
==== Front
Heliyon
Heliyon
Heliyon
2405-8440
Elsevier

S2405-8440(24)12255-4
10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e36224
e36224
Research Article
Exploring the dynamics of Women's field hockey performance: A comparative analysis of the impact of opponent quality between Olympic Games and Chinese National Games
Huo Kelin a
Yang Xudong b
Zhang Ziyu c
Li Baitu c
Zhou Changjing zhouchangjing01@sus.edu.cn
c⁎
a Key Laboratory of Sports Technique, Tactics and Physical Function, Guangzhou Sport University, 510500, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
b School of Physical Education, Shanghai University of Sport, 200438, Shanghai, China
c School of Athletic Performance, Shanghai University of Sport, 200438, Shanghai, China
⁎ Corresponding author. zhouchangjing01@sus.edu.cn
13 8 2024
30 8 2024
13 8 2024
10 16 e362245 7 2024
12 8 2024
12 8 2024
© 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
2024

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
This is an observational retrospective study analyzed the performance of the Chinese women's national field hockey team during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and 2021 National Games to assess the impact of opposition quality on performance. Game statistics were collected using notational analysis software for 76 Olympic and 40 National Games matches. Non-parametric Mann-Whitney U tests were used to compare tournaments. No significant differences existed for 35 out of 38 metrics, except Offense in 25-Yd Area (P = 0.013), Handball Style (P = 0.000) and Entry into Arc - Right Lane (P = 0.017). When exclusively considering Chinese national team's observations, superior National Games performance did emerge for Shot (P = 0.046), Goal from Short Corner (P = 0.044), Into the Arc (P = 0.046), Entry into Arc - Q3 (P = 0.009), Dribble into the Arc (P = 0.046), Handball Style into Arc (P = 0.041), Forehand Shot (P = 0.033), and Small Skill Shot (P = 0.014). The study underscores the influence of opposition quality on team performance, with a need for targeted improvements in arc penetration efficacy, conversion rates of shots to goals, and adaptation of tactical approaches against stronger defenses. The research points towards the need for strategic high-performance programs, improved domestic league quality, and a structured youth development system to elevate the overall standard of Chinese field hockey to achieve global competitiveness.

Keywords

Field hockey
Performance metrics
Notational analysis
Opponent quality
Tokyo olympics
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pmc1 Introduction

Field hockey is a popular Olympic and Commonwealth Games sport played internationally at professional and recreational levels [1]. The International Hockey Federation (FIH) governs major tournaments and leagues involving the top hockey nations. Performance analysis has become an integral tool in field hockey for objectively evaluating match statistics to develop effective coaching strategies and game plans [2].

In China, field hockey has gained increasing popularity and participation numbers have grown steadily in recent years. However, the overall development level still lags behind leading hockey nations. China's women's national team ranks #12 globally and has struggled to make breakthroughs at major international tournaments like the Olympics [3]. Domestically, the quality gap between provincial teams remains substantial. Further elevating the level of Chinese hockey to achieve world competitiveness requires evidence-based assessment of key performance factors and strategic planning for improvement.

Various factors can influence performance outcomes including team strengths, coaching strategies, and situational variables like match location and status [4,5]. Opposition quality is a key element impacting performance [6]. Higher quality opponents require elevating technical, physical and tactical capabilities [4], and allows identification of development areas needing focused training [7].

Early performance analysis research focused on tally counts of match actions using basic hand notation or computerized analysis software [2,8,9]. Outcome-focused frequencies of events like goals, shots and tackles were compared between successful and less successful teams using inferential statistics to identify key performance indicators related to success [10]. However, these metrics provide limited practical insights into the processes behind a win [2].

Contemporary techniques aim to incorporate spatio-temporal factors and assess field hockey as a complex dynamic system [11]. Process-oriented approaches analyze sequences of play, player networks and team behaviors to gain greater strategic context compared to tally counts. Lord, Pyne, Welvaert and Mara [12] found higher circle possession and direct movements to goal from deep attack, and lower build attack and build defense entropy, were the strategies most likely to lead to goal shots. Clemente, Martins, Wong, Kalamaras and Mendes [13] used social network analysis to identify key midfielders initiating attacks. Changes in team width and length also provide tactical insights [14].

