub-elite rugby players. Cognisant of study limitations, these findings possibly indicate heightened endurance training or greater adherence to endurance training activities among U19 sub-elite players compared to U16 sub-elite players resulting in large performance differences between them. On the other hand, relatively small mean difference between U16 s and U19 s was observed for the elite group possibly suggesting robust early onset training of endurance in U16 elite players. Interestingly, young elite U16 s (1307.3 ± 228.6 m) showed similar test performances with sub-elite U19 players (1443.6 ± 259.1 m). These findings suggest that young elite rugby players are reaching older adolescent levels for prolonged high-intensity intermittent running ability relatively faster than either sub-elite or non-rugby players.
At the U16 level, 2-kg MBCT test showed good discriminative validity in differentiating elite from both sub-elite and non-rugby players but failed to distinguish sub-elite from non-rugby players. However, at U19 level, the test effectively discriminated elite rugby players from both sub-elite and non-rugby players, and sub-elite from non-rugby players. With all groups having similar YPHV, age and playing experience, observed differences at U19 level could possibly be accounted for by differences in training strategies across playing standards. Collectively, these findings highlight increasing sensitivity of the 2 kg MBCT test with advancing age in discriminating rugby players by playing standards. Simple main effect analysis showed that larger cross-sectional performance changes in 2-kg MBCT scores between age-categories among rugby players compared to non-rugby players (Table 4). These findings allow for speculation of the importance of upper-body muscular power in rugby relative to cricket, especially among older U19 rugby participants and also hint at the likelihood of greater development with training in rugby regardless of competitive level. Muscular power is essential in rugby for effective tackles and to push opponents when needed [52].
VJ effectively discriminated elite from both sub-elite and non-rugby players and concomitantly sub-elite from non-rugby players at U16 level. However, this changed at U19 level with non-rugby players showing similar test scores to sub-elite rugby players. This happened because there were larger differences in VJ performances with increasing age category for the non-rugby players at U19 level relative to performance differences of other groups. Although the reasons for this are unclear given the cross-sectional design, it is possible to speculate that low physical fitness affect lower body muscular power production among late maturing U16 non-rugby players as evidenced by the low initial test scores relative to other groups. Given similar playing experiences across levels of playing standards at U16 age category, the possibility of specialist training of lower-body muscular power or preferential recruitment of powerful U16 players in the elite and sub-elite rugby groups could explain the relatively higher VJ scores for the rugby players. However, training probably emphasising motor activities such as sprinting and jumping activities that required the production of significant lower-body muscular power could account for the larger performance changes shown by older non-rugby players. These findings may also suggest that elite cricket players may overcome maturational, playing experience and physical fitness disadvantages at U16 level, and develop lower-body muscular power needed for running and jumping for aerial balls to the point of matching sub-elite rugby players with advancing age [37]. Previous longitudinal studies have hinted on relatively weaker athletes having a greater capacity for improvement with advancing age than highly trained athletes [24].
The present study showed a significant interaction between the effects of age-category and playing standard on tackling proficiency and running-and-catching ability. For both tackling and catching, elite rugby players outperformed sub-elite rugby players at U16 level probably suggesting increased sensitivity of these game specific skills in discriminating younger rugby players by playing standards at that level. However, this changed at U19 level with both groups showing no significant differences for both performances, findings which dismiss the usefulness of these skills in differentiating older adolescent rugby players by playing standards. Therefore, between U16 s and U19 s, large differences in the performances of these tests were in sub-elite rugby players compared to the elite rugby players and were shown more for the tackling proficiency test. The reasons for these findings are unclear given the observational nature of the present study and require further testing in future studies. The low initial performances of sub-elite U16 rugby players relative to elite U16 rugby players possibly reflecting poor training or less proficiency in skill execution especially for tackling could account for the large performance gaps between U16 s and U19 s for the sub-elite group. Alternatively, greater adaptation to training of tackling and catching with increasing age, maturity, playing experience and playing intensity among sub-elite players could also explain the seemingly better performances at U19 level. For tackling, it seems that elite U16 rugby players reach top level scores early as evidenced by relatively small mean differences with the elite U19 rugby group. These findings probably indicate that young elite U16 rugby players reach mature level scores for tackling early than sub-elite rugby players suggesting either greater proficiency or less adaption to training in elite players than in sub-elite rugby players.
Critical assessment of the study
Novelty in the current study was highlighted by comparing elite, sub-elite and non-rugby players at U16 and U19 age-categories from a country hardly known for dominating international rugby events. However, this study has limitations and the results should be interpreted cautiously in light of these limitations.
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The study involved purposive selection of single schools to represent each playing standard and included only U16 s and U19 s to represent young and older adolescent athletes. This sample may not have been representative of all age-categories and the multiple schools competing in the SESRL, CESRL and cricket interscholastic competitions in the country. The anthropometric, physiological and game skills are likely to differ with chronological age, schools, training strategies, player selection criteria, and player motivation and coaching philosophies possibly over-or under-estimating the fitness, body composition or skills of junior elite and sub-elite players [53]. This limits the external validity of study results to other schools not involved in the study and also to other age-categories not assessed in this study.
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Given the complexity and multifaceted nature of the sport of rugby, only examining the anthropometric, physiological and game specific skills is a possible limitation and a more holistic protocol including tactical, perceptual-cognitive skills and psychological measures would have been ideal to comprehensively understand and identify qualities or skills discriminating players of different ages and playing standards [37]. A recent study showed that psychological attributes such as players’ attitudes and personality traits, mental strength and emotional stability are key qualities that coaches consider in good adolescent rugby players and in player recruitment for TID initiatives [54]. Further studies objectively assessing these qualities and how they differ with age and playing standards in junior rugby are warranted.
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The cross-sectional nature of the study lacked analysis over an extended period of time [38]. This design ignores the dynamic nature of player development possibly narrowing the usefulness of the data for TID [55]. However, the data are crucial for hypothesis generation which could be further tested in future prospective cohort studies. Also, the sample size was limited to allow for the categorisation of participants by player positions.