The latent structure of soccer in the phases of attack and defense

With the aim of establishing the latent structure of tactical elements in the attack and defense phases of soccer 117 tactical elements of soccer were defined and their importance assessed by means of 30 variables that determine the basic segments of the game of soccer. 93 attack and 24 defense tactical elements were chosen as the entity sample and described by the 15 variables of the attack phase and 15 variables of the defense phase. Ten competent soccer experts determined the characteristics of the aforementioned entities by means of 30 variables. The experts graded from 0 to 5 the impact of every entity (tactical technique) on the individual variables that describe soccer in its phases of either attack and defense. A high level of inter-expert agreement was reached in regard to the properties of attack and defense techniques, as demonstrated by the objectivity coefficients. According to principal component factor analysis and the Kaiser and Guttman rule a total of five significant latent dimensions were obtained: finishing efficiency, ball possession performance, counter-attack efficiency, combined defense performance, and obstruction and redirection of the opposing team's attack build-up. The research partly resolved the issue of the hypothetical structure of tactical techniques in soccer by dividing the game into phases and sub-phases, attack and defense players'positions, and types (styles) of play in the attack and defense. If it is clear which movement structures have the most significant influence on the efficiency on a particular playing position and performance in the sub-phases and styles of play, it would be possible to create such training operators that will facilitate the formation of the most important motor skills in soccer.     

Differences between winning and defeated top quality basketball teams in final tournaments of European club championship

The goal of this research was to identify parameters among the 12 indicators of situation-related efficiency that differentiated between the winning and defeated top quality teams which played in final tournaments of the European club championships from 1992 to 2000. The differences were confirmed by discriminant analysis, although the canonical correlation was here somewhat lower than in the previous similar research studies done on the so-called regular season games. The probable reason for the smaller differences obtained in the present study may be found in almost equal (high) quality of the teams competing in Final Fours. The highest discriminative power was obtained in the variable defensive rebounds, then in the variables field goal percentage and free throw percentage, whereas the variable assist had evidently smaller impact with regard to the referent studies. The obtained results suggested that the winning teams showed more of tactical discipline and responsibility in controlling inside positions for defensive rebounds, as well as in controlling play on offense and the ball until the required open shot chance, which considerably reduced game risks and resulted in a lower number of turnovers and in a higher shooting percentage. Such a type of decision-making in play require a high degree of reciprocal help of players on both defense and offense and a higher level of concentration and self-confidence when shooting field goals and free throws. The common denominator of the winning teams was a lower number of imbalanced states in their play (the organized style of play on defense and offense implied) and a higher level of collective outplaying the opponents with the controlled system of play, which enabled entire potential of the victorious teams to be expressed.     

Effect of new rules on the correlation between situation parameters and performance in beach volleyball

The aim of the study was to assess the effect of basic technical-tactical elements, i.e. specific motor abilities, on performance in beach volleyball, with special reference to differences between the old and new official rules. Analysis of variance for 6 variables of technical-tactical elements between the winning and defeated teams included a sample of 129 sets played according to the old official rules (1995 and 1996) and 74 sets played according to the new official rules (2003). This was followed by regression analysis between these technical-tactical elements as predictors and a variable, i.e. score difference at which the team won or lost the game, as a criterion. Results of the analysis of variance between the winning and defeated teams showed highest differences in the performance of attack-hit, followed by counterattack-hit and blocking in both game types. However, difference in the performance of serve reception, serve, and field defense between the winning and defeated teams decreased significantly with the use of new rules as compared with the old ones. Results of regression analysis indicated the sets played according to the new rules relative to old ones to increase the predominant impact of technical-tactical elements in the above-net actions, especially attack-hit and block, on the final result in beach volleyball.     

