Soccer-Specific Agility: Reliability of a Newly Developed Test and Correlates of Performance

Abstract

Altmann, S, Neumann, R, Ringhof, S, Rumpf, MC, and Woll, A. Soccer-specific agility: reliability of a newly developed test and correlates of rerformance. J Strength Cond Res 36(5): 1410-1416, 2022-The purpose of this study was to examine the reliability of a newly developed soccer-specific agility test and to determine the correlation of different performance parameters with overall agility performance as measured by the total time. Twenty-two amateur soccer players (age, 25.1 ± 4.0 years) completed a newly developed agility test on 2 separate occasions. The test required the players to conduct 2 changes of direction, one in a preplanned manner and one in response to a stimulus that was provided by a live tester who performed different soccer-specific passing movements. Regarding reliability, very large Pearson's r and intraclass correlation coefficient values were obtained for the total time and the movement time, with moderate and large-to-very large values being evident for the response time and the decision-making time, respectively. The usefulness to detect moderate performance changes was rated as "good" for the total time, the response time, and the movement time. The decision-making time was rated as "OK." The movement time showed a very large relationship with overall agility performance as measured by the total time, while the response time and the decision-making time showed small to moderate relationships. In conclusion, the newly developed soccer-specific agility test is a reliable tool to assess the agility performance of soccer players and can be used by coaches and researchers to detect moderate performance changes. Because physical aspects, represented by the movement time, showed the greatest influence on total agility performance, they are advised to be included in soccer-specific agility training programs of amateur players.