- Title
- Muscle strength characteristics of the hamstrings and quadriceps in players from a high-level youth football (soccer) Academy
- Creator
- Peek, Kerry; Gatherer, Don; Bennett, Kyle J. M.; Fransen, Job; Watsford, Mark
- Relation
- Research in Sports Medicine Vol. 26, Issue 3, p. 276-288
- Publisher Link
- http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15438627.2018.1447475
- Publisher
- Taylor & Francis
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 2018
- Description
- The objective of this study was to investigate knee muscle strength characteristics in players from a high-level youth football Academy. In total, 110 players (aged 8–15 years) underwent muscle strength assessments carried out by a research physiotherapist using a computer-linked hand-held dynamometer. Results indicated that isometric hamstrings and quadriceps strength increased with age, whereas the isometric hamstring to quadriceps (H/Q) ratio decreased with age. A number of youth football players (n = 20; 18%; 95% CI: 11–27%) demonstrated isometric H/Q ratios of less than 0.60, as well as muscle strength asymmetries between limbs for the hamstrings (n = 40, 36%; 95% CI: 27–46%) and quadriceps (n = 51, 46%; 95% CI 37–56%), potentially increasing injury risk. This study provides new evidence that the isometric H/Q ratio reduces with advancing age during adolescence which may have important implications for junior athlete development and long-term injury prevention in football.
- Subject
- isometric strength; dynamometry; adolescence; soccer; knee
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1466526
- Identifier
- uon:47574
- Identifier
- ISSN:1543-8627
- Language
- eng
- Reviewed
- Hits: 1150
- Visitors: 1147
- Downloads: 0