Evaluation of the Technical and Tactical Offensive Elements of the Men’s European Volleyball Championship

The European Volleyball Championship constitutes one of the three top official volleyball competitions, following the Olympic Games and the World Championship. The First Men’s European Championship was organised in 1948 in Rome. In 2005, for the first time it was hosted simultaneously by two cities of two different countries, i.e. Rome and Belgrade.

Video-analysis in team sports has proven to be a valuable tool for the evaluation of competitive performance, providing important feedback with regard to athletes’ technical and tactical potentials and weaknesses, both at a personal and a team level (Mullen, 1992; O’Donoghue, 2006). In addition, monitoring the technical/tactical performance of a volleyball team through video-analysis, may lead to further improved modification of the training procedure (Katsikadelli & Bergeles, 1986; Giatsis et al, 2003; Palao et al, 2005).

Volleyball studies that have recorded the performance through video-analysis support that the technical/tactical offensive components constitute a highly significant factor directly connected to the success of a team (Cox, 1974; Eom & Schutz, 1992a; 1992b; Hayrinen et al, 2004; Palao et al, 2004a; 2004b; 2005). Throughout a volleyball game, there is an intense interactive process taking place, while moving from one skill to another and, as a consequence, the final outcome and result of each skill-component is affected by the immediately preceding action. Therefore, a number of studies look thoroughly into the combination of series of technical and tactical actions with the use of video-analysis. For example, they evaluate setting in relation to reception or attack in relation to setting or 2nd row defense in relation to blocking and so on and so forth (Eom & Schutz, 1992a; 1992b).

            The serve, which is the very first offensive action of a team, has presented a remarkable progressive and ascending course, particularly as far as the jump serve is concerned. The increase of jump serve executions from 1992 (20,8%) to 2002 (99,2%) has managed to attribute a new “supremacy” to the sport (Agelonidis, 2004). Even though a jump serve has a great risk of failure, by reason of its force and high flight speed (Katsikadelli, 1997; 1998; Agelonidis, 2004) it remains a powerful offensive weapon, which may often case problems to the reception and restrict, prevent or even eliminate the attack development of the opposing team.

In Volleyball, the attack efficiency is strongly correlated with winning (Cox, 1974; Nishijima et al, 1987; Fernandes & Moutinho, 1996; Ureña, 1998). Thus, differences are found between men and women concerning the style of play, particularly in offensive tactics, as well as between teams of very high and lower level (Nishijima et al, 1987; Fernandes & Moutinho, 1996; Ureña, 1998; Palao et al, 2007).

Quick attacks (1^st tempo) are the ones that score more points and induce fewer faults, since there is no time for the opponents to react and organise their defense (Santos, 1992; Katsikadelli, 1995; 1996; Palao et al, 2007). This type of attack, is executed after both reception and defense (counterattacks). With regard to the attack zone, spikes executed from zone 1 usually correspond to many faults. Moreover, a team which has a great many possible options for offensive development, executes attacks mainly directed straight forward and, secondarily, diagonally. On the contrary, the team that has limited offensive options, due to bad reception or defense, presents an increase in diagonally-oriented spikes and reduction in the straight-oriented ones (Palao et al, 2006).

However, it is pointed out that each skill-component in Volleyball has its own specific gravity and value and, therefore, this has to be taken into serious consideration for proper training planning.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the technical and tactical offensive elements of the National Teams participating in the Men's European Volleyball Championship 2005. The innovative aspect of the study lies in the fact that games were investigated during the qualifying phase, with the aim of identifying to what degree technical/tactical offensive elements may play a decisive role in the qualification of a team to the semi-final phase. Furthermore, it is the first time that net contact during the serve is investigated.

