INTRODUCTION Physical education has historical and wonderful importance. Physical education is not only limited to physical activities, but it helps to develop the art of learning, intellectuality and attitude towards life. Physical activities are considered as essential elements to modify and maintain quality of life. Today physical education has become the forth essential requirement after the three primary essential elements like oxygen, water and food. A long time ago people believed that the physical education is only a group of activities like malkhamb, wrestling, drill and marching, drips and indigenous activities. But this concept has completely changed today. In present days, players are prepared by latest methods of coaching and new techniques of training. Many physical education and sports research laboratories have come in existence. Therefore, more attention is given to the parameters of psychology, anthropometry, physiology and physical fitness, which are related to a person s ability in sports. Today s modern and technical age has provided board field for the development of sports, and sport science has involved in sports activities. It is noticed that physical education and sports, the one and the only field, has involved many subjects, such as biophysics, biochemistry, dietetics, science of sports training, sports sociology, health education etc. Apart from principles of physical education, related to the sports facts from psychology, physiology, sociology and bio-mechanics, they constitute core discipline of physical education. Games and sports are the applied fields of physical education.
The soccer or football is the most popular and most attended spectacular game in the world. It is not merely a game; it is a part of one s life. When we go through the history of football, it becomes evident that, there is no common agreement regarding the origin of the game. But as a well-known sports columnist said, the first man to play a proto-type of this popular game was Adam who kicked an apple around the garden of Eden to amuse Eve. Contemporary historians, however, believe that the game originated in England centuries ago but was formally played for the first time in Derby, England, 27 A.D. Soccer or football is a game which calls for strenuous vigorous and continuous thrilling actions and therefore appeals to youths world over. It involves Kicks, passes, dodging runs, fast runs and combination-cum-co-ordination of each player with others while plying. Without strength, speed and stamina, skill and strategy a member of a team could never expect to become a good player. There is not a single country in the world where soccer is not played in some form or other and it is popular particularly among and youth of the world. True, that the association football or soccer in one of the world s most leisure-time sports as well as is the most popular and attended spectacular sport in the world. It is a team game and requires a good deal of understanding among all the players of a team. If these individuals will be good in skills and tactics of the game, naturally the team will put up a good show of total performance. Football is probably the most popular game worldwide but there is still limited scientific information available concerning the physique and performance qualities of elite Indian footballers. Not many sports physiologist have been attracted to examine the footballer in details
because of the lack of adequate experimental models to study the games in the laboratory (Reilly et al, 1990). The game comprises activities like sprint and jumps in attack and defense. It also requires aerobic capacity as the game lasts one and half hour, sometimes even longer than the official time. These short and long lasting activities are performed over the entire game, so, both aerobic and anaerobic capacities are very important to exhibit better performance (Malcovic et al., 1994). Football is a team game. Team games are sports where body size, shape, body composition and level of fitness, all play an important part in providing distinct advantages for specific playing positions particularly at the highest levels of performance where there is a high degree of player specialization (Bale, 1986). Specific positional roles within each code may demand unique physiological attributes (Reilly et al., 1990). These are reflected in the physical and physiological fitness of the soccer players (Reeves et al., 1999). Scientists and physiologists have been of the view that anthropometry and physical components of an athlete have a lot to do with the performance, more than the techniques and tactics of a player or a team. The research findings show that a high level technique perfection alone has nothing to do with the success in competitive sport. Most of the game demand a greater amount of speed, strength, endurance, flexibility, co-ordination of the organism (Warren R. Jonson et al., 1974). Anthropometry is the oldest type of body measurement used dating back to the beginning of recorded history. The concept of the ideal proportion varied of time. For example, potyaletus fashioned Doryphours. The spear thrower, as a fighter and an athlete, broad shouldered, thickset, and square chested. The perfect man. As the arts of civilization become more gentle. However,