Domestic leagues play an important role in developing participation and talent pathways for national team success [1]. However, insular domestic play without international opponents will limit national team competitiveness. Strategic high performance programs integrating analytics, sports science and competitions against quality opposition enable holistic improvement [2].

This study aimed to compare competition characteristics and performance factors between the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, as elite international hockey, versus the China National Games, as domestic competition. Notational analysis of 76 Olympic and 40 National Games women's matches was conducted. Non-parametric statistical tests compared tournaments, while violin plots depicted national team variations. Opposition quality's impact was evaluated by analyzing China's performance competing domestically versus internationally. The results provide an objective assessment of factors needing focus for elevating Chinese hockey capabilities and competitiveness globally.

2 Methods

This is an observational retrospective study footage from the women's hockey tournament at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics held from July 24th to August 6th, 2021 (n = 38) and the 14th China National Games held in September 2021 (n = 20) were accessed retrospectively for analysis. The Olympics involved 12 international teams including China, while the National Games involved 8 Chinese provincial teams plus the national team. This study utilized publicly available match data for analysis and did not involve the collection of players' personal information. Thus, no written informed consent from the participants or ethical review was required.

Performance analysis was conducted using the computerized notational analysis software Myvideoanalyser (Version 3.2.3) to code match events. 38 validated performance indicators (PIs) were selected to evaluate team behaviors based on previous research [15,16]. The definitions of these variables are outlined in Table 1.Table 1 Operational definitions of hockey performance indicators.

Table 1Operational Definition	
Goal: Scoring by putting the ball into the opponent's goal.	
Shot: Attempting to score by propelling the ball toward the opponent's goal.	
Goal from Shot: Scoring as a result of a shot.	
Short Corner: Executing a short corner play.	
Goal from Short Corner: Scoring a goal from a short corner situation.	
Defensive Organization: Defensive team's structure and strategy.	
Defensive Org. in 25-Yd Area: Defensive organization within the defensive 25-yard area.	
Transition to Offense: Rapidly switching from defense to offense	
Transition to Offense in 25-Yd Area: Switching to offense within the 25-yard area.	
Handball Style: Using a handball-style technique.	
Free Hit in 25-Yd Area: Taking a free hit within the 25-yard area.	
Free Hit into Arc: Taking a free hit and moving the ball into the arc.	
Attack in 25-Yd Area: Initiating an attack within the 25-yard area.	
Attack into Arc: Initiating an attack and moving the ball into the arc.	
Into the Arc: Moving the ball into the arc.	
Successful Entry into the Arc: Successfully moving the ball into the arc.	
Entry into Arc - Q1: Moving the ball into the arc during the first quarter.	
Entry into Arc - Q2: Moving the ball into the arc during the second quarter.	
Entry into Arc - Q3: Moving the ball into the arc during the third quarter.	
Entry into Arc - Q4: Moving the ball into the arc during the fourth quarter.	
Entry into Arc - Left Lane: Moving the ball into the arc through the left lane.	
Entry into Arc - Left-Center Lane: Moving the ball into the arc through the left-center lane.	
Entry into Arc - Center Lane: Moving the ball into the arc through the center lane.	
Entry into Arc - Right-Center Lane: Moving the ball into the arc through the right-center lane.	
Entry into Arc - Right Lane: Moving the ball into the arc through the right lane.	
Pass into the Arc: Moving the ball into the arc through a pass.	
Dribble into the Arc: Moving the ball into the arc while dribbling.	
Strike into the Arc: Moving the ball into the arc through a strike.	
Long Pass into the Arc: Moving the ball into the arc through a long pass.	
Defensive Org. into Arc: Moving the ball into the arc during defensive organization.	
Transition to Offense into Arc: Rapidly transitioning to offense and moving the ball into the arc.	
Handball Style into Arc: Moving the ball into the arc using a handball-style technique	
Free Hit from 25-Yd Area into Arc: Taking a free hit from within the 25-yard area and moving the ball into the arc.	
Forehand Shot: Shooting with a forehand technique.	
Backhand Shot: Shooting with a backhand technique.	
Small Skill Shot: Shooting with a small skill technique.	
Deflection Shot: Shooting with a deflection technique.	
Rebound Shot: Shooting near the goal after a rebound.	

