Exercise Intensity and Technical Involvement in U9 Team Handball: Effect of Game Format

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to quantify the exercise intensity and technical involvement of U9 boys' and girls' team handball during different game formats, and the differences between genders. Locomotor activity (total distance, distance in speed zones, accelerations, and decelerations), heart rate (HR), and technical involvement (shots, goals, and duels) metrics were collected during various 15 min game formats from a total of 57 Danish U9 players (37 boys and 20 girls). Game formats were a small size pitch (20 × 13 m) with 3 vs. 3 players and offensive goalkeepers (S3 + 1) and 4 vs. 4 players (S4), a medium size pitch (25.8 × 20 m) with 4 vs. 4 (M4) and 5 vs. 5 (M5) players, and a large size pitch (40 × 20 m) with 5 vs. 5 (L5) players. Boys and girls covered a higher total distance (TD) of high-speed running (HSR) and sprinting during L5 games compared to all other game formats (p < 0.05; ES = (-0.9 to -2.1), (-1.4 to -2.8), and (-0.9 to -1.3) respectively). Players covered the highest amount of sprinting distance in L5 games compared to all other game formats (p < 0.01; ES = 0.8 to 1.4). In all the game formats, players spent from 3.04 to 5.96 min in 180-200 bpm and 0.03 min to 0.85 min in >200 bpm of the total 15 min. In addition, both genders had more shots in S3 + 1 than M5 (p < 0.01; ES = 1.0 (0.4; 1.7)) and L5 (p < 0.01; ES = 1.1 (0.6; 2.2)). Team handball matches have high heart rates, total distances covered, and high-intensity running distances for U9 boys and girls irrespective of the game format. Locomotor demands appeared to be even higher when playing on larger pitches, whereas the smaller pitch size and fewer players led to elevated technical involvement.

Keywords: heart rate; notational analysis; physiology; time motion; youth.

Figure 1

Distance covered in different speed zones in U9 (A) boy and (B) girl handball players by game formats. S3 + 1: small size, 3 v 3 + offensive goalkeeper; S4: small size, 4 v 4; M4: medium size, 4 v 4; M5: medium size, 5 v 5; L5: large size, 5 v 5. St/W: standing/walking; MSR: moderate-speed running; HSR: high-speed running. ^a denotes significant differences compared to S3 + 1; ^b to S4; ^c to M4; ^d to M5 (p ≤ 0.05).

Figure 2

Number of accelerations in U9 (A) boy and (B) girl handball players by game formats. S3 + 1: small size, 3 v 3 + offensive goalkeeper; S4: small size, 4 v 4; M4: medium size, 4 v 4; M5: medium size, 5 v 5; L5: large size, 5 v 5. ^a denotes significant differences compared to S3 + 1; ^b to S4; ^c to M4; ^d to M5 (p ≤ 0.05).

Figure 3

Number of decelerations in U9 (A) boy and (B) girl handball players by game formats. S3 + 1: small size, 3 v 3 + offensive goalkeeper; S4: small size, 4 v 4; M4: medium size, 4 v 4; M5: medium size, 5 v 5; L5: large size, 5 v 5. ^a denotes significant differences compared to S3 + 1; ^b to S4; ^c to M4 (p ≤ 0.05).

Figure 4

Heart rate distribution during U9 (A) boy and (B) girl handball games. S3 + 1: small size, 3 v 3 + offensive goalkeeper; S4: small size, 4 v 4; M4: medium size, 4 v 4; M5: medium size, 5 v 5; L5: large size 5 v 5. ^a denotes significant differences compared to S3 + 1 (p ≤ 0.05).

Figure 5

Differences in (A) overall physical and physiological demands, (B) activity profile, (C) accelerations and decelerations, (D) heart rate, and (E) technical demands between boys and girls during different U9 handball games. The forest plots are effect sizes (90% CI). S3 + 1: small size, 3 v 3 + offensive goalkeeper; S4: small size, 4 v 4; M4: medium size, 4 v 4; M5: medium size, 5 v 5; L5: large size, 5 v 5. St/W: standing/walking; MSR: moderate-speed running; HSR: high-speed running.

Figure 5

Differences in (A) overall physical and physiological demands, (B) activity profile, (C) accelerations and decelerations, (D) heart rate, and (E) technical demands between boys and girls during different U9 handball games. The forest plots are effect sizes (90% CI). S3 + 1: small size, 3 v 3 + offensive goalkeeper; S4: small size, 4 v 4; M4: medium size, 4 v 4; M5: medium size, 5 v 5; L5: large size, 5 v 5. St/W: standing/walking; MSR: moderate-speed running; HSR: high-speed running.