Head-Trunk Coordination During Shooting Skills in Young Floorball Players.

Abstract

This study aimed to describe the basic coordination patterns and their changes during successful and unsuccessful shooting in floorball among young players. A sample of 10 participants (5 male, 5 female; age 13.5 ± 0.7 years, height 164.7 ± 6.1 cm, body mass 54.2 ± 10.4 kg) was recruited from three floorball clubs. Participants were instructed to shoot accurately at a 0.25 m × 0.25 m target from 4 meters. Kinematic data were captured using 10 motion-analysis cameras, and coordination patterns and variability between head and trunk segments were assessed. Mean coupling angles and their standard deviation were calculated using a modified vector coding technique. A linear mixed model and effect size statistics identified differences between shot accuracy categories. The results showed no statistically significant differences in head and trunk positioning across shooting categories. Coordination analysis indicated that shooting success depends on whether the movement is led by the head or the trunk, with successful shots involving a coupled action between head and trunk movements, dominated by the head, highlighting its crucial role in executing the shooting task.