Predicting Potential in Football Players

Abstract

In the first part of this study, the football potential of 67 football players was predicted from their scores on a football-potential test. The test battery consisted of motor ability items as well as football skill items. Substantial correlations were obtained between most test items and the test criterion, the sum of T scores. Size, as depicted by McCloy's classification index (C.I.), had a negative, nonsignificant correlation with the criterion. The discriminative power of the battery was evidenced by the highly significant correlation between the test criterion and the coaching staff's ranking of individual players (rho = .840). It was concluded that athletic potential in football can be predicted by testing. In the second part of the study, football teams from three different strata of competition were evaluated on the basis of the test battery. The battery substantiated a step-wise progression between the teams on most items, with significant differences being noted. The test showed validity, in that the test criterion (the sum of T scores) was significantly different between the teams.