Women’s football has gained in popularity over the last fifteen years and research into this area has developed. (Lopez, 1997; Scraton, Fasting, Pfister, & Bunuel, 1999; Williams, 2003, 2007, 2011; Fasting, 2004; Brus and Trangbaek, 2004; Pfister, 2006; Cauldwell, 2011). This research study has addressed the historical developments and inequalities with women’s football and extended the existing knowledge of women’s football and developed further the understanding of how female players transition through their playing careers. Study One utilized in-depth interviews, (n=6), with senior administrators in the football organization to examine the organizational structure of six football associations (Denmark, England, Finland, Germany, Norway, The Netherlands), in Europe, to understand where women’s football is situated within the organization. The status and location of women’s football in the football organization was scrutinized to identify whether this affects the allocation of resources and working practices within women’s football. The results identified the challenges women’s football faced in gaining adequate resource to develop the women’s game. Gaps in the development structures were identified and this led to the development of Study Two which recognized the need to examine how the players navigate through these structures. Transition models (Wylleman and Lavallee 2014 holistic career model) have framed Study Two to explain how the players transition through their football careers. Seventeen elite players from the six European countries involved in Study One, were interviewed to gain an in-depth insight into how they navigate through their playing career. The findings from Study Two identified that the players found the transition from junior elite football to senior elite football problematic. This depended upon whether they had sufficient junior pathways in place to aid in this transition. Key themes identified in Study One were interwoven into this study, historical social cultural acceptance, migration and dual careers reaffirmed the complex nature of elite women’s football and challenged the transition literature and models to explain how women’s football fits into these models. Despite these complexities the players navigate through their careers, however there is little known about the player to why they continue playing football with all the challenges they face. Study Three aimed to redress this, a case study narrative approach (Douglass and Carless 2006), has been adopted during this study to elicit the players own life experiences and to identify and evaluate the decision-making processes they go through, to play at the elite level. Two players from Study Two were interviewed five years on from their original interviews to explore how they have continued to navigate through the complex journey of women’s football. The stories gave a more in depth insight into the player’s careers and about the player. Resilience and player identity emerged to why these players continue to play at the elite level. The themes of migration and having to combine an academic/ vocation and elite sporting career successfully continued to develop from Study One and Two.

New strategies are urgently needed to increase physical activity participation in the increasingly sedentary population to combat the rising rates of obesity and metabolic disease. The aim of this thesis was to provide evidence that practical high-intensity interval training (HIT) strategies can remove many of the major exercise barriers for obese individuals and people with type 1 diabetes that could potentially increase physical activity participation. Secondly, this thesis aimed to provide mechanistic evidence to explain the physiological effectiveness of HIT as a means to reduce the risk of cardio-metabolic disease. In Chapters 4 and 5, 32 obese adults with at least 3 additional cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors completed one of three 12-week training programmes 3x/week: Home-HIT (n=9); Laboratory-based supervised HIT (Lab-HIT; n=10) or home-based moderate intensity continuous training (Home-MICT; n=13). Changes in V ̇O2peak, insulin sensitivity, body composition, flow-mediated dilation (FMD) and aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV) were assessed. Muscle biopsies were taken to assess changes in capillarisation, mitochondrial density, intramuscular triglyceride (IMTG) content and eNOS and GLUT4 protein expression using quantitative immunofluorescence microscopy. Adherence and compliance (Home-HIT 96±3% & 99±1%; Home-MICT 88±4% & 100±0%; Lab-HIT 97±1% & 100±0%, respectively) to training did not differ between groups. Training increased V ̇O2peak and Matsuda insulin sensitivity index (P < 0.05). BMI, body fat percentage and visceral fat decreased (P < 0.05). FMD increased and aortic PWV decreased in each group (P < 0.05). Immunofluorescence microscopy revealed increased capillarisation, mitochondrial density, IMTG content and eNOS and GLUT4 protein expression (P < 0.05). In Chapter 6, 14 people with type 1 diabetes completed a randomised counterbalanced crossover design whereby continuous glucose monitoring was used to assess glycaemic control and risk of hypoglycaemia following a single bout of HIT and moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT) on separate days, compared to a non-exercise control day (CON). In Chapter 7, 14 people with type 1 diabetes (n=7 per group) completed six weeks of HIT or MICT 3x/week and the effect on glucose control and markers of cardio-metabolic health were measured. Chapter 6 showed no difference in the time, incidence or severity of hypoglycaemia over the 24-hour or nocturnal period between the CON, HIT and MICT days. In Chapter 7, six weeks of HIT or MICT improved V ̇O2max by 14% and 15%, respectively and aortic PWV by 12%, with no difference between groups. Therefore, Chapters 6 and 7 demonstrate that HIT is an effective exercise strategy for people with type 1 diabetes that reduces the two major barriers of lack of time and fear of hypoglycaemia. Finally, in Chapter 8, eleven previously sedentary individuals with type 1 diabetes completed 6 weeks of Home-HIT. Blood glucose was monitored before, immediately and 1h after all of the exercise sessions. Perceptions of the program along with attitudes towards exercise, barriers to exercise and previous experiences of exercise were evaluated using an online survey. Training session adherence was 93±2%, with participants achieving their target HR in 99±1% of sessions. Blood glucose was not different from baseline immediately or 1h post HIT exercise. Training increased V ̇O2peak by 8% (P=0.015), but blood pressure was unchanged (P=0.445). The qualitative data showed that the Home-HIT programme was positively received with many benefits. In conclusion, this thesis provides strong evidence that HIT can reduce major barriers to exercise and potentially increase exercise participation in these at-risk populations. Furthermore, Home-HIT was shown to be an effective strategy to improve a wide range of physiological markers indicative of improved cardio-metabolic health. Importantly, Home-HIT not only reduced traditional barriers to exercise, but also the key barrier in people with type 1 diabetes, fear of hypoglycaemia. As such, Home-HIT may represent an effective strategy to improve health in obese individuals with elevated CVD and people with type 1 diabetes by increasing exercise participation. Future research should investigate the effects of Home-HIT on a larger scale using larger cohorts and longer training periods using large-scale randomised controlled trials.

