Table 2. Decimal age, maturation, stature and body mass of junior soccer players according to relative age quartile & bi-annual age-groups.
| Age Group | Variable | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Covariates | F(Q) | P | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F(AG) | P | F(APHV) | P | ||||||||
| U10 | n = 86 | n = 38 | n = 23 | n = 12 | |||||||
| DA | 10.1 ± 0.5* ^ | 9.8 ± 0.6 | 9.8 ± 0.6 | 9.6 ± 0.6 | - | - | - | - | 5.39 | 0.001 | |
| APHV | 13.4 ± 0.4* # | 13.2 ± 0.4 | 13.1 ± 0.4 | 12.9 ± 0.5 | - | - | - | - | 8.43 | 0.000 | |
| Stature (cm) | 138.5 ± 5.9* # | 139.2 ± 4.0 | 139.9 ± 5.7 | 142.0 ± 6.2 | 75.34 | 0.000 | 129.11 | 0.000 | 4.65 | 0.004 | |
| Body Mass (kg) | 33.4 ± 4.3* | 33.4 ± 3.6* | 34.3 ± 4.6 | 34.5 ± 4.0 | 56.38 | 0.007 | 89.64 | 0.000 | 57.66 | 0.002 | |
| U12 | n = 74 | n = 58 | n = 35 | n = 25 | |||||||
| DA | 11.9 ± 0.5* # | 11.9 ± 0.5* # | 11.5 ± 0.5 | 11.2 ± 0.5 | - | - | - | - | 16.95 | 0.000 | |
| APHV | 14.0 ± 0.5 | 13.9 ± 0.4 | 13.8 ± 0.5 | 13.8 ± 0.3 | - | - | - | - | 2.06 | 0.106 | |
| Stature (cm) | 149.3 ± 7.7* # ^ | 150.4 ± 8.6* | 147.5 ± 6.9 | 145.2 ± 6.3 | 257.43 | 0.000 | 315.86 | 0.000 | 18.24 | 0.000 | |
| Body Mass (kg) | 40.4 ± 6.7* # ^ | 40.8 ± 6.7* | 38.2 ± 5.3 | 36.9 ± 4.8 | 158.22 | 0.000 | 285.82 | 0.000 | 19.14 | 0.000 | |
| U14 | n = 90 | n = 48 | n = 43 | n = 16 | |||||||
| DA | 13.9 ± 0.5* # | 13.8 ± 0.6* # | 13.4 ± 0.5 | 13.2 ± 0.5 | - | - | - | - | 14.52 | 0.000 | |
| APHV | 14.2 ± 0.6 | 14.1 ± 0.6 | 14.2 ± 0.6 | 14.1 ± 0.7 | - | - | - | - | 0.20 | 0.987 | |
| Stature (cm) | 164.2 ± 9.2* | 163.8 ± 9.2* | 160.5 ± 9.3* | 158.8 ± 8.4 | 159.90 | 0.000 | 587.68 | 0.000 | 11.01 | 0.000 | |
| Body Mass (kg) | 52.3 ± 9.3* | 52.5 ± 8.7* | 49.7 ± 9.0* | 48.2 ± 8.3 | 146.12 | 0.000 | 654.83 | 0.000 | 7.20 | 0.000 | |
| U16 | n = 90 | n = 34 | n = 20 | n = 14 | |||||||
| DA | 15.7 ± 0.4* # ^ | 15.5 ± 0.4* | 15.3 ± 0.5* | 14.9 ± 0.5 | - | - | - | - | 22.60 | 0.000 | |
| APHV | 14.2 ± 0.6 | 14.2 ± 0.6 | 14.1 ± 0.4 | 14.0 ± 0.6 | - | - | - | - | 0.876 | 0.455 | |
| Stature (cm) | 175.6 ± 6.3* | 174.1 ± 7.0 | 175.3 ± 6.1 | 173.4 ± 8.1 | 30.52 | 0.000 | 158.69 | 0.000 | 3.79 | 0.012 | |
| Body Mass (kg) | 65.0 ± 7.2 | 62.6 ± 7.3 | 64.5 ± 7.1 | 65.1 ± 7.2 | 15.54 | 0.000 | 112.79 | 0.000 | 1.50 | 0.217 | |
| U18 | n = 91 | n = 59 | n = 31 | n = 31 | |||||||
| DA | 17.7 ± 0.5* # ^ | 17.4 ± 0.6* | 17.1 ± 0.6 | 17.1 ± 0.6 | - | - | - | - | 17.64 | 0.000 | |
| APHV | 14.8 ± 0.6* # | 14.7 ± 0.6 | 14.5 ± 0.5 | 14.5 ± 0.5 | - | - | - | - | 3.93 | 0.009 | |
| Stature (cm) | 178.4 ± 6.3 | 179.4 ± 5.7 | 179.8 ± 5.8 | 178.6 ± 5.6 | 5.17 | 0.024 | 145.72 | 0.000 | 2.03 | 0.110 | |
| Body Mass (kg) | 73.0 ± 6.3 | 73.2 ± 7.2 | 72.9 ± 5.8 | 73.1 ± 6.8 | 4.30 | 0.039 | 78.15 | 0.000 | 1.80 | 0.147 | |
Table Notes: Q1 = N players born between Sept-Nov of annual age cut-off dates, Q2 = Dec-Feb, Q3 = March-May, Q4 = June-August; DA = decimal age; AG = Chronological age-group; APHV = age at peak height velocity
* = Significant finding (P ≤ 0.05) vs. Q4
# denotes significant vs. Q3
^ denotes significant vs. Q2