Serial agonistic attacks by greylag goose families, Anser anser, against the same opponent

It is known from primates that alliance partners may support each other's interests in competition with others, for example, through repeated agonistic attacks against a particular individual. We examined serial aggressive interactions between greylag goose families and other flock members. We found that repeated attacks towards the same individual were common and that up to five serial attacks by family members followed an initial attack. Family size did not affect the frequency of such serial attacks. Juvenile geese evidently benefited most from active social support through serial attacks. About 60% of the juveniles' lost primary interactions were subsequently reversed by another family member. This may be one of the reasons why juveniles rank higher in the social hierarchy than would be expected from their age and size alone. Losses in serial attacks predominantly occurred against other, presumably higher-ranking, family geese and ganders. We propose three major functions/consequences of serial attacks. Analogous to primates, serial attacks in greylag geese may serve to reinforce a losing experience of an opponent defeated in a preceding attack. On the side of the winning family, serial attacks may reinforce the experience of winning. Both winning and losing experiences are linked with physiological consequences in higher vertebrates, affecting the future social performance of winners or losers. Finally, serial attacks may signal the agonistic potential of a family to other flock members. This is supported by heart rate data, which indicate that greylags are competent to interpret third-party relationships.     

Game-related statistics that discriminated winning and losing teams from the Spanish men's professional basketball teams

The purpose of the present study was to analyse men's basketball competitions, trying to identify which game-related statistics allow to discriminate winning and losing teams. The sample used corresponded to 306 games from the 2004-2005 Regular Season of the Spanish Men's Professional League. The game-related statistics gathered were: 2 and 3 points field-goals (both successful and unsuccessful), free-throws (both successful and unsuccessful), offensive and defensive rebounds, blocks, assists, fouls, turnovers and steals. The data were analysed in two groups: balanced games (final score differences equal or below 12 points) and unbalanced games (final score differences above 12 points). Discriminant analysis allowed to conclude the following: (i) in balanced games, the variable that best differentiate both groups were the defensive rebounds; (ii) in unbalanced games, the variables that discriminate between both groups were the successful 2 points field-goals, the defensive rebounds and the assists; and (iii) in all games, the statistical analysis identified two variables that discriminate winning and losing teams (defensive rebounds and assists). The defensive rebounds were the only game-related statistic that discriminates both groups in all performed analysis. Coaches and players should be aware of these different profiles in order to increase knowledge about game cognitive and motor solicitation and, therefore, to enhance specificity at the time of practice and game planning.     

Can Individual Differences in History of Dominance Explain the Development of Linear Dominance Hierarchies?

Observed dominance hierarchies are often more linear than expected from randomly-formed dominance relationships, and in triads of animals attacks are distributed non-randomly. I hypothesize that an individual's history of dominance affects its probability of initiating aggressive interactions in the future and that individuals with winning records are more likely to initiate (winning begets initiating). Consistent with this hypothesis, evidence is presented that dominant individuals are more likely to attack than subordinate individuals. The winning begets initiating hypothesis may also explain why correlations between predicted dominance ranks (based on size, age etc.) and observed dominance ranks can be low: If the cost of engaging in and losing an interaction is high relative to the potential benefits of winning, then a large individual conditioned to be subordinate may refrain from contesting smaller, dominant individuals despite its actual competitive superiority.     

Peering into the Dynamics of Social Interactions: Measuring Play Fighting in Rats

Play fighting in the rat involves attack and defense of the nape of the neck, which if contacted, is gently nuzzled with the snout. Because the movements of one animal are countered by the actions of its partner, play fighting is a complex, dynamic interaction. This dynamic complexity raises methodological problems about what to score for experimental studies. We present a scoring schema that is sensitive to the correlated nature of the actions performed. The frequency of play fighting can be measured by counting the number of playful nape attacks occurring per unit time. However, playful defense, as it can only occur in response to attack, is necessarily a contingent measure that is best measured as a percentage (#attacks defended/total # attacks X 100%). How a particular attack is defended against can involve one of several tactics, and these are contingent on defense having taken place; consequently, the type of defense is also best expressed contingently as a percentage. Two experiments illustrate how these measurements can be used to detect the effect of brain damage on play fighting even when there is no effect on overall playfulness. That is, the schema presented here is designed to detect and evaluate changes in the content of play following an experimental treatment.     