Material and Methods

Subjects

The study sample, taken from the Hellenic Volleyball Federation (H.VB.F.) file (2005), included all games of the 6 National Teams of Pool B’ participating in the Men’s European Volleyball Championship 2005. Out of the two Quarter Final Pools, Pool B’ was selected randomly. The National Teams participating in the study were Serbia-Montenegro, Spain, Greece, Checz Republic, Holland and France. Fifteen (15) games were evaluated, in total, corresponding to 5 games for each team. More specifically, 2667 serves and 3280 attacks were analysed in 59 game sets.

Measurement tools

The study was carried out with the use of the Sportscout video-analysis program, which is an integrated monitoring and analysis system applied in almost all sports. By applying this program, a complete and integrated video-analysis of the sport’s technique and tactics is carried out, both at a personal and team level (Tsamourtzis et al, 2001; Tsimpiris et al, 2006).

Measurement procedure

For analysing each game, there has to be a recording and analysis scheme form, as well as a graphic representation of the playing area, so that the different variables can be defined and examined (Tsamourtzis et al, 2001; Tsimpiris et al, 2006). For the recording, analysis and evaluation of all the technical/tactical elements, a special protocol was set up including all variables to be examined. More specifically, the technical and tactical offensive elements that were investigated in all teams were the following:

a) Serve

In terms of the serve:

1. Type: jump serve, jump float serve and float serve.

2. Effectiveness: 0 = faulty serve, 1 = serve that allowed the opponent to pass the reception within the 3-meter line, 2 = serve that forced the opponent to pass the reception outside the 3-meter line, 3 = serve that did not allow the opponent to attack or forced him to simply pass the ball, 4 = ace serve.

3. Direction: Zone 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, out, net.

4. Net contact: + = positive (point scored for the serving team), - = negative (point scored for the opposing team), 0 = neutral (phase continued with net contact playing no determining role in scoring).

b) Attack

In terms of attack, the following variables were examined:

1. Type: 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd tempo attacks, tactical shots (soft, directed and deliberate shots).

2. Effectiveness: 0 = faulty attack, 1 = attack that allowed the opponent to pass the dig within the 3-meter line, 2 = attack that allowed the opponent to pass the dig outside the 3-meter line, 3 = attack that did not allow the opponent to counterattack or forced him to simply pass the ball, 4 = ace attack.

3. Direction: block, back row (BR), front row (FR), out, net.

4. Execution zone: zone 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.

Statistical analysis

Data were processed and analysed with the use of the statistical software package SPSS/PC (SPSS Inc. Rel 12.0). Differences between teams were estimated using the Pearson Chi-square test and the Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) to find possible independence or dependence between variables. Statistical significance was set at p<0.05.

Results

The results presented significant differences in technical/tactical offensive elements concerning the serve type and direction, as well as the attack type and execution zone among the National Teams (p<0.05) (Table 1).

Table 1: Results of technical/ tactical offensive elements of the serve and the attack.

Table 2 demonstrates the descriptive analysis of the technical/tactical offensive elements of the serve and the attack of the six National Teams, presented as mean values (M) ± standard deviation (SD).

Table 2: Descriptive analysis of the serve, in terms of type and direction and of the attack, in terms of type and execution zone.

TEAMS	SERVE		ATTACK
	Type (Μ±SD)	Direction (M±SD)	Type (M±SD)	Zone (M±SD)
Greece	1.2±0.5	5.3±2.0	3.0±2.0	3.2±1.3
Holland	1.0±0.2	5.3±2.1	3.0±2.0	3.1±1.4
Checz	1.3±0.6	5.3±1.8	3.0±2.0	3.0±1.3
France	1.4±0.5	5.0±2.1	3.0±2.0	3.1±1.4
Serbia-Montenegro	1.2±0.6	5.4±2.0	3.0±2.0	3.0±1.3
Spain	1.5±0.5	5.0±2.1	3.0±2.0	3.2±1.4

Overall, the team of Holland presented statistically significant differences in comparison with all the other National Teams (p=0,000) as for the serve type. Also, concerning the serve direction significant differences were found comparing the French team with the teams of Serbia-Montenegro and Greece (p=0.001). Regarding the type of attack, the teams of Greece and Spain presented statistically significant differences (p=0,003). As for the attack zone, significant differences were identified in the Serbia-Montenegro team compared to the teams of Greece and Spain (p=0,003).

