Solent lecturer helps AFC Bournemouth gain promotion

AFC Bournemouth were near the relegation zone at the start of the season and hoping simply to stay in League One, but this season they have  broken club records for winning streaks and are being promoted to the NPower Championship. Matt Johnson, Senior Lecturer in sport psychology has been providing sport science support to AFC Bournemouth’s first team this season and is thrilled to be part of this success story.

Matt Johnson (second from the right) enjoys promotion success with AFCB

Matt plays a key part of the ‘team around the team’ at Bournemouth, attending training sessions once a week alongside the other background staff to produce the best player performances. He works with individual players on the training ground and also does group work with the team working on leadership, team spirit and dealing with the game pressure. “I love doing my job, I love helping people achieve their full potential and achieve their dreams and psychology is just part of that jigsaw, helping people to find that other gear”, Matt comments. “When they’re successful on the field I know I’ve played a little part in that and that’s where you get the buzz”

As a member of staff Matt builds rapport with players and develops their relationship to a level where he can help them work on the controllable factors in their performance. “It’s not all been easy and different players have different needs – it’s about working through the good and the bad and keeping the focus and professionalism.”

This fairy-tale story brings a huge change, to the players, to Bournemouth as a town and at a local level many will be inspired to get involved in sport or physical activity. There are also great opportunities for Solent to provide students with more real world employment experiences through such collaborations - our graduates are already working with AFC Bournemouth’s academy, supporting up and coming players and current students shadow Matt in his work.

The collaboration promises to increase in the future and Matt will continue to work with the team to overcome their next big challenge of staying up in the Championship and invite players to use the extensive facilities we have at Solent for pre-season preparations. Solent also works closely with football clubs in Bournemouth, Portsmouth and Southampton with different staff involved in each project.

Paralympic Reflections

Now that the start of the new academic year is well under way, two of the HESS staff involved in the 2012 London Paralympic Games have had time to reflect and discuss their summer experiences. Both James Fisher and Dr. Stewart Bruce-Low, both of whom have significant experience with an array of different athletes, were heavily involved in the 2012 Games. James is a Senior Lecturer in Sports Conditioning and Fitness, and Level 4 Leader for Health and Fitness courses, whilst Stewart is an Associate Professor and Course Leader for BSc Applied Sport Science. 

GB Women’s Wheelchair Basketball

James Fisher has been Assistant Coach to the GB Women’s Wheelchair Basketball team for 4 years and has supported their training cycle from Beijing through to the London 2012 Games. He was in the village and coached through the tournament, culminating in a close loss in the quarter finals to eventual Gold medal winners Germany. He commented:

“The Games were a phenomenal experience; it really is justice that they only happen once every 4 years. It is the pinnacle of sporting excellence and to have been a part of that on home soil was incredible. The team didn’t perform as well as hoped in the early stages which gave us a tough cross-over in the quarter final against Germany, although we still gave them their toughest game of the competition. From entry to the village and signing for accreditation under armed guard through the opening and closing ceremonies, home crowds, and the immense support from family and friends it is the highlight of my career to date.”

GB Women warm up for their game against Brazil. James (shown right) takes responsibility for pre-game warm-up commenting that “it’s great to be part of the energy whilst the team go through final preparations”

 

GB Wheelchair Rugby

The Paralympic sport that was dubbed the event of the Paralympics was wheelchair rugby. The preparation for the games in the field of sport science was provided by the staff and students from Southampton Solent University. Dr. Stewart Bruce-Low has been the head sport scientist for Great Britain Wheelchair Rugby for the last 10 months as well as working closely with the individual conditioning of multiple athletes for years prior to this. He has ensured that his students obtained fantastic experiences working with the athletes in their build up to the London games through testing, training and conditioning sessions which directly influenced the team’s preparation to perform at their peak for the London Games. Stewart commented:

GB Wheelchair Rugby in action, Aaron Phipps (13) regularly trains at Solent University under the guidance of Dr. Bruce-Low

“The run up to the games was a great experience for the students on the Applied Sport Science and Sport Coaching degrees. The students applied the skills they had learned in the classroom to the live environment. This has ensured their CV’s were enhanced and this resulted in a number of success stories; three of the students studying Applied Sport Science delivered the performance analysis as part of the relationship Solent had with GBWR which meant they were heavily involved during the Paralympics. A number of the students who gained these experiences in the lead up to the Paralympics have now gone on to work at premiership football and premiership rugby clubs which shows the importance of not only building your CV but also the importance of choosing the right course for you. These examples show that studying Applied Sport Science at Southampton Solent University can provide you with the opportunities required to help obtain a job in the industry upon graduating”.

Show your support for local Paralympian Aaron at live Channel 4 broadcast

Dr Bruce-Low and Aaron Phipps.

Staff, students, family and friends will get a chance to cheer on Southampton’s Paralympic wheelchair rugby ace, Aaron Phipps, during a live broadcast for Channel 4 at Solent University’s sports science department, on Friday 7 September.
 