The introduction of the Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) by the Premier League in 2012, and the subsequent formalization of sports psychology support, has resulted in increased opportunities for sports psychology practitioners to deliver their work within football academies (Nesti, 2012). The recognition of psychological support by the EPPP adds a new importance for us to better understand the impact of the lived experiences of applied practitioners within professional football clubs on their professional development and identity formation (Mitchell et al., 2016). The data on which this thesis is based has been drawn from research collected during a 3-year period from 2014 to 2017, where I (the researcher) occupied a dual role as a practitioner-researcher within the organisation of study. More specifically, I was responsible for the delivery of a psychological development program to academy players, support staff, and parents, and for the collection of data using ethnographic research methods. The first empirical chapter explored the use of practitioner-researcher ethnography as a research approach in sports psychology. Critical reflections highlighted some of the challenges that I faced whilst engaging in this dual role. Findings from this chapter highlighted the value of ethnography in encouraging the development of critical thinking skills, and self-awareness. However, a number of moral and ethical dilemmas arose because of the research demands. Therefore, it is suggested that a variety of support mechanisms (peer support, ethnography club) may help ethnographer’s better deal with challenging research situations that they may face. Following on from this, chapter 3 of the thesis used creative narratives to illuminate the impact of my experiences of delivering psychological support within one professional football club on my professional development, and identity as a sports psychology practitioner. My development journey aligned to the ICM (Côté, 2016), and was not smooth, or without challenge. In contrast, it was a rocky road (Collins & MacNamara, 2012), signified by a number of critical moments (Littlewood & Nesti, 2011). The challenges that I faced within the professional football club occurred as a function of the organisational culture (Roper, 2008), and ran parallel with the experiences of the youth players within this particular social context. The findings from this chapter suggest that identity is not a distinct end-point that sports psychology practitioners reach at the conclusion of their professional training. In contrast, identity is argued to be a fluid concept, continually evolving based upon the experiences that we have. Chapter 4 of the thesis followed the same structure as chapter 3, and presented the lived experiences of academy footballers over a longitudinal time frame. The findings that emerged within the chapter suggest that despite considerable changes in professional football over recent years the traditional masculine culture of this particular social context has remained reluctant to change (Nesti, 2012), and may be detrimental to the healthy psychological development of players who exist within it. Finally, chapter 5 of the thesis used action research principles to document the design, delivery, and evaluation of the psychological development program that was implemented within the professional football club. More specifically, interviews, focus groups, and evaluation sheets were used to attain the perspectives of key stakeholders (players, support staff, parents). The findings from this chapter demonstrated the complexities of psychological development, especially within the professional football culture. A level of confusion was present between stakeholders regarding the efficacy of the program. Although all individuals agreed that the program was beneficial in facilitating communication, and creating a supportive environment, there were discrepancies regarding its impact, and the nature of delivery.