The influence of a congested calendar on physical performance in elite soccer

The aim of this study was to investigate recovery via analysis of activity profiles in a professional soccer team over an intense period of matches. A total of 172 outfield players from 27 Spanish League matches played by a professional team during the 2005-2006 season were analyzed using a multiple-camera match analysis system. The dependent variables were the distance covered by players at different intensities. Data were analyzed using an independent-sample t-test and a linear regression analysis with 5 independent variables: the number of matches played per week (1 or 2), match status (i.e., whether the team was winning, losing or drawing), match location (i.e., playing at home or away), quality of the opponents (strong or weak), and the individual playing position of the players. The main finding of this study suggests that the activity profiles of professional soccer players were not influenced by short recovery between matches. Although those players who played 2 matches a week covered less distance at maximal (>23 km·h(-1)), submaximal (19.1-23 km·h(-1)), and medium (14.1-19 km·h(-1)) intensities than those players who played 1 match a week, no significant differences were found. Moreover, results from this study seem to confirm that the elite soccer players' distance covered at various speeds is dependent on match contextual factors. The top-class players performed less high-intensity activity (>19.1 km·h(-1)) when winning than when they were losing (p < 0.05), but more distance was covered by walking and jogging when winning (p < 0.05). The home teams covered a greater distance than away teams at low intensity (<14.1 km·h(-1)) (p < 0.01). Finally, the better the quality of the opponent, the higher the distance covered by walking and jogging.     

Survivor's dilemma: Defend the group or flee?

We consider a survival game of gregarious individuals, in which the aim of the players is survival to reproductive age under predator attacks. The survivor’s dilemma (shortly: SVD) game consists in the following: a group member either surely survives alone by fleeing, while its defensive mate may be killed; or tries to save its mate’s life, risking to get killed. The dilemma is that, in every single attack, fleeing ensures maximal survival probability, but if its mate survives by fighting both, and they remain together, its risk to be killed at the next attack will be lower. We show that, if defense is successful enough, then the one-attack game is a prisoner’s dilemma (PD), where fleeing is the strict ESS. We have additively decomposed the SVD game, according to the survival of the group mate of the focal prey, into two games: the aim of the “collective game” is survival of the group of prey. Counter-wise, the aim of the “hostile game” is survival alone (focal prey survives and its mate is killed by the predator). We obtain the following results: if the attack number is large enough, the multi-attack SVD game is dominated by the “collective game” in the sense that each individual can ensure its own maximal survival probability by maximizing the group survival probability in each attack. In the hostile game, the only strict ESS is the fleeing strategy. In the collective game there are two different cases: either defense is a unique strict ESS, or the collective game is bistable, i.e. fleeing and defense are local strict ESS’s. If defense is the only strict ESS in the collective game, and the attack number is large enough, defense replaces fleeing strategy in the multi-attack SVD game. However, in the bistable case, defense cannot invade into the fleeing population. It is shown that, if the interaction between relatives is frequent enough, than defense can replace fleeing strategy, in spite of the fact that in the well-mixed population the collective game is bistable.     

Interspecies hormonal interactions between man and the domestic dog (Canis familiaris)

To date, hormonal influence in interspecies interaction has not been examined. In a study of a dog agility competition among human/dog teams, men's pre-competition basal testosterone (T) levels were positively related to changes in dogs' cortisol levels from pre- to post-competition, but only among losing teams. Furthermore, pre-competition basal T in men on losing teams predicted more than half of the variance in dogs' cortisol change. This relationship was mediated through men's punitive and affiliative behaviors towards their dogs immediately after competition. Men's T change was also a significant predictor of dogs' change in cortisol such that men who experienced greater decreases in T after a loss were associated with dogs that experienced greater increases in cortisol. In winning teams, men's pre-competition T and T changes were unrelated to dogs' cortisol changes. These results are discussed in light of T as a proxy for dominance motivation as well as T's relation to stress across the species boundary.     

