Alliance Kubayi

• DPhil (Sport Science)
• Senior Lecturer at Tshwane University of Technology

The environments in which coaches help create have a significant influence on the development of talented players. Therefore, this study investigated perceptions of talent development environments (TDEs) and coach-created motivational climates among South African youth football players. A total of 112 male amateur players (M age = 16.2 ± 1.1 years;...

Background: Goal scoring is critical in soccer, but limited research exists on one touch finishing in open play situations. This study addresses this gap by analyzing one touch finishing in the Copa America 2021. Purpose: To evaluate the effectiveness of one touch finishing and identify the conditions under which they are most successful in competi...

Background: While studies have addressed the reasons why coaches choose or leave the coaching profession, an initial inquiry into coaching should focus on the level of interest among athletes in becoming coaches.Objectives: The study investigated differences between male and female athletes’ intention to pursue a coaching career in South Africa.Met...

The purpose of this study was to investigate female South African school athletes’ trust in their coaches in relation to their perceptions of the coaches’ justice, benevolence, integrity, competence, commitment to coach, willingness to cooperate, and performance. A quantitative cross-sectional research design was used in this study. The results sho...

Objective Currently, there is a gap in knowledge on what the key goalkeeper attributes are during talent identification and selection in soccer. Hence, the objective was to investigate South African coaches’ perceptions regarding key attributes of talented youth soccer goalkeepers. Design Cross-sectional survey. Methods A total of 173 soccer coac...

Background: This study comparatively investigates the anthropometric and physical fitness characteristics of male South African players by age group, competitive level and playing position. Methods: The sample consisted of 201 youth soccer players drawn from six sports academies in South Africa. Players were subjected to standardized protocols f...

Background: This study investigates the effects of manipulating the number of ball touches (free play vs. two touches) on the physical and technical actions of elite male youth soccer players during 5v5 + 2 goalkeepers (GKs) small-sided games (SSGs). Methods: Players played in two different SSGs: 1) free play, where the number of touches per pos...

The lockdown period of the COVID-19 pandemic has created several innovative methods of interaction at workplaces and, more importantly, within the sports industry. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the usual training procedures and further challenged coaches and athletes to find ways of interaction. The researchers combined both qualitative and qu...

The aim of this study was to analyse how goal-scoring opportunities (GSOs) were created at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup. The sample consisted of 868 GSOs that led to a shot at the goal throughout all 52 games during the tournament. All games were downloaded from the InStat platform. Descriptive statistics, chi-square of association and binary lo...

This study investigated game-related statistics differentiating the winning and losings teams of matches during the 2019 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) soccer tournament. The sample consisted of 38 games, with the data obtained from the InStat Scout platform. Data were analyzed using mean (M), SD, effect size (ES), structure coefficients (SCs), and...

Background: Despite a substantial body of literature on the physical and technical performance characteristics of football players in Asian and European tournaments, research on South American football players is scarce. Objectives: The purpose of the study was to examine the physical and technical characteristics of football players according t...

There exists a wide gap between coaches’ needs and the information that is being disseminated by sport scientists. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine coaches’ perceptions concerning this bridging the knowledge gap between sport science and coaching in South Africa. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight high-performan...

The purpose of this study was to investigate open-play crosses at the 2018 FIFA World Cup tournament, with spe- cific reference to the mechanism and match status of the crosses. Descriptive statistics (i.e., frequency counts and percentages) and chi-square tests of association were used to analyse the data. The study observed a total of 949 crosses...

The aim of this study was to analyse how performance variables differed between teams that were eliminated and teams that qualified from the group stage at the 2018 FIFA World Cup. A total of 48 games played by 32 teams during the tournament were analysed using the InStat video analysis system. Mean (M), standard deviation (SD), effect size (ES) an...

This study investigated the technical demands on football players, based on their various playing positions, during the qualifying matches for the European Football Championship. Data were obtained from the InStat database. The sample consisted of 314 players grouped into the following five playing positions: central defenders (n = 89), wide defend...

This study explored how the video assistant referee (VAR) has influenced match performance variables at Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup tournaments. Comparative analysis was undertaken of matches played during the FIFA 2018 World Cup ( n = 64) tournament, where VAR was employed, and those played during the 2014 Wor...

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to analyse match performance of goalkeepers (GKs) during the 2019 COPA America soccer championship. METHODS: A total of 28 match observations were analyzed using the InStat ® tracking system. Descriptive statistics (i.e., means and standard deviations), effect size (ES) and an independent t-test were used to an...

