TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2021//
TI  - How does the situation before a tackle influence a tackler's head placement in rugby union? Application of the decision tree analysis
JO  - BMJ open sport and exercise medicine
A1  - Suzuki, Keita
A1  - Nagai, Satoshi
A1  - Iwai, Koichi
A1  - Furukawa, Takuo
A1  - Takemura, Masahiro
SP  - e000949
EP  - e000949
VL  - 7
IS  - 1
N2  - OBJECTIVES: Tacklers need to decide where to place their head based on the evasive manoeuvres of the ball-carrier and positional relationship with the ball-carrier before tackle. Therefore, it is difficult for tacklers to improve incorrect head placement at the moment of contact. Moreover, the characteristics prior to tackle have a relationship with the tackler's head placement. However, how situations lead to incorrect head placement remains unknown. The aim of this study was to identify pre-contact situations that lead to incorrect head placement by using decision tree analysis. <br><br>METHODS: Tackles leading to concussions were used to identify events that provoked injury using the video recordings of matches. Injury-free tackle was used as a control. All tackles were classified according to head placements and coded from seven pre-contact factors configured aspect of both tacklers and ball-carriers. <br><br>RESULTS: Three situations that led to incorrect head placement were identified. Evasive manoeuvres implemented by the ball-carrier significantly contributed to the head placement at the time of contact. <br><br>CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that tacklers should keep their heads up to identify the movements of the ball-carrier, which might lead to tackling the head on the correct side at the moment of tackling and decrease the risk of tackler-related concussions.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 2055-7647
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjsem-2020-000949
ID  - ref1
ER  -