Sexual Differences in Offspring Defense in a Monogamous Cichlid Fish

Solitary male and female Texas cichlids, Cichlasoma cyanoguttatum employ different tactics when defending their offspring. Males emphasize the lateral display against an intruder and make infrequent return visits to the young while the intruder is present. The female is more likely to attack, attempting to bite the intruder and also making frequent return visits to the offspring. These differences disappear with increasing age of the offspring as the male becomes more like the female with more violent attacks. Both defense systems appear effective, in the short term, against intruders.     

The effects of defensive style and final game outcome on the external training load of professional basketball players

This study aimed to analyse the influence of different contextual factors (i.e., defensive style and game outcome) on basketball players’ external load during games-based drills using ultrawideband (UWB) technology. Fourteen male professional basketball players belonging to an elite reserve Spanish club (ACB) participated in this study. The games-based drills consisted of one bout of 10 min played 5vs5 in which players were instructed to use man-to-man defence (MMD) and/or zone defence (ZD). In addition, the final game outcome (i.e., winning or losing) of the game-based drill was registered. External load variables per minute were recorded: total distance covered, distance covered in different speed zones, distance covered while accelerating and decelerating, maximum speed, steps, jumps and player load. A two-way ANOVA with the Tukey post hoc test was used to assess the impact of defensive style and final game outcome and the interaction of both factors on the external load encountered by basketball players. No meaningful differences (unclear) were found in the external loads between playing with MMD and with ZD and between winning and losing teams except for greater distance at high-speed running (18.0–24.0 km·h^-1) in winning teams (p < 0.05, ES = 0.68, moderate). A significant interaction between defensive style and final game outcome was found for high decelerations (> -2 m·s^-2) (p = 0.041; ES = 0.70) and jumps (p = 0.037; ES = 0.68). These results could potentially help coaching staff in prescribing an appropriate workload during basketball-specific game-based drills, and ultimately enhance the match performance.     

Persistence of Winner and Loser Effects Depends on the Behaviour Measured

Recent contest experience can influence an individual’s behaviour in subsequent contests. When the probability of winning a subsequent contest is used to quantify experience effects, a loser effect usually lasts longer than a winner effect. This conclusion, however, may be caused by this probability understating the persistence of the influence of a winning experience on contest decisions. Using Kryptolebias marmoratus, a mangrove killifish, as the study organism, we investigated whether different conclusions about the relative persistence of winning and losing experiences would be reached when different aspects of contest behaviour (probability of initiating attacks, probability of winning non‐escalated and escalated contests, escalation rate and contest duration) were measured. The results indicated that the apparent persistence of the effect of winning or losing experiences varied with the behaviour studied. When the likelihood to initiate attacks was used, no winner effect was detected while the loser effect lasted for <1 d. When escalation rate was used, the winner effect lasted for 2–4 d, while the loser effect lasted for 1–2 d. When the probability of winning non‐escalated contests was used, the winner effect was detectable for <1 d, while the loser effect lasted for 2–4 d. And, when contest duration was used, the winner effect was detectable for 2–4 d, but no loser effect was detectable. These results show that (1) the probability of winning a subsequent contest understated the persistence of the influence of a winning experience on the fish’s contest decisions, (2) the measures most effective at detecting winner effects are different from those most effective at detecting loser effects and (3) in K. marmoratus, both effects can be detected 2 d after the completion of experience training but both dissipate in 4 d.     