The purpose of this study was to examine sources of stress among football coaches in Gauteng Province, South Africa. Participants were 150 football coaches who completed the twenty-six item Stressors in Sports Coaching Questionnaire (Kubayi, Toriola, and Didymus, 2018). Players were generally seen as providing the greatest source of stress through...

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to investigate the work rate and technical performance of substitute players at the UEFA Euro 2016. METHODS: Match performance indicators of 252 outfield players from 10 matches during the knockout stage were analyzed using the InStat multiple-camera tracking system (InStat, Moscow, Russia). Absolute distances...

The purpose of the study was to examine the technical performance variables between teams which won and lost matches during the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup tournament. The sample consisted of 48 games played during the tournament. Data were obtained from the InStat Scout platform. Results showed that winning teams performed significantly (p < 0.05)...

Background: Rugby union is a popular and continuously growing sport globally. With the advance of technology, practices have been implemented to quantify the match running demands of rugby union players. The aim of this study was to analyse the match loads of rugby union players between the 2016 and 2018 Varsity Cup competitions. Methods: The sa...

Soccer is the most popular sport in the world. Despite this global popularity, European teams in contrast to African ones, have dominated the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup tournaments for many decades. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the performance indicators that differentiated between African...

The purpose of this study was to develop and preliminarily validate a questionnaire to examine barriers to coaching that are encountered by women sports coaches in South Africa. Two series of studies were conducted to assess content and face validity, factorial structure, and reliability of a new questionnaire. In study one, 40 items were developed...

Background: Despite a substantial body of literature on the physical and technical demands of outfield players in football, there is little information regarding the performance of goalkeepers. Objective: The aim of this study was to analyse the game performance profiles of goalkeepers at the 2016 European Football Championships. Methods: A to...

The purpose of this study was to examine match performance indicators that discriminated between winning, drawing and losing teams in the 2017 Total Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) soccer championship. Data were collected from 32 matches during the AFCON soccer tournament using the InStat® system. The studied variables included the number of goals sc...

The aim of this study was to analyse the goal scoring patterns during the 2018 FIFA World Cup. All goals scored during the tournament were analysed using the InStat video analysis system. The results showed that 169 goals (open play: 60.9%; set play: 39.1%) were scored during the competition. While 85 goals (82.5%) were scored from elaborate attack...

This study analysed the 795 goals scored during a total of 320 matches played in five successive FIFA World Cup tournaments (1998–2014). Data were obtained through YouTube videos and analysed by means of Longomatch software. The variables analysed included the number of goals scored per half (45‐min period), per 15‐min period, and per 30‐min period...

The aim of this study was to analyse corner kick defensive strategies during the 2018 FIFA World Cup. A total of 600 corner kicks from all 64 matches in the tournament were obtained from the InStat database and analysed. Data were analysed and reported as frequency counts and percentages. Chi-square test for independence (χ²) used to test associati...

Background: Despite a substantial body of literature on match-running distances covered by soccer players in domestic leagues, there appears to be limited information on the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Euro competitions. Objective: The aim of this study was to analyse the match-running distances covered by soccer players durin...

Although the influence of ball possession in soccer has been well studied in other leagues, such information is sparse concerning the South African Premier Soccer League (PSL). The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of situational variables on ball possession in the PSL. Thirty-two matches played during the 2016–2017 PSL season were ana...

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of high- and low-percentage ball possession (HPBP and LPBP) on teams' technical and physical indicators at the 2016 European Football Championship. METHODS: Match performance data were collected from 14 matches using the InStat multiple-camera tracking system. Data were analyzed wit...

Background: Despite the importance of extra-time (ET) in determining success in the knockout stages of tournaments, there is scant information on the physical demands of ET on soccer players. Methods: This study investigated the physical demands of all soccer players (n=59) who completed four matches that went to ET at the 2016 UEFA Euro Championsh...

Background: There appears to be a gap between coaches’ expectations concerning their needs and the focus of research findings published by sports scientists. Given the important role of sports science in enhancing athletic performance, closing the gap between sports scientists and coaches is expedient. Objectives: To investigate sports science perc...

This study examined the relationship between work–family conflict, organisational support, and job–life satisfaction of South African sports coaches. The sample consisted of 114 sports coaches, ranging in age from 18 to 64 years (Mage = 30.67, SD = 9.80 years), who volunteered to participate in the study. Data were collected using the following ins...