A crew from Channel 4 is coming into the University’s Centre for Health, Exercise and Sport Science, where Aaron has trained, as part of a live feature to cheer on the British Paralympic team. The University is hoping to gather a crowd of supporters to come along to the filming to show their support for Aaron. 

Aaron – who started wheelchair racing in 2007 before switching to rugby in 2009 – has represented Great Britain at three major competitions. 

“Wheelchair rugby is fast-paced; it's the only full-contact wheelchair sport,” said Aaron. 

“The Paralympics are the highest level an athlete can compete at and it will be amazing to represent my country. 

“Our coach, Tom O'Connor, has been very inspirational and Solent University’s sports science team, headed by Dr Stewart Bruce-Low has helped me a lot." 

Wheelchair rugby – originally known as murderball because of its aggressive, full-contact nature – is played on an indoor court and involves teams of up 12, with four players per side on court at any one time. 

Since making its Paralympic debut in Sydney in 2000 the game has gone from strength to strength, and tickets for the sport at London 2012 sold out in record time. 

Filming starts at 7.40am with live slots at 8.15am and 8.45am, and supporters are asked to come to the venue at least 15 minutes before filming starts.

Here's your chance to show your support and cheer Aaron on, so please let the Press Office know in advance if you'd like to come along by emailing press.office@solent.ac.uk.  Flags and noise welcome!

Paralympic Insight

Aaron in action versus Australia.

Aaron Phipps from the GB Wheelchair Rugby squad provides an insight into his world in an interview with Huck (surf, skate and snowboarding) magazine as he prepares for September 2012 alongside colleagues and students from the Applied Sport Science course from Southampton Solent University. Follow the link below to read the article in full and find out more! http://www.huckmagazine.com/features/murderball/

Table Topping Guest Lecture

This week, final year students enrolled on the 'Sport Science Support' unit on the BSc Applied Sport Science and BSc Sport Coaching degrees were lucky enough to welcome Mr Nick Harvey, head of strength and conditioning at Southampton Football Club, who presented a guest lecture on interdisciplinary working in elite sport. The video clip below discusses what his role entails through to how he works with a large team of professionals all using their own approach to working with the athletes and how hard this is to co-ordinate and work through. He also describes the relationship that Solent has with Southampton FC and how our staff and students contribute to the success of Southampton FC.

Sport Science Students Learn from Industry Practitioners

This week Chris Armstrong, head of sport science at Warwickshire County Cricket Club came in to present to students on our BSc Applied Sport Science and BSc Sport Coaching degrees. The students are undertaking the Sport Science Support unit in their third year and are starting to work with external clients so Chris gave them a wonderful insight into working in the elite sporting environment. In the video clip below, Chris goes on to give any potential students coming onto either the Applied Sport Science or Sport Coaching degree some advice on what they should be doing when they are here. He stresses the importance of building an impressive CV which is exactly what the Applied Sport Science and Sport Coaching courses help you to do.

AFC Bournemouth at Solent for pre season preparations.

Health, Exercise and Sport Science students studying on the Applied Sport Science and Sports Coaching degrees got the opportunity to help out as AFC Bournemouth got put through their paces as part of their pre-season preparations.

The team was assessed at Solent’s centre for Health, Exercise and Sport Science under the scrutiny of Dr Stewart Bruce-Low, Laboratory Director and Senior Lecturer in sport and exercise science. As part of the process, all players undertook a VO₂ max text, to determine the maximum volume of oxygen that can be utilized during maximal exercise.

AFC Bournemouth's Steve Fletcher at the start of the test.

This is the third year AFC Bournemouth has taken advantage of the facilities at Solent which is one of many opportunities for students on the Applied Sport Science and Sports Coaching degree's to gain experience to bolster their CVs throughout their degree program. The AFC Bournemouth Manager Lee Bradbury outlined "We have an excellent relationship with Solent University and using these facilities, with the expert help from staff and students, is a key part of our pre-season planning"

As well as carrying out their pre-season preparations, AFC Bournemouth were also put through their paces by second year Applied Sport Science student Jameson Mola, as part of his dissertation. Jameson, who successfully secured an internship at AFC Bournemouth, is looking at optimal programmes to develop muscular strength and power during the short pre-season turn around.

Jameson is looking at recovery time between exercises whilst carrying out complex training which allows players to reap the maximal benefits from the minimal amount of time spent in the gym, thus giving them more time to focus on the technical aspect of the game.

The research, conducted under the supervision of Dr Stewart Bruce-Low, and under the guidance of Head Sports Scientist and Associate Lecturer at Solent Louis Langdown involved the players performing a three repetition maximum squat (strength exercise) and a counter movement jump (power exercise). The data, collected at the centre for Health, Exercise and Sport Science biomechanics laboratory will be analysed to determine players peak power output, jump height and rate of force development. The results could impact on the way AFC Bournemouth train in the future