Performance Differences across Competition Levels in the Performance of the Y Balance Test in Soccer

Abstract

The Y Balance Test (YBT) has been used to assess physical performance and identify athletes at greater risk for lower extremity injury. Previous studies have identified dynamic balance performance differences between genders. However, there are few published reports on the differences among high school, collegiate, and professional soccer players. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine YBT reach distance differences of high school, collegiate and professional soccer players. METHODS: Dynamic balance data were collected on male high school (HS, n=38), collegiate (COL, n=37) and professional (PRO, n=44) soccer players during pre-participation physicals using a standardized testing YBT protocol. The greatest of 3 trials for each reach direction was used for analysis of the reach distance for each limb. Composite reach distance was normalized to limb length. Bilateral symmetry was assessed by examining the absolute difference between left and right reach scores for each direction. Differences between competition level were analyzed utilizing a One-way ANOVA with a significance level of <0.05. RESULTS: The HS grouped exhibited a statistically significant greater normalized anterior reach compared to the other two groups (p=0.04). In contrast to these findings, the HS group had statistically significant decreased posteromedial (p=0.001) and posterolateral (p=0.003) reach compared to the other two groups. While not significantly different, HS soccer players exhibited a lower composite reach score compared to the other two groups (p=0.08). CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest that dynamic balance as recorded by the YBT, vary with competition level. This may indicate that movement strategies may be different depending on the competition level. Based on our findings, we suggest that normative values be established for varying competition levels. Establishing normative values will be beneficial in providing return to participation criteria following a lower extremity injury that may cause a reduction in dynamic balance ability. Future studies should examine if similar findings are observed for female soccer players.