The relationship between positional placement and team captaincy was examined for a population of 27 New Zealand provincial rugby teams for the years 1984, 1988, and 1992 (N = 76 player captains). Results revealed that the two most spatially central positions (i.e., No. 8 and halfback) accounted for 35.5% of the captains (n = 27), whereas, the three most peripheral spatial positions (i.e., center, wing and fullback) did not yield a single captain. The overrepresentation of captains among the No. 8 and halfback positions was explained in terms of a set of distinctive positional properties and personal attributes held to be associated with these two positions.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Ball, D.W., 1973: "Ascription and position: A comparative analysis of stacking in professional football". In: Canadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology, 10, 97-113.
2.
Chelladurai, P., Carron, A.W., 1977: "A reanalysis of formal structure in sport". In: Canadian Journal of Applied Sports Sciences , 2, 9-14.
3.
CHESTER, R. H., McMILLAN, N. A., (eds.), 1985: "The 1985 National Rugby Almanack of New Zealand", 51st Edition. Auckland, NZ: MOA Beckett Publishers .
4.
CHESTER, R. H., McMILLAN, N.A., (eds.), 1989: "The 1989 National Rugby Almanack of New Zealand", 55th Edition. Auckland, NZ: MOA Beckett Publishers .
5.
CHESTER, R. H., McMILLIN, N. A., (eds.), 1993: "The 1993 National Rugby Almanack of New Zealand", 59th Edition. Auckland, NZ: MOA Beckett Publishers .
6.
Gill, D.L., Perry, J.L., 1979: "A case study of leadership in women's intercollegiate softball". In: International Review of Sport Sociology , 14, 83-90.
7.
Grusky, O., 1963: "The effects of formal structure on managerial recruitment: A case study of baseball organization". In: Sociometry , 26, 345-353.
8.
Hallinan, C.J., 1991: "Aborigines and positional segregation in Australian rugby league". In: International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 26, 69-79.
9.
Hopkins, J.K., 1964: "The exercise of influence in small groups". Totowa, NJ: Bedminster Press.
10.
James, C., 1983: "Focus on Rugby: An International Coaching Book" . London: Stanley Paul.
11.
Kjeldsen, E.K., 1981: "Centrality and leadership recruitment: A study of their linkage". In: Review of Sport & Leisure , 6, 1-20.
12.
Klonsky, B., 1977: "The Effects of Formal Structure and Role Skills on Coaching Recruitment and Longevity: A Study of Professional Baseball Teams" . A paper presented at the 72nd Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association, Chicago, Illinois , September 1977.
13.
Lee, M.J., Coburn, T., Partridge, R., 1983: "The influence of team structure in determining leadership function in association football". In: Journal of Sport Behavior, 6, 59-76.
14.
Leonard, W.M., Ostrosky, T., Huchendorf, S., 1990: "Centrality of position and managerial recruitment: the case of major league baseball". In: Sociology of Sport Journal, 7, 294-301.
15.
Loy, J.W., Curtis, J.E., Hillen, J.M., 1987: "Effects of formal structure on managerial recruitment: Comparisons of Japanese and North American professional baseball clubs". In: Sociology of Sport Journal, 4, 1-16.
16.
Loy, J.W., Curtis, J.E., Sage, J., 1979: "Relative centrality of playing position and leadership recruitment in team sports". In: R.S. Hutton (ed.): Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews. Vol. 6, Santa Barbara, CA: Journal Publishing Affiliates, 257-313.
17.
Loy, J.W., Ingham, A.G., Sage, J.N., 1970: "The Effects of Formal Structure on Organizational Leadership: An Investigation of Collegiate Baseball Teams". A paper presented at the 85th National Convention of the American Association for Health, Physical Education and Recreation, Seattle, Washington, March.
18.
Loy, J.W., Jackson, S.J., 1990: "A typology of group structures and a theory of their effects on patterns of leadership recruitment within sport organizations" . In: L. Vander Velden, J.H. Humphrey (eds.): Psychology and Sociology of Sport: Current Selected Research, Vol. 2, New York: AMS Press , 93-114.
19.
Loy, J.W., Sage, J.N., 1970: "The effects of formal structure on organizational leadership: An investigation of interscholastic baseball teams". In: G.S. Kenyon, T.M. Grogg (eds.): Contemporary Psychology of Sport , Chicago: Athletic Institute, 363-373.
20.
Massengale, J.D., Farrington, S.R., 1977: "The influence of playing position centrality on the careers of college football coaches". In: Review of Sport & Leisure, 2, 107-115.
21.
New Zealand Rugby Union, 1992: "New Zealand Rugby Union Coaching Accreditation Manual". Wellington, NZ: NZRU.
22.
RADIO NEW ZEALAND SPORT AND RUGBY ANNUAL, 1992, 1988, 1984. Glenfield, Auckland: MOA Beckett Publishers.
23.
Roland, P.H., 1977: "Ascription and Position: A Comparative Analysis of the Influence of Playing Position on the Careers of Professional Football Coaches". Unpublished paper, Department of Sport Studies, University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Massachusetts , May.
24.
Roy, G., 1974: "The Relationship Between Centrality and Mobility: The Case of the National Hockey League". Unpublished M.Sc. Thesis, Department of Kinesiology, University of Toronto, July.
25.
Sage, J.N., 1974: "The Effects of Formal Structure on Organizational Leadership: An Investigation of Collegiate Football Teams". A paper presented at the 89th National Convention of the American Association for Health, Physical Education and