Release Date: 23/10/2009

Author: By Graeme Beggs

THERE are many aspects of football that have developed over the years, but none have been more important than the introduction of sports science techniques.

The Sports Institute of Northern Ireland (SINI) has been at the forefront of this development and has been supporting Nigel Worthington’s senior men’s team in the build up to matches - with Dr Jonathan Bloomfield, a sports scientist from SINI working closely with the manager and his squad.

Impressed by the advantages that sports science can bring to our teams, the IFA has invested in specialised heart-rate monitoring equipment that can be utilized by all of our national teams through every age-group.

Dr Jonathan Bloomfield, was recently brought in by the IFA to deliver training and to educate the coaches and players of the senior women’s team in the use of this technology.  He said: “These heart rate monitors can provide the coaches with vital information on how the training is affecting their players.  They can monitor intensity levels of certain exercises which can help when designing coaching plans for each training session.

“This type of analysis is very important in the build-up to match day so that the coach can determine the appropriate training load that will maximize each player’s performance during the game itself.  For example, a player will ‘taper’ their training each day before the game itself so that they are in peak physical condition to run out onto the pitch and play for 90 minutes.”

National Women’s Coach, Alfie Wylie, has been very impressed with the new technology.  He said: “This workshop has really helped our girls to prepare for the start of our World Cup Qualifying campaign which kicks-off on Saturday against Croatia. Following the sports science training, Gail Macklin has been recording all the results shown in the heart rate analysis from each training session and has been giving the players reports and feedback. The introduction of the use of this technology is a huge step forward for the women’s game in Northern Ireland, and having our coaches educated in this particular area will without doubt benefit the women’s squad for years to come.”  

European Qualifying Competition for the 6th FIFA Women's World Cup:

Croatia v Northern Ireland - Zaprešić Stadium - Saturday 24 October 2009 -
Kick-off 3.30pm
Northern Ireland v Iceland - The Oval, Belfast - Wednesday 28 October 2009 - Kick-off 7.30pm

For the squad's full fixture list click here.

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