Table 3 shows the predominance of the jump serve in all teams (72,9%), with the exception of Spain (47,8%) which mainly preferred the jump float serve (52,2%). As for the serve direction, it was zone 6 (43,4%) that predominated for all six National Teams, while zone 2 was the least preferred for the teams of Greece (0,4%) and Holland (0,3%). Furthermore, the same Table presents the percentage of serve effectiveness and net contact during the execution of the serve for each National Team separately (p>0,05).

Table 3: Percentage distribution of serve variables

According to Table 4 concerning the attack type, most 1^st tempo attacks were executed by the Checz Team (19,2%) and the fewest were performed by the Spanish Team (11,1%). Most 2^nd tempo attacks were executed by the Greek (46,1%) and Spanish teams (44,2%). In addition, the most predominant attack zone for all teams was zone 4 (35,2%) and then followed zone 3 (23,9%), while zone 5 generally presented a low attack rate (1,6%), as it was expected. The highest attack rate from zone 1 was presented by the Serbia-Montenegro team (20,3%) whereas the corresponding lowest rate was that of the Greek team (14,1%). Finally, in overall, no significant differences were found in the attack effectiveness and direction (p>0,05).

Table 4: Percentage distribution of attack variables

Discussion-Conclusion

Out of the technical/tactical offensive elements that were investigated, significant differences were found in the serve type and direction, as well as in the attack type and execution zone.

All teams used all 3 serve types, apart from the National Teams of Holland and Spain that did not perform any float serves. The jump serve predominated reaching a relatively high execution rate in all National Teams (72,9%) with the exception of the Spainish team which executed more jump float serves (52,2%) than jump serves (47,8%). The Holland team, which significantly differed from all the other National Teams, performed the most jump serves (96%). In a study by Agelonidis (2004), similar high jump serve rates (99,2%) are also reported particularly during the last years.

However, the present study has demonstrated that the jump float serve has started regaining ground, as it was executed at a rate of 52,2% by the Spanish team which obtained the 2nd position in Pool B’. This finding is not in accordance to the study which supports that a volleyball team cannot imagine going to a top competition with anything but jump serves (Agelonidis, 2004). Also, a relatively high rate of jump float serve was presented by the National Team of France (43,4%). This fact probably shows a new future tendency concerning the type of serve performed by high-level volleyball teams. Futher investigation is recommended.

The most predominant serve direction zone for all teams was zone 6 (43,4%). As far as the serve direction is concerned, significant differences were found for the French team compared to the teams of Serbia-Montenegro and Greece. The French team directed more serves towards zone 1 (18,8%) compared to the teams of Greece (12,3%) and Serbia-Montenegro (10,5%), but relatively fewer serves towards zone 6 (39,1%) in relation to the same two teams (44,1% and 50,7% respectively).

Though there were no differences in serve effectiveness, most ace-point serves were scored by the teams of France (6,3%) and Serbia-Montenegro (5,8%), while most faulty severs were performed by Holland (20,9%) and Greece (20,6%).

Although no significant differences were found in terms of net contact during the serve, it seems that this factor might potentially contribute to the further development of the game. Following the modifications of the Rules by the Federation International of Volleyball (F.I.VB., 1999), net contact during the serve no longer counts as a fault. Thus, it was considered important to examine to what extent this change could differentiate the result of the game. In this study there were positive contacts identified corresponding to ace-point serves in all National Teams, apart from the cases of Greece and Serbia-Montenegro. The neutral contact ranged at remarkable levels, fluctuating from 6,8% (Serbia-Montenegro) to 8,9% (Greece). Had the above Regulations not been amended, the recorded neutral- and positive-contact serves would have counted as fauty serves (negative contact) and would have corresponded to points for the opponent. For example, if the 1,4% positive contacts and 6,6% neutral contacts performed by the Checz team had been calculated and added, this would have resulted in 8% additional faulty serves, i.e. corresponding points for the opposing team. Further research is recommended in order to evaluate the effectiveness of net contact during the serve.