Th is study investigated burnout and turnover intentions among 119 South African sport coaches (78 males and 38 females) aged 18 to 64 years (M = 30.28, SD = 9.83 years), who were recruited to participate in the study. Data were collected using the Maslach Burnout Inventory and Turnover Intentions Questionnaire. Th e results showed that sport coach...

Background: An understanding of psychological welfare in sport is essential for the advancement of coach development frameworks and practices to meet the needs of contemporary disabled athletes. Objective: This study investigated the perceived coach leadership style and psychological well-being (PWB) of South African senior national level male w...

This study analysed published research on sport coaching in South Africa. A systematic review was conducted using the African Journals Online and Sabinet online databases to identify sport coaching studies published from 2006 to 2016, with 42 papers meeting the inclusion criteria. Findings based on the themes that emerged from the analysis indicate...

Soccer is the most popular sport worldwide. Despite its global acclaim, scientific studies of soccer have tended to focus on tactics and techniques, thereby neglecting the physical and physiological profile of the players. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine physical and anthropometric characteristics of male South African universit...

The aim of this series of studies was to develop and initially validate an instrument to assess stressors among South African sports coaches. In study one, a preliminary pool of 45 items was developed based on existing literature and an expert panel was employed to assess the content validity and applicability of these items. In study two, the 32 i...

The purpose of this study was to examine perceived hindrances encountered by sport coaches in the Gauteng Province of South Africa. A total of 224 sport coaches (122 males and 102 females) were purposively recruited to participate in this study. An exploratory factor analysis was used to assess the factor structure of the Perceived Hindrance Scale....

The purpose of this study was to investigate the work-related constraints encountered by female coaches in the Gauteng Province of South Africa. Participants were 100 female coaches who completed a 34-item questionnaire on the perceived constraints/hindrances to coaching. A Cronbach’s α of 0.953 was recorded for the questionnaire. Results indicated...

The purpose of this study was to evaluate learners’ views about sport promotion at public primary and secondary schools in Tshwane, the capital city of South Africa. A total of 773 school children aged 12–18 years volunteered to participate in the study. Data were collected using a validated structured questionnaire. Overall, the results showed tha...

Objective: To determine the factors that influence physical activity participation among secondary school learners in the Hlanganani rural area of Limpopo Province, South Africa. Methods: A quantitative approach was used to examine factors that influence physical activity (PA) involvement among 151 students (Mean age: 18.14 ± 1.81 years) attendi...

The purpose of this study was to examine coaches’ preferences for continuing coaching education. The sample consisted of 122 male and 102 female coaches from the Gauteng Province of South Africa who were purposively recruited to participate in this study. The results of this study showed that the coaches wanted to learn more about motivational tech...

Football is the most popular sport in South Africa. Despite its laudable acclaim, research has shown that there is a high turnover of football coaches in the country. Therefore, this study was designed to investigate the work-related barriers experienced by such coaches in the Gauteng Province of South Africa. A quantitative approach was adopted fo...

This study investigated the relationship between dispositional achievement goal orientation (task and ego) and coping ability in wheelchair rugby players with quadriplegia. The sample consisted of 16 (15 males and 1 female) players between the ages of 25 and 44 (M=33.7 years; SD=8.7) who were selected for South Africa's national training squad in p...

This study was carried out to examine constraints to sport participation among female secondary school students in Hlanganani rural area, Limpopo Province, South Africa. A total of 101 female students aged 17–24 years from four secondary schools were recruited to participate in the study. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data....

The aim of this study was to evaluate the VO2max, peak blood lactate and peak heart rate among wheelchair basketball and rugby players. Thirty-eight wheelchair basketball and rugby players were purposively selected based on the following criteria: aged 18-50 years, actively involved in a wheelchair sport for at least one year prior to the study and...

The purpose of this study was to examine the role of parents and peer support in secondary school students' physical activity participation. An eight item Social Support Scale (SSS) was used to investigate parents and peer support in physical activity participation. A total of 251 (120 males and 131 females) students attending three public secondar...

The purpose of this study was to examine perceived benefits and motives of physical activity participation among secondary school students. A total of 172 learners, aged 18.37±1.90 years who were attending three public secondary schools in Hlanganani rural area, Limpopo Province of South Africa, volunteered to participate in the study. Data were co...