ABSTRACT
Knowledge of the fitness requirements needed for rugby is limited by the difficulty in obtaining physiological information from players during matches (Nicholas, 1997). Studies that have attempted to assess the physiological demands placed on players during games provide conflicting results (Docherty, Wenger and Neary, 1988; Jardine et al., 1988; McLean, 1992). The difficulty in ascertaining the physiological demands of Rugby Union is partly due to the large number of factors which exert an influence on the patterns of activity during a match (e.g. environmental conditions, level of play, officiating styles). Reilly (1990) stated that ‘The game requires a mixture of fast reactions, speed, agility, muscular strength, anaerobic and aerobic power but not in a clearly definable way.’
