Coordination and variability in Australian rules football kicking: Implications for performance

The purpose of this study was to quantify coordination and coordination variability (CV) of drop-punt kicking in professional Australian Football players and investigate the association between CV and in-game kicking performance and professional playing experience. Intra- limb couplings described to be associated with kicking accuracy were investigated during 30m successful drop-punt kicking efforts in 14 players. Coordination and CV were quantified using a modified vector coding technique. Higher CV of frontal plane trunk/pelvis, frontal and transverse plane thigh/leg and frontal plane leg/foot coupled motion were associated with higher in-game kicking performance. In-game kicking performance and CV did not change following two years of professional experience. These results highlight the significance of junior level skill development and kicking performance in talent identification.