Comparison of Different Agility Tests by Positions in Young Football Players

The aim of this study was to compare the results of the Illinois Agility Test (IAT) and the Zigzag Agility Test (ZAT) in order to evaluate the agility characteristics of young players according to their positions. 80 male amateur football players (Age: 17.82±0.88 years; Height: 175.33±7.23 cm; Weight: 66.46±9.36 kg) who participated in the study were divided into 3 groups according to their positions: Defenders (n= 26; Age: 17.9±0.93; Height: 175.2±5.16 cm; Weight: 66.9±8.45 kg), Midfielders (n= 27; Age: 17.7±0.86 years; Height: 172.8±5.62 cm; Weight: 63.7±8.10 kg) and Forwards (n= 27; Age: 17.8±0.86 years; Height: 177.9±9.39 cm; Weight: 68.7±10.89 kg). Within the scope of the study, Illinois and Zigzag agility tests were applied to all athletes. In order to determine the effect of three different positions (Defenders, Midfielders and Forwards) on agility (Illinois and Zigzag test), one-way multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used. The measurements showed that playing positions had a significant effect on agility performance (F(4,152)=2.99, p<0.021, ηp²=0.73). In the Illinois test, forward players (16.05±0.38 s) performed significantly better compared to other positions (Midfielders= 16.37±0.49 s, Defenders= 16.74±0.75 s); in the Zigzag test, forward players (6.13±0.20 s) performed significantly better compared to other positions (Midfielders= 6.33±0.28 s, Defenders= 6.37±0.35 s). As a result, it was determined that forward players are more agile than midfielders and defenders, and midfielders have more agility characteristics than defenders.