Is Vertical Jump Associated with Change of Direction Ability in Soccer Players? A Pilot Study

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between vertical jump and change of direction ability with different agility test performances of soccer players. Twenty-six male soccer players (age=9.4±0.5 years, height=138.8±8.7 cm, weight=31.1±5.6 kg, body mass index=16.0±2.0 kg.m-2) from U9-U10 age categories of a first division team in Turkish Professional Soccer League were tested for vertical jump (countermovement jump) and change of direction ability (CODA) with, Hexagon, 505 and Illinois agility tests. Relationship between these agility tests and vertical jump (VJ) were assessed by Spearman’s rho correlation coefficient test. There was no significant relationship between VJ and any measure of CODA tests. In conclusion, it can be said that VJ is not associated with CODA performance of soccer players. Despite the fact that there have been many studies supporting these results in the literature, these cross-sectional relationships should be investigated longitudinally with the larger research groups for different age categories and sport-specific research design for different jumping directions.