Validation in Young Soccer Players of the Modified Version of the Harre Circuit Test: The Petrucci Ability Test

Abstract

The evaluation of soccer players’ physical fitness from youth onward is important for monitoring performance and planning training. While health-related factors present valid and reliable tests, the skill-related component should be studied in depth. An interesting test to evaluate the skill-related factors is the Harre circuit test (HTC); unfortunately, this test includes the somersault, an element not present in soccer. The aim of the present study is the validation of the Petrucci ability test (PAT), a variation of the HTC without the somersault for young soccer players. Children and adolescents (age range 10–13 years old) soccer players concluded the 20-m, the HTC and the PAT. To establish the validity of the PAT, correlation analysis has been performed, which presented a p < 0.0001 between PAT and HTC; p < 0.001 between PAT and a 20-m test; and p < 0.0001 between HTC and the 20-m test. The results suggest that the PAT can be a valid substitute for the evaluation of the skills-related components of young soccer players and, consequently, also of athletes and schoolchildren.