How to periodise your footballers training in-season?
One of the most challenging issues for both the head coach and strength and conditioning coach is how to plan and periodise training during the actual competition season. Because it’s impossible for teams to peak year round.
How much work can athletes tolerate before they get injured, overtrain or match day competition performance suffers?
How little training can athletes perform to enhance their performance during the season?
To answer these questions we can look at the factors affecting in-season periodization. Such as the quality of the opposition, days between matches and travel.
For example the training leading up to hard opposition, few days recovery, away game with travel would be significantly different from playing easy opposition, with long recovery at the home ground.
Match Difficulty is a prediction of the difficulty of each match.
This is developed by the following variables:
Level of opposition
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Training Days between matches
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Match Location
On a sliding scale of importance
Level of opposition
- Rank the opposition teams at start of year
- Strongest to Weakest
- Physical to least physical
- Re-rank every week
- Include your own team
Level of Opposition 12 AFL Teams
| Factor | Score |
| Top 4 | 12-9 |
| Middle 3 | 8-6 |
| Bottom 3 | 5-3 |
Match Difficulty
Training Days between matches
Matches Played on Fri, Sat, Sun, Mon
4-9 Days between matches
Training days between matches
| Factor | Score |
| 4 days | 8 |
| 5 days | 6 |
| 6 days | 4 |
| 7 days | 2 |
| 8 days | 1 |
Match difficulty
Home
Away
Away with Travel
Away with air travel
Match Location NEAFL
| Factor | Score |
| Away with travel | 3 |
| Away | 2 |
| Home | 1 |
Total match difficulty-NEAFL
| Opposition | Level | Days | Location | Total |
| Team 1 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 16 |
| Team 2 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 9 |
| Team 3 | 12 | 6 | 3 | 21 |
| Team 4 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 13 |
Predicted match Difficulty vs. Actual Match Difficulty
Plan training load using RPE data. Take RPE data 30 mins after sesh finished.
Planned Training Load
Planned Training Load
Planned vs Actual Training Load
Match difficulty vs Training Load
Planned vs Actual Training Load
Overview of the system
All the best,
Joey Hayes
References:
Kelly, V. G. & Coutts, A. J. Planning and Monitoring Training Loads During the Competition Phase in team Sports. Strength and Conditioning Journal, August 2007, Vol 29, No 4, Pg 32-37.
