Physical Demands of Elite Rugby Union Match-play Using Global Positioning System

Physical demands such as distance covered and speed of individual players during football, handball, rugby league (13 players), and rugby union (15 players, hereinafter “rugby”) games were analyzed to create training plans suitable for each sport (Tanisho et al., 2009; Tanaka et al., 2002; Gabbett et al., 2012). In the 1980s, Kawase et al. (1988) conducted research on total distances covered per game utilizing the notational analysis. They reported 4079m covered by Prop, 4788m covered by Hooker, 3432m covered by Flanker, 3356m covered by Number-8, and 3443m covered by Fly-half. In the 2000s, Cunniffe et al. (2009) conducted research utilizing a Global Positioning System (GPS) and reported that the total distances covered per game by Forwards were 6680m and 7227m by Backs. Austin et al. (2011) conducted research utilizing video analysis and reported that the total distances covered by Front Row, Back Row, Inside Back, and Outside Back were 4662±659m, 5262±131m, 6095±213m, and 4774±1017m, respectively. Meanwhile, a comparison of previous studies on the total distances covered by each positional group revealed differences; therefore, they were insufficient for use as data in the creation of training programs or plans considering the characteristics of rugby. Few studies report physical demands during rugby games, and these studies considered different subject categories (professional, university, etc.), and insufficient numbers of subjects or games, making Physical Demands of Elite Rugby Union Match-play Using Global Positioning System