PhD Studentship: Does Neck Strength Have an Impact on Head Accelerations in Footballers

This funded PhD position is housed within the Centre for Physical Activity, Sport and Exercise Sciences (PASES) at Coventry University and is in association with the Premier League. The PhD will form part of the Premier League ’s developing work within the area of Player Health and the successful candidate will contribute to the Premier League’s Elite Performance Team’s activities in the area. The PhD will also support the growing work on the assessment and management of the cervical spine that PASES undertakes as part of the interdisciplinary scientific research through the application of physical activity, sport and exercise to improve health and performance across the life course. 

The centre has considerable expertise, spanning physical activity and sport performance, physiology, biomechanics, exercise psychology, strength and conditioning. The applied nature of the research undertaken by researchers in the centre involves engagement with partners in the field of sport, exercise, and health, to identify ‘real life’ problems to provide a solution-based approach. 

Soccer is a unique sport were a player intentionally uses their head in a tactical way to stop, pass or score via heading the ball. Additionally, sports related concussion (SRC) occurs due to biomechanical forces to the head, neck, face, and trunk regions that results in pathophysiological changes in the brain and are common in contact sports thus, has become an area of focus in soccer. There is increased discussion in the medical, scientific and broader community relating to football players’ and their long-term Brain Health. There is therefore a desire to better understand SRC, heading exposure and any potential mitigations, with one approach being neck strength.

The neck is a supporting structure that is an integral part of the spinal column and the strength of the neck in flexion, extension, lateral flexion and rotation contribute to maintaining proper posture. Weakness and or imbalances in the neck musculature can lead to injury and been linked to increased risk of SCR. Thus, the focus of this PhD is to understand the importance of the cervical spine and the associated musculature and its role in health and wellbeing of soccer players. 

Training and Development 

The successful candidate will receive comprehensive research training including technical, personal and professional skills.

All researchers at Coventry University (from PhD to Professor) are part of the Doctoral College and Centre for Research Capability and Development, which provides support with high-quality training and career development activities. 

Entry criteria for applicants to PhD

• A bachelor’s (honours) degree in a relevant discipline/subject area with a minimum classification of 2:1 and a minimum mark of 60% in the project element (or equivalent), or an equivalent award from an overseas institution.

PLUS

• the potential to engage in innovative research and to complete the PhD within 3.5 years

An adequate proficiency in English must be demonstrated by applicants whose first language is not English. The general requirement is a minimum overall IELTS Academic score of 7.0 with a minimum of 6.5 in each of the four sections, or the TOEFL iBT test with a minimum overall score of 95 with a minimum of 21 in each of the four sections.

To find out more about the project please contact: Dr Samuel Oxford - apx327@coventry.ac.uk

For further details please visit: https://www.coventry.ac.uk/research/research-opportunities/research-students/making-an-application/research-entry-criteria/

https://www.coventry.ac.uk/research/research-opportunities/research-students/making-an-application/

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