A systematic review of collective tactical behaviour in futsal using positional data

Although many studies on collective tactical behaviour have been published in the last decade, no study has revised and summarized the findings provided for futsal. The main aim of this systematic review was to identify and discuss the geometrical centre (GC), distance and area tactical variables used to assess team behaviour in futsal. In addition, it summarizes the findings on the tactical response during futsal competition and training. A systematic review of the relevant articles provided on futsal was carried out using seven electronic databases (SPORTDiscus, ProQuest, Cochrane Plus, Scopus, Google Scholar, PubMed and Web of Science) until September 25, 2019. From a total of 1,209 studies initially found, 12 were included in the qualitative synthesis. There were some trends in the analysis of positional data in futsal with the most relevant situations analysed being 1 vs 1 and 5 vs 4+Goalkeeper. The distances and angles between two points were the most assessed tactical variables. Five types of distance variables were used to assess collective tactical behaviour in futsal: GC-GC, GC-player, player-player, player-ball and player-space. Pressure (GC-GC) was greater in shots on goal than in tackles during professional futsal matches. Area variables were reduced to occupied space, exploration space and dominant area. Occupied space was measured only during competition while the dominant area was measured only during training sessions. The surface area and dominant regions were greater when players were attacking in comparison to when they were defending. In addition, two non-linear techniques (i.e. relative phase and entropy) were applied to analyse synchronisation and complexity and regularity or predictability. Defenders were highly synchronous, while attackers tried to break this coordination to achieve possibilities for action. Task constraints are suitable to induce different regularity patterns. This review is an opportunity to develop studies aimed at bridging the gap in collective tactical behaviour in futsal.     

Cognitive Representations and Cognitive Processing of Team-Specific Tactics in Soccer

Two core elements for the coordination of different actions in sport are tactical information and knowledge about tactical situations. The current study describes two experiments to learn about the memory structure and the cognitive processing of tactical information. Experiment 1 investigated the storage and structuring of team-specific tactics in humans’ long-term memory with regard to different expertise levels. Experiment 2 investigated tactical decision-making skills and the corresponding gaze behavior, in presenting participants the identical match situations in a reaction time task. The results showed that more experienced soccer players, in contrast to less experienced soccer players, possess a functionally organized cognitive representation of team-specific tactics in soccer. Moreover, the more experienced soccer players reacted faster in tactical decisions, because they needed less fixations of similar duration as compared to less experienced soccer players. Combined, these experiments offer evidence that a functionally organized memory structure leads to a reaction time and a perceptual advantage in tactical decision-making in soccer. The discussion emphasizes theoretical and applied implications of the current results of the study.     

Why do chimpanzee males attack the females of neighboring communities?

Our closest nonhuman primate relatives, chimpanzees, engage in potentially lethal between‐group conflict; this collective aggressive behavior shows parallels with human warfare. In some communities, chimpanzee males also severely attack and even kill females of the neighboring groups. This is surprising given their system of resource defense polygyny, where males are expected to acquire potential mates. We develop a simple mathematical model based on reproductive skew among primate males to solve this puzzle. The model predicts that it is advantageous for high‐ranking males but not for low‐ranking males to attack females. It also predicts that more males gain a benefit from attacking females as the community's reproductive skew decreases, i.e., as mating success is more evenly distributed. Thus, fatal attacks on females should be concentrated in communities with low reproductive skew. These attacks should also concur with between‐community infanticide. A review of the chimpanzee literature provides enough preliminary support for this prediction to warrant more detailed testing. Am J Phys Anthropol 155:430–435, 2014. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Ejaculatory strategies associated with experience of losing

Modulation of behaviours as a result of fighting experience has been observed in many animals and can influence pre-copulatory sexual selection. This study investigated how fighting experience affects ejaculatory strategies. In male flour beetles, Gnatocerus cornutus, experience of losing a fight decreases a male''s aggressiveness for up to 4 days. We found that males losing a fight show increased ejaculatory investment, but there was no ejaculatory modulation owing to winning. However, the increase in ejaculate investment following a loss was no longer observed after 5 days. These results indicate that males adjust their investment in sperm competition according to their experience, and that fighting experience can significantly influence pre- and post-copulatory reproductive tactics.     