The aim of the current programme of research was to gain a greater appreciation of the nature of information underpinning skilled pattern-recognition, and anticipation in the game of soccer. In Chapter 2, three experiments were undertaken to identify the specific information sources used to make recognition judgments when presented with displays involving interaction between numerous features. Findings indicated that skilled participants are particularly sensitive to relative motion information between key display features, notably the relationships between the central offensive players. From ascertaining the nature of information underpinning skilled recognition, Chapter 3 examined whether familiarity could still be perceived when only the minimal essential information was presented. Results demonstrated how skilled players were able to make successful recognition judgments when only the relative motions between the central offensive players, and/or player in possession of the ball were presented. Chapter 4 examined the relative importance of the different perceptual-cognitive skills to anticipation performance, as a function of the unique constraints of the task. This was achieved by altering the distance between the performer and ball, and presenting stimuli in video and point-light format. Evidence was provided to suggest skilled players rely on pattern-recognition skill when viewing the action from afar, with postural cue information increasing in importance for more localised and time-constrained situations. Finally, Chapter 5 implemented findings from the previous studies to investigate whether the ability to perceive familiarity could be improved through a perceptual training programme, and the extent to which this transferred to anticipation performance. Despite a significant improvement in recognition sensitivity from pre to post test, null effects were reported elsewhere. Possible reasons to account for these are discussed in further detail. Overall, the thesis extends the perceptual-cognitive expertise literature, offering both practical and theoretical implications, as well as avenues for future research.

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Qualitative biomechanical analysis of movement effectiveness can be proposed as an innovative approach to oversee motor skill development in boys and girls of school age, since it permits an appreciation of how effective the movement is in attaining the performance criterion. Analysis of movement effectiveness involves establishing, first, the technical level of the child and, second, the mechanical effectiveness of the movement performed by the child. The assessment of technical level involves basic analysis of the main form of the movement and provides an initiation to biomechanical analysis; whereas, analysis of mechanical effectiveness consists of a follow-up comprehensive analysis. The present research aimed to qualitatively determine, and study gender differences in the development of, movement effectiveness in children. The research included both cross-sectional (N = 187 children) and longitudinal (N = 55 children) studies. A group of adults (N = 31) were used as controls. The subjects were asked to perform two consecutive trials of the soccer kick, the overarm throw and the standing broad jump, all for maximum distance, which were recorded on videotape. In Study 1, hierarchical models were developed to qualitatively establish the technical level of the subjects and to study the development of technical level in children. In Study 2, a model for the qualitative analysis of mechanical effectiveness was constructed. The model allows the integration of phase analysis and mechanical analysis using movement principles in order to select important variables for the analysis. Rating scales for each variable of the three motor skills were outlined and, then, fine-tuned using tests of rater accuracy and intra-rater reliability, in order to create scoring references. Inter-rater reliability in the use of the scoring references was acceptable. In Study 3, the development of mechanical effectiveness in children was examined, and the relative contribution of specific variables to performance was assessed. Generally, in the cross-sectional studies male children showed a higher technical level and higher mechanical effectiveness, and also a faster rate of development, in the soccer kick and the overarm throw. However, male and female children were better matched in the standing broad jump. The longitudinal studies were inconclusive. Not all adult subjects, particularly females, had reached maturity of movement patterns. The knowledge gained in the research may be used to guide effective progression in coaching and curriculum development in education.

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Five experiments were conducted to examine the role of ball trajectory information in the planning, execution, and evaluation of a complex motor skill as a function of skill. This sensory information source could either be predicted to become either more (Koch et al., 2004) or less (Schmidt, 1975) important as skill is acquired. In Experiments 1,2, and 3 the importance of ball trajectory information in the execution of a soccer kick to a target as a function of skill was examined using visual occlusion (Exp 1 and 2) and perturbation (Exp 3) techniques. Skilled performers were able to maintain accuracy when vision of ball trajectory was occluded, although they were shown to use this information when it was available but perturbed. The accuracy of less-skilled performers decreased when vision of ball trajectory was occluded. Across skill groups, variability in knee-ankle coordination also decreased under these conditions. Although these finding was taken as evidence that across skill levels action effects information is used to execute the action when it is available, only at the lower levels of skill did this information aid outcome attainment. In Experiments 4 and 5 the importance of ball trajectory information in the planning of a soccer kick to a target as a function of skill was examined. Skilled and novice soccer players were instructed to plan the action in terms of the ball's trajectory or in terms of the body movements. There was little evidence that actions are more effectively planned by anticipation of their effects or that the ability to do so is skill-dependent (Koch et al., 2004). However, there was some evidence that a body-related focus was detrimental to performance in comparison to control conditions when feedback was removed (McNevin et al., 2003). Although ball trajectory information does not seem to be critical for task success, there was evidence that it is used to plan and perform actions across skill levels. Skilled performers were shown to be less reliant on this information compared to less skilled.