grace rather than ruggedness appealed to the Athenians the ideal man than became slender, graceful and skillful, albeit also well proportioned (Clarke H. Harrison, 1967). The present value of anthropometry, it is an important aspect of physical education measurement and is considered to be most important aspect by some anthroities the teacher of physical education will recognized that the great value affixed to anthropometrical measurement lies largely in research and the ensign implication for teaching. Rather than the general utility of this measurement directly in teaching. Relative to body build. Certain relationships have appeared between body type and various performance abilities. A knowledge of this will enable the teacher to direct. Students interest to appropriate activities in addition to the general use of indicating development needs. Anthropometrical studies have resulted in method for analyzing individual growth and development that constitute vast improvement over the use of tables for comparison (Meyers, Carlton R., 1974). Anthropometry is the branch of anthropology that is concerned with the measurement of human body. This definition can be contained to the kind of measurements commonly used in association of physical performance with body build. Measurement of body size includes such descriptive information as height, weight and surface area, while measurement of body proportion describes the relationship between height and weight and among length, width and circumference of various body segments. It has been found that top athletes in some sports tend to have those proportions that Bio-mechanically aid the particular performance required (Earl F. Zeigler, 1982). All physical and anthropometrical measures are required for football players, without which it is impossible for a player to play efficiently.
Hence the football coaches and physical education teacher realize the importance of anthropometric variables in various sports and game including football. It forms an important part of physical education programme in schools and colleges and physical education teachers follow different method for selecting players for better performance. Now much work has been done to determine the criteria for selecting the players for better performance. This fact motivated the researcher to undertake this study which may help coaches and physical education teachers to select their players according to the anthropometric measurement variables. Therefore this study has been under taken with a view to finding out the relationship of anthropometric measurement with soccer playing ability. Statement of the Problem: The purpose of this study is to find out the relationship of anthropometric measurement with soccer playing ability of under nineteen boys in Maharashtra State. Delimitation of the study: 1. The study was delimited to the male students under nineteen years, of age of any District team in Maharashtra. 2. The study was further delimited with the Two Hundred Fifty state level football players. 3. The study is further restricted to the selected anthropometric measurement. Limitation of the study: The present study will be limited on the following points. 1. The participation of subjects in other activities, part of their curriculum might have affected the performance for the study, which was another limitation.
2. No motivational technique will be applied to motivate or discourage the subjects while various measurements were taken. 3. Environmental factors which will not under the control of researcher may also be a limitation factor of the study. Hypothesis of the study: It is hypothesized that there would be significant relationship of anthropometric measurement with playing ability of football players. Anthropometric Measurement: 1. Height 2. Weight 3. Leg-length 4. Thigh Girth 5. Calf Girth Definition and Explanation of the Terms: Anthropometric Measurement: Anthropometric measurements are the objective measurements of the function of the body. The measurements of structure include such items as weight, total weights and the width and depth and circumference of the chest, etc. the measurement of functions include such items as pulse rate, arterial and venous blood pressure, muscular strength, basal metabolic rate, estimate from cardiovascular variables, posture and breathing capacity (H. Harrison Clarke, 1979).
McDonald Soccer Test: A vertical wall (back board) of 30 feet long and 11 feet high was selected. The 9 feet restarting line was marked away from the wall. A stop watch and 3 footballs were used for conducting the test. McDonald Soccer Test for measuring soccer playing ability or efficiency (Mayers, Carlton R. 1974). Significance of the Study: Ability of the players to put up high performance in any game and sports depends not only on efficient technique but is marked and influenced by anthropometric measurement. In additional to technical development, coaches and physical education teachers spend considerable amount of time in developing strength and other components of anthropometric measurement. The present study will be significant in the following ways: 1. The findings may be helpful to be coaches, physical educationists and those who are involved in organization of sports and training to selected individuals, who are more suited towards a particular position according. 2. This study may highlight the relationship that exist anthropometric measurement with soccer playing ability. 3. This study may prove helpful in recommending special training and conditioning programme on the basis of the findings.