Collective Defense of Aphis nerii and Uroleucon hypochoeridis (Homoptera,Aphididae) against Natural Enemies

The prevalent way aphids accomplish colony defense against natural enemies is a mutualistic relationship with ants or the occurrence of a specialised soldier caste typcial for eusocial aphids, or even both. Despite a group-living life style of those aphid species lacking these defense lines, communal defense against natural predators has not yet been observed there. Individuals of Aphis nerii (Oleander aphid) and Uroleucon hypochoeridis, an aphid species feeding on Hypochoeris radicata (hairy cat''s ear), show a behavioral response to visual stimulation in the form of spinning or twitching, which is often accompanied by coordinated kicks executed with hind legs. Interestingly, this behaviour is highly synchronized among members of a colony and repetitive visual stimulation caused strong habituation. Observations of natural aphid colonies revealed that a collective twitching and kicking response (CTKR) was frequently evoked during oviposition attempts of the parasitoid wasp Aphidius colemani and during attacks of aphidophagous larvae. CTKR effectively interrupted oviposition attempts of this parasitoid wasp and even repelled this parasitoid from colonies after evoking consecutive CTKRs. In contrast, solitary feeding A. nerii individuals were not able to successfully repel this parasitoid wasp. In addition, CTKR was also evoked through gentle substrate vibrations. Laser vibrometry of the substrate revealed twitching-associated vibrations that form a train of sharp acceleration peaks in the course of a CTKR. This suggests that visual signals in combination with twitching-related substrate vibrations may play an important role in synchronising defense among members of a colony. In both aphid species collective defense in encounters with different natural enemies was executed in a stereotypical way and was similar to CTKR evoked through visual stimulation. This cooperative defense behavior provides an example of a surprising sociality that can be found in some aphid species that are not expected to be social at all.     

Ballistic Beloniformes attacking through Snell's Window

Needlefishes (Beloniformes) were observed employing a range of stalking and attacking behaviours to attack schools of bait fishes ranging from the use of tactics common to predatory fishes to a novel behaviour: the use of leaping, aerial attacks. These aerial attacks are suggested to serve two purposes: to extend the attack range of the needlefishes and to reduce their prey's potential for evasion. Furthermore, a third purpose is hypothesized that the needlefishes are taking advantage of Snell's Window, an optical effect which may mask their approach to their prey.     

Neurophysiological correlates of laboratory-induced aggression in young men with and without a history of violence

In order to further understand the mechanisms involved in planning an aggressive act, we conducted an event-related potential (ERP) study of young men with and without a history of violence. Participants completed a competitive reaction time task (based on the Taylor aggression paradigm) against a virtual opponent. In "passive" blocks, participants were punished by the opponent when losing the trial but could not punish, when winning, whereas in "active" blocks, participants were able to punish the opponent when winning, but were not punished when losing. Participants selected punishment strength in a decision phase prior to each reaction time task and were informed whether they had won or lost in the outcome phase. Additionally, a flanker task was conducted to assess basic performance monitoring. Violent participants selected stronger punishments, especially in "active" blocks. During the decision phase, a frontal P200 was more pronounced for violent participants, whereas non-violent participants showed an enhanced frontal negativity around 300 ms. The P200 might reflect the decision to approach the opponent at a very early state, the latter negativity could reflect inhibition processes, leading to a more considerate reaction in non-violent participants. During the outcome phase, a Feedback-Related Negativity was seen in both groups. This effect was most pronounced when losing entailed a subsequent inability to retaliate. The groups did not differ in the flanker task, indicating intact basic performance monitoring. Our data suggest that the planning of an aggressive act is associated with distinct brain activity and that such activity is differentially represented in violent and non-violent individuals.