Quantifying synergies in two-versus-one situations in team sports: An example from Rugby Union

Area of Science:

• Sports Science
• Biomechanics
• Motor Control

Background:

• Collective behaviors in team sports are crucial for performance.
• Understanding how interpersonal synergies form during dynamic gameplay remains challenging due to numerous variables.
• Quantifying these synergies is essential for improving team strategies and player development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantify interpersonal synergies between a ball carrier and a support player in two-versus-one situations in Rugby Union.
• To investigate the contribution of player running line velocities to stabilizing key performance variables.
• To assess the utility of the Uncontrolled Manifold Hypothesis (UCM) as a performance analysis tool in team sports.

Main Methods:

• Applied the Uncontrolled Manifold Hypothesis (UCM) to analyze 55 trials of two-versus-one situations in Rugby Union.
• Identified interpersonal synergies by examining the inter-player angle near the moment of the pass as the performance variable.
• Utilized players' running line velocities as the task-relevant elements influencing the performance variable.

Main Results:

• Interpersonal synergies, indicated by UCM values above 1, were identified in 19 out of 55 trials (34%).
• Player running line velocities were found to contribute to stabilizing the inter-player angle in these synergistic trials.
• The strength of these synergies fluctuated over time, suggesting a location effect during attacking phases.

Conclusions:

• The Uncontrolled Manifold Hypothesis (UCM) is a promising tool for analyzing performance in team sports like Rugby Union.
• The findings demonstrate that players form quantifiable interpersonal synergies that stabilize critical performance variables.
• UCM analysis can potentially discriminate between different skill levels within player subgroups.