Bath University sports scientist and physicist Ken Bray noted recently in a talk about penalty shootouts that in the 2006 World Cup Owen Hargeaves was notable not just for being the only England player to score from the spot in the quarter- final shootout against Portugal. He also maintains that Hargreaves kick was the only properly taken kick among the England attempts.

Bray attributed this to Hargreaves playing for a German club (Bayern Munich) where such things are practiced. Bray says while penalty shootouts appear to many fans to be a lottery, they should in fact be a pure skill-based exercise. Given their predominance as a means to settling tied international tournaments, only by practice can teams hope to avoid chance outcomes and win.

There has been a widespread belief among many pundits in the UK that a professional footballer should not need to practice penalties. Bray argues, based on time of goalie reaction and various risk factors, it is best to aim for a slightly elevated kick wide to the right or left of the goalkeeper. It should take not much effort to perfect such a kick, but aiming in this zone removes the chance of goalie interception. The Germans, and Hargreaves, practice this. The rest of the England team, and some others don’t, leading to randomness. The Times, in an article today quotes England coach McClaren describing Hargreaves thus:-

“We need him,” McClaren said. “I always remember the first time he played in a World Cup warm-up match [in 2002] and Owen wanted me after the game to get the video out and go through it with him. That was very unusual. Most players you have to drag in. I thought, ‘This is a different breed, a different type of player here, a different mentality.’”

But it may be the culture he comes from that England needs most: to accept the lessons of sports science, even devour them. And that studied culture is perhaps why Hargreaves was initially not welcomed by English fans. He has never lived in the UK, grew up in Canada, and has only played for Bayern. Now it seems hopes will be built on him. As a culture we prefer raw talent over practice and application.

Bray himself complains of having been given short-shrift by some in the football establishment. Indeed his research is not new, but the 2006 result shows the lessons of science were not heeded. Here the requirement on the player is described by the Guardian in an article on Bray’s findings from 2004:-

“The important point is to achieve repeatability in the kick, so that there is no uncertainty in the player’s mind when he arrives at the spot. Practice is the key to success and penalties should be part of every serious training session, preferably at the end of a hard workout to replicate the physical and psychological demands of a two-hour match.”

This is where it involves endurance and mental toughness, and training for that moment. In a similar way, in some marathon training programmes it is recommended in long-run training to try and run at race pace toward the end of a long run when most tired.

In penalty shootouts, another recommendation from the sports scientists is to play the weaker penalty-takers first, to avoid a deterioration in nerves. The English practice in the past has to assume it is a lottery and ask for volunteers for the ritual beheading by the press which normally follows defeat.

Meanwhile, on my own marathon training slog, I was remarkably tired today and deferred an interval run to Friday, taking extra rest. Perhaps it was the absence of real coffee, and consequent caffeine withdrawal symptoms.

Resting Heart Rate 46

Weight 71.5 kg

Mood

Exercise (Rest day)

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