The software coded the frequency of occurrences for each PI per team per match. All statistical analyses were carried out using the statistical programming environment R (version 4.1.3). R is available for free download at https://www.r-project.org/. Non-parametric Mann-Whitney U tests compared tournaments given non-normal data distribution. The national team's performance in each event was compared using Wilcoxon signed-rank tests. Violin plots visualized the distribution of performance metrics. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05.

3 Results

Table 2 presents the results of the non-parametric Mann-Whitney U test, which revealed that there were no significant differences (p > 0.05) between the Olympics and National Games for 35 out of 38 Performance Indicators (PIs). This included indicators such as Goals (P = 0.432), Shots (P = 0.442), Short corners (P = 0.542), Free Hit into Arc (p = 0.897), Defensive Organization (P = 0.705) and Transition to Offense (P = 0.944), suggesting consistency in numerous strategic and tactical aspects of the game. However, significant differences did emerge (P < 0.05) for 3 metrics. Specifically, the Olympics displayed higher median values for Transition to Offense in 25-Yd Area (P = 0.013), Handball Style (P = 0.000) and Entry into Arc - Right Lane (P = 0.017).Table 2 Mann-Whitney U test results highlighting differences between the Olympic Games and the national Games.

Table 2Indicator	U	P value	Cliffs Delta	
Goal	1387.5	0.432	−0.09	
Shot	1388.0	0.442	−0.09	
Goal from Shot	1333.0	0.241	−0.12	
Short Corner	1415.0	0.542	−0.07	
Goal from Short Corner	1553.5	0.837	0.02	
Defensive Organization	1585.5	0.705	0.04	
Defensive Org. in 25-Yd Area	1602.5	0.633	0.05	
Transition to Offense	1507.5	0.944	−0.01	
Transition to Offense in 25-Yd Area	1093.5	0.013*	−0.28	
Handball Style	826.0	0.000*	−0.46	
Free Hit in 25-Yd Area	1384.0	0.431	−0.09	
Free Hit into Arc	1542.5	0.897	0.01	
Attack in 25-Yd Area	1316.5	0.238	−0.13	
Attack into Arc	1471.5	0.780	−0.03	
Into the Arc	1380.0	0.417	−0.09	
Successful Entry into the Arc	1354.0	0.335	−0.11	
Entry into Arc - Q1	1445.5	0.664	−0.05	
Entry into Arc - Q2	1358.0	0.342	−0.11	
Entry into Arc - Q3	1369.0	0.377	−0.10	
Entry into Arc - Q4	1506.0	0.937	−0.01	
Entry into Arc - Left Lane	1723.5	0.227	0.13	
Entry into Arc - Left-Center Lane	1574.5	0.750	0.04	
Entry into Arc - Center Lane	1616.5	0.568	0.06	
Entry into Arc - Right-Center Lane	1400.5	0.486	−0.08	
Entry into Arc - Right Lane	1119.0	0.017*	−0.26	
Pass into the Arc	1464.0	0.745	−0.04	
Dribble into the Arc	1464.0	0.746	−0.04	
Strike into the Arc	1334.0	0.253	−0.12	
Long Pass into the Arc	1471.0	0.646	−0.03	
Defensive Org. into Arc	1604.0	0.622	0.06	
Transition to Offense into Arc	1382.0	0.422	−0.09	
Handball Style into Arc	1215.0	0.056	−0.20	
Free Hit from 25-Yd Area into Arc	1599.5	0.643	0.05	
Forehand Shot	1391.5	0.431	−0.08	
Backhand Shot	1418.5	0.537	−0.07	
Small Skill Shot	1819.0	0.068	0.20	
Deflection Shot	1308.0	0.182	−0.14	
Rebound Shot	1447.5	0.505	−0.05	

