Differences in goals, saves, exclusions, and cards between winners and losers based on category and gender in young handball players

Saavedra, Yzan (author), Þorgeirsson, Sveinn (author), Sigurgeirsson, Ólafur (author), Saavedra, Jose M. (author)

The objectives of the present study were: (i) to compare handball game-related statistics by match result (winning and losing teams) based on category [Under 18 (U18) and Under 16 (U16) years old] and sex (males and females), and (ii) to determine whether there are differences in handball game-related statistics based on category (U18 and U16) and sex (males and females). One thousand eight hundred seventy-three matches were analysed, (1034 male, 839 female) from the categories (U18 and U16) played in the 2022/23 and 2023/24 Icelandic League for both sexes were analysed. The dependent variable in the study was the match outcome (winning/losing teams), while the independent variables were the game-related statistics (goals, saves, two-minute exclusions, yellow and red cards), with category (U18 and U16) and sex (male and female) used as grouping variables. Basic statistical descriptors (mean and standard deviation) were calculated for each game-related statistic by match outcome (winning and losing teams) and by category and sex. Since normality was not met for any of the analyzed variables, the nonparametric Mann-Whitney U test was applied. The number of goals and saves differentiated winning and losing teams, both for the overall sample and based on category and sex; clear differences were observed based on category; males achieved a higher number of goals and saves than females, while also displaying greater extralegal aggression (2- minute exclusions, yellow cards, and red cards).

• Language: English
• Keywords: sport, handball, winners, losers, performance analysis, goalkeeper, aggression
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: FŠ - Faculty of Sport
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2025
• Number of pages: Str. 119-130
• Numbering: Vol. 31, no. 1
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-180526
• UDC: 796.322
• ISSN on article: 1318-2269
• DOI: 10.52165/kinsi.31.1.119-130
• COBISS.SI-ID: 239853315
• Publication date in RUL: 11.03.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Kinesiologia Slovenica. scientific journal on sport
• Shortened title: Kinesiol. Slov.
• Publisher: Fakulteta za šport, Inštitut za kineziologijo, Fakulteta za šport, Inštitut za kineziologijo, Založba Univerze v Ljubljani
• ISSN: 1318-2269
• COBISS.SI-ID: 30681856

Licences

• License: CC BY-SA 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
• Description: This Creative Commons license is very similar to the regular Attribution license, but requires the release of all derivative works under this same license.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Title: Razlike v golih, obrambah, izključitvah in kartonih med zmagovalci in poraženci glede na kategorijo in spol pri mladih rokometaših

Abstract

Cilji študije so bili: (i) primerjati rokometne statistične kazalce glede na rezultat tekme (zmagovalne in poražene ekipe) glede na kategorijo [do 18 let (U18) in do 16 let (U16)] in spol (moški in ženske) ter (ii) ugotoviti, ali obstajajo razlike v rokometnih statističnih kazalcih glede na kategorijo (U18 in U16) in spol (moški in ženske). Analiziranih je bilo 1873 tekem (1034 moških, 839 ženskih) iz kategorij U18 in U16, ki so bile odigrane v islandski ligi v sezonah 2022/23 in 2023/24 za oba spola. Odvisna spremenljivka v študiji je bil izid tekme (zmagovalne/poražene ekipe), medtem ko so bile neodvisne spremenljivke rokometni statistični kazalci (goli, obrambe, dvominutne izključitve, rumeni in rdeči kartoni), kategorija (U18 in U16) ter spol (moški in ženske), ki so bili uporabljeni kot združevalne spremenljivke. Izračunani so bili osnovni statistični opisi (povprečje in standardni odklon) za vsak rokometni statistični kazalec glede na izid tekme (zmagovalne in poražene ekipe) ter glede na kategorijo in spol. Ker normalnost ni bila dosežena za nobeno od analiziranih spremenljivk, je bil uporabljen neparametrični MannWhitneyjev U-test. Število doseženih golov in obramb je ločevalo zmagovalne in poražene ekipe tako v celotnem vzorcu kot glede na kategorijo in spol; opažene so bile jasne razlike glede na kategorijo; moški so dosegli več golov in zabeležili več obramb kot ženske, obenem pa so pokazali tudi več agresivnosti (dvominutne izključitve, rumeni in rdeči kartoni).

• Keywords: šport, rokomet, zmagovalci, poraženci, analiza nastopa, golman, agresivnost

Projects

• Funder: RANNÍS - Icelandic Research Office
• Funding programme: Íþróttasjóður
• Project number: 233051-2501