Reliability and profiling of physical performance tests in Australian Football League Women's (AFLW) athletes.

OBJECTIVES

The purpose of this study was to establish the test-retest reliability of physical performance tests in elite Australian Football League Women's (AFLW) athletes.

DESIGN

Repeated measures cohort study.

METHODS

26 participants completed two sessions seven days apart, performing the countermovement jump (CMJ), drop jump (DJ), squat jump (SJ), 20 m sprint, Nordic hamstring eccentric (NHE), and hip abduction/adduction strength tests. Paired t-tests and two-way mixed intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC(2,1)) were performed for the best repetition from each session to assess reliability with the level of significance set at p ≤ 0.05. The coefficient of variation (CV, %), standard error of measurement (SEM) and minimal detectable change (MDC) were also calculated.

RESULTS

CMJ relative peak power (ICC = 0.90, CV = 2.5 %) and 20 m sprint (ICC = 0.91, CV = 1.0 %) had excellent reliability. Good reliability was observed for CMJ jump height (ICC = 0.85, CV = 4 %), CMJ reactive strength index (RSI) (ICC = 0.82, CV = 4.6 %), DJ and SJ relative peak power (ICC = 0.82-0.85, CV = 2.6-3.2 %) and hip abduction peak force (ICC = 0.82-0.83, CV = 7.8-8.6 %). Moderate reliability was observed for DJ and SJ jump height (ICC = 0.61-0.63, CV = 4.8-5.8 %), DJ and SJ RSI (ICC = 0.61, CV = 4.8-12 %) and hip adduction peak force (ICC = 0.60, CV = 7.9-9.0 %). NHE peak force had good to excellent reliability (ICC = 0.85-0.94, CV = 3.3-5.3 %).

CONCLUSIONS

High reliability of most commonly used physical performance tests in elite AFLW athletes gives practitioners confidence in their use to inform contemporary profiling and rehabilitation strategies. A more cautious approach is advised when considering results for the DJ and SJ jump height and RSI, and the hip adduction peak force due to moderate reliability.