Overall, as far as the attack type is concerned, significant differences were found between the teams of Greece and Spain. These differences were found mainly during 1^st tempo attacks, in which Greece was superior to Spain (17,4% and 11,1% respectively). On the contrary, the team of Spain was superior to Greece in tactical shots (18,6% and 11,1% respectively). It is worth mentioning that all National Teams attacks were mainly of 2^nd tempo and secondarily of 3^rd tempo. This finding does not agree with the corresponding finding of Palao et al (2005) showing the predominance of the 1^st tempo attack at high- level Volleyball. On the contrary, the finding of the present study comes in line with the finding of Pashali et al (2004), who report that most spikes executed are 2^nd tempo attacks. The highest 1^st and 3^rd tempo attack rates were performed by the National Checz Team (19,2% and 24,5% respectively), while the highest 2^nd tempo attack rate belonged to the Greek National Team (46,1%).

The most predominant attack execution zones for all teams were zone 4 (35,2%) and zone 3 (23,9%). With regard to the attack zone, significant differences were observed in the team of Serbia-Montenegro in comparison to the teams of Greece and Spain. Specifically, the Serbia-Montenegro team, which obtained the 1^st position in Pool B’, executed more attacks from zone 3 (25,2%) compared to Greece (21,4%) and Spain (17,2%) and fewer attacks from zone 4 (17,2%) compared to the same two teams (40,2% and 41,7% respectively). This finding comes in line with the corresponding finding of Palao et al (2005), who support that zone 3 is the most predominant attack zone at a very high competitive level. At a lower competitive level, the predominant attack zone is zone 4, followed by zone 2 (Pashali et al, 2004). However, according to Palao et al (2006), zones 2 and 1 prevail even after a successful reception or defence. Based upon the above, it is confirmed that the offensive tactic differs according to the competitive level of a team.

There is high positive correlation between attack and winning, which correlation is differentiated according to the team level (Cox, 1974; Eom & Schutz, 1992a; 1992b; Hayrinen et al, 2004; Palao et al, 2004a; 2004b; 2005; 2007). This conclusion was verified in this study by the team that ranked 1^st in Pool B’ (Serbia-Montenegro) compared to the teams that came 2^nd (Spain) and 3^rd (Greece).

Though there were no differences in terms of attack effectiveness, Serbia-Montenegro performed the most successful attack actions (48,7%) and the fewest faulty ones (16,5%). Spain, that executed the fewest ace attacks (40,6%), managed to obtain the 2^nd position in Pool B’ probably due to other technical and tactical skill-components.

The results of this study confirm that the technical and tactical offensive elements consititute a substantial factor for distinction, especially with regard to attack. Of course, the significance of technical/tactical defensive elements should not be underestimated, for it is their high efficacy that will lead to the availability of a reat many options for the best possible attack execution (Katsikadelli, 1996).

According to this study, the serve should probably be oriented to more zones in the court beyond zone 6, depending on the serve reception formation and thus creating conditions less predictable by the opponents. For the same reason, a wider attack development is suggested in relation not only to zones 3 and 4 of the front row. The offensive tactics may present differences depending on the competitive team level but it always remains a determinant directly connected with winning and the further development of a team. Every coach is asked to adjust his/her training planning according to the competitive level of the team and the respective level of the opponents’ team every time. Therefore, training should include more offensive, compound, competitive and unpredictable conditions, so that it can simulate the corresponding game conditions.

The evaluation of the above elements probably contributes to the better training planning for further development of the sport, while at the same time constitutes a new data base for future coming studies.

Acknowledgments We thank Mr. Konstantinos Haritonidis, former Federal Volleyball Coach of the National Team of Greece, who mediated so that we could get the Men’s European Volleyball Championship video-taped games from H.VB.F.

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