Improving women's team performance on corners through video training and ball trajectory anticipation

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of a video-based perceptual training programme designed to enhance anticipation skills in professional female football players. The video reference task was used to test participants in pre- and post-tests, where they predicted the ball's arrival location during corners. Participants were evenly divided into an experimental group, which received training in the task between the pre- and post-tests using a progressive temporal occlusion method, and a control group, which received no training. The rate of correct responses, response time, and confidence scores were analyzed in the reference task, as well as performance on corners in real matches, to assess the expected transfer of learning to the field. The results revealed that the experimental group, which underwent training, significantly improved their precision in predicting the ball's landing zone after the intervention, with their accuracy score increasing from 54% to 68% (p < 0.05, η² = 0.60). Additionally, their response time decreased from 3.2 to 2.4 s (p < 0.05, η² = 0.48), and their confidence score improved from 3 to 3.8 (p < 0.05, η² = 0.76). This effect slightly diminished after a 6-month retention interval but remained significantly higher than at the pre-test. Furthermore, we observed that the performance of professional football players during corners in actual matches improved, suggesting a positive effect of the video-based perceptual-cognitive training.

Keywords: corner kicks; expertise; football; perceptual training; temporal occultation.

Figure 1

Delivery areas for corners from the left when facing the goal. Each square has sides measuring 5.50 m. For corners arriving from the right, zones Z1, Z4, and Z7 are on the right (at the first post), while zones Z3, Z6, and Z9 are on the left (at the second post). Zones Z2, Z5, and Z8 remain unchanged. For a ball arriving from the right, the zones are reversed, with zone Z1 on the right (at the first post).

Figure 2

Representation of experimental conditions for tests and training protocol.

Figure 3

Percentage of correct responses for both groups across tests error bars represent the standard error. The post-hoc test indicates a significant improvement in the correct response rate only for the trained group between the pre-test and both post-tests, with no significant difference between the two post-tests.

Figure 4

Response time (s) for the two groups by test. Error bars represent the standard error. The post-hoc test indicates a significant reduction in response time from the pre-test to both post-tests, but only for the training group.

Figure 5

Confidence Scores (arbitrary units) for the two groups by test. Error bars represent the standard error. The post-hoc test indicates a significant improvement in confidence scores from the pre-test to both post-tests for the training group, but not for the control group.

Figure 6

Increase in difficulty levels with practice: evolution of presentation time during training sessions for each player as the presentation time decreases.

Figure 7

Corner outcome scores between the first and second halves of the season: A score of 1 indicates the absence of offensive players at the ball's landing spot. A score of 2 indicates an offensive player at the landing spot who did not touch the ball due to losing the aerial duel. A score of 3 indicates the ball was recovered by an attacker but did not head toward the goal. A score of 4 indicates missed shots. A score of 5 indicates on-target shots, and a score of 6 indicates a goal.