Table 3 presents the results of the Mann-Whitney U test for China's national team. It was found that no significant differences (P > 0.05) existed between the Olympics and National Games for 30 out of 38 PIs. However, significant gaps did emerge (P < 0.05) for Shot (P = 0.046), Goal from Short Corner (P = 0.044), Into the Arc (P = 0.046), Entry into Arc - Q3 (P = 0.009), Dribble into the Arc (P = 0.046), Handball Style into Arc (P = 0.041), Forehand Shot (P = 0.033) and Small Skill Shot (P = 0.014).Table 3 Mann-Whitney U test results showing differences for the Chinese national team between the Olympic Games and the national Games.

Table 3Indicator	U	P value	Cliffs Delta	
Goal	22.0	0.058	0.76	
Shot	22.5	0.046*	0.80	
Goal from Shot	17.0	0.382	0.36	
Short Corner	18.5	0.243	0.48	
Goal from Short Corner	22.0	0.044*	0.76	
Defensive Organization	6.0	0.205	−0.52	
Defensive Org. in 25-Yd Area	18.0	0.287	0.44	
Transition to Offense	17.0	0.421	0.36	
Transition to Offense in 25-Yd Area	18.0	0.295	0.44	
Handball Style	12.5	1.000	0.00	
Free Hit in 25-Yd Area	13.0	1.000	0.04	
Free Hit into Arc	21.5	0.070	0.72	
Attack in 25-Yd Area	21.0	0.095	0.68	
Attack into Arc	22.0	0.056	0.76	
Into the Arc	22.5	0.046*	0.80	
Successful Entry into the Arc	21.0	0.094	0.68	
Entry into Arc - Q1	13.0	1.000	0.04	
Entry into Arc - Q2	21.5	0.068	0.72	
Entry into Arc - Q3	25.0	0.009*	1.00	
Entry into Arc - Q4	19.5	0.171	0.56	
Entry into Arc - Left Lane	18.0	0.289	0.44	
Entry into Arc - Left-Center Lane	15.0	0.664	0.20	
Entry into Arc - Center Lane	22.0	0.056	0.76	
Entry into Arc - Right-Center Lane	20.0	0.139	0.60	
Entry into Arc - Right Lane	16.0	0.526	0.28	
Pass into the Arc	21.5	0.075	0.72	
Dribble into the Arc	22.5	0.046*	0.80	
Strike into the Arc	10.0	0.651	−0.20	
Long Pass into the Arc	12.5	1.000	0.00	
Defensive Org. into Arc	19.0	0.193	0.52	
Transition to Offense into Arc	21.0	0.090	0.68	
Handball Style into Arc	22.0	0.041*	0.76	
Free Hit from 25-Yd Area into Arc	20.0	0.138	0.60	
Forehand Shot	23.0	0.033*	0.84	
Backhand Shot	20.5	0.109	0.64	
Small Skill Shot	24.5	0.014*	0.96	
Deflection Shot	17.0	0.386	0.36	
Rebound Shot	15.0	0.600	0.20	

Fig. 1, depicted as a violin plot, illustrates the data distribution, mean, and standard deviation for both the Olympic Games and the National Games. In summary, while consistency was observed across numerous indicators, some performance indicators of the Chinese team are significantly worse in international competitions compared to domestic competitions. This highlights development areas needing focus to elevate China's capabilities when competing against higher quality international opponents.Fig. 1 Violin plots to display the distribution of performance indicators at the Olympic Games and the National Games

Fig. 1: The violin plots illustrate the data distribution, mean, and standard deviation for both Olympic Games and the National Games. The P -value will only be labeled when it is less than 0.05.

Fig. 1

4 Discussion

This study analyzed the Chinese national women's field hockey team during the 2020 Olympics and 2021 National Games, revealing substantial performance differences between international and domestic competition. The results align with research indicating opposition quality impacts team strategies and performance in invasion sports [4,6].

The Mann-Whitney U test revealed that for most performance indicators, no significant differences were observed between the Olympic Games and the National Games. However, compared to the Olympic Games, matches in the National Games exhibited a higher frequency of Transition to Offense in 25-Yd Area, Handball Style and Entry into Arc - Right Lane. These findings may indicate potential differences in game styles stemming from the two distinct competitions.

The results indicate that the Chinese women's hockey team exhibited fewer shots and entries into the arc during international competitions, though no significant differences were observed in "Successful Entry into the Arc and Goal." However, stronger teams and those with better records scored more goals through greater circle entry and shot quantities, exemplifying the phrase “winning by volume”. Though counterintuitive, since success rates were analogous across teams (notably for women's squads), superior productivity in terms of entry and shot totals contributed to more scoring. Higher quality Olympic opponents require elevated technical, tactical and physical capabilities [1]. For example, a comprehensive review of studies on field hockey performance highlighted that female players typically cover 5.5–6.6 km per game with an average heart rate of around 170 beats·min−1, while male players, depending on their position, cover between 5820 m and 10,000 m, with heart rates exceeding 75 % of HRmax for 90 % of the game [17]. Besides, a study comparing national and international male field hockey players found that international players exhibited significantly greater high-speed running distances and overall running profiles [18]. This suggests that merely increasing the frequency of shots and arc penetrations is insufficient for success at higher levels of competition. The Chinese team, therefore, needs to improve not only its shooting and entry frequency but also its overall physical and tactical capabilities to compete effectively in international contests.

In encounters with provincial teams characterized by a comparatively lower level of competition, the Chinese squad demonstrated superior opportunity creation capabilities. Nonetheless, for triumph in international contests of higher caliber, reliance solely on an augmented frequency of shots and arc penetrations proves inadequate. Consequently, the principal developmental focus for the Chinese women's hockey team lies in the augmentation of arc penetration efficacy and the conversion rate of shots to goals. It is only through ensuring a commendable success rate that the team can efficaciously convert generated opportunities into tangible competitive advantages.

On the international stage, the Chinese team exhibited fewer instances of dribbling into the arc and structured offensive entries into the arc. This suggests that the Chinese team may encounter more stringent defenses in international competitions, rendering stable advancement methods less effective. This observation suggests that on the national stage, the Chinese team could organize its offense through increased utilization of long passes into the arc, hits into the arc, or defensive counterattacks when facing formidable opponents. Although these tactics may have a lower success rate, they could represent a strategic approach to challenging the opponent's goal under tight defensive conditions. Research indicates that elite youth players outperform sub-elite players in dribbling skills, tactical application, and psychological motivation, particularly in dribbling performance and tactical execution [19]. Enhancing dribbling capabilities not only improves technical performance but also refines tactical strategies, enabling the team to create more scoring opportunities under tight defenses. Therefore, the Chinese team needs to focus on strengthening dribbling training and tactical preparation to boost their competitiveness in international competitions. Such improvements will help the team more effectively break through opponents' defenses and elevate their overall offensive capability.

Improving international competitiveness requires targeted development of structured circle entries, penalty corners and advanced techniques. Circle entry provides shooting chances and goals. Reduced Olympic entries highlight the need for tactical development by varying speed, angles and unpredictability. Set plays require expanded drag flicks, indirect variations and specific routines [20]. Men's teams tend to use the drag flick technique more frequently during penalty corners, while women's teams utilize hitting, deflection, and pushing techniques [16]. Specifically, the drag flick technique is emphasized as being 1.4 to 2.7 times more efficient than directly hitting or pushing the ball towards the goal during penalty corners, attributed to its speed and accuracy [21]. Chinese women team's lower Olympic penalty corner success indicates set play execution must be elevated against elite defenses. Integrating analytics to design practices that enhance entries and corners would elevate China's offensive potency.

In shooting techniques, a lesser frequency of forehand shots and finesse shots by the Chinese team was observed in international competitions. This indicates that stronger opponents have effectively limited the Chinese team's use of forehand shots in hockey, which are potentially more threatening as a shooting method. Consequently, it is advised that the Chinese women's hockey team engage in targeted training on backhand shots when facing stronger opponents, to enhance the team's scoring capabilities. In addition to boosting productivity, improving success rates through targeted training in entry angles and shot techniques can further differentiate performance. Prioritizing central circle entries and deflection shooting, along with varying entry speed, angles, and unpredictability, can significantly increase scoring chances. Integrating analytics into training for entries and shots from high-scoring areas can elevate China's offensive capabilities.

However, consistency across numerous metrics suggests developmental alignment with elite international standards [22]. Domestic play develops participation and talent pathways [23], but insular leagues without international exposure limit national team progress. Improving league quality alone is insufficient. Instead, strategically investing in customized coaching programs integrating sports science and match analytics, along with competitions against quality opponents, can enhance overall capabilities [1,2]. Adopting successful development frameworks from leading hockey nations would also accelerate China's progress [24].

Domestically, China's club leagues remain imbalanced with vast differences between the top and bottom teams. Structured youth development systems are lacking compared to leading hockey countries. As a result, despite expanding participation, the overall standard remains inconsistent and elite talents are scarce. Sustainably elevating China's hockey requires systematically enhancing domestic league and youth development quality. As a result, employing anthropometric measurements and health assessments to identify potential weightlifting talents and track their long-term progress will be beneficial [25]. Given that elite sports serve multiple political, social, and economic functions, their priority status is assured. The Chinese government does not seem to intend to reduce support for elite sports, even though support for mass sports is gradually increasing [26].

China's hockey development can draw valuable experiences from the progression of other sports like weightlifting, table tennis, badminton and diving which have achieved global success. A strategic, intentional approach coupling scientific training, talent identification and international competitions was adopted. In 2022, the Chinese government set a goal to engage 300 million people in winter sports through the Winter Olympics. This strategy of using major sporting events to promote sports development demonstrates China's successful experience in popularising and spreading sports disciplines [26], which could also provide valuable insights for the development of field hockey.

This study had limitations including assessing only 5 Chinese matches at each tournament. Future research should examine multiple tournaments over several years for robust insights. Nonetheless, the results align with studies demonstrating opposition quality impacts performance [4,6].

5 Conclusion

This comparative analysis of the Olympics versus National Games revealed substantial women's field hockey performance differences between elite international and domestic Chinese competition. Customized coaching programs focused on technical execution, tactical implementation, physical conditioning and mental preparation are required for China to elevate capabilities across all areas. Strategic talent identification and athlete development frameworks can also help cultivate youth pipelines and accelerate progress. Increased exposures against quality international opponents will help close performance discrepancies at the highest level. Adopting scientific, evidence-based approaches assessing and addressing gaps is vital for holistically improving China's field hockey and enabling world competitiveness.

Conflict of interest disclosure

The authors report there are no competing interests to declare.

Data availability statement

Data will be made available on request.

Funding

This study is supported by the Shanghai Key Lab of Human Performance (10.13039/501100002397 Shanghai University of Sport ) under Grant 11DZ2261100 .

CRediT authorship contribution statement

Kelin Huo: Writing – original draft, Validation, Investigation, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization. Xudong Yang: Writing – original draft, Validation, Formal analysis. Ziyu Zhang: Writing – original draft, Validation, Formal analysis. Baitu Li: Writing – original draft, Investigation, Formal analysis. Changjing Zhou: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Supervision, Funding acquisition, Conceptualization.

Declaration of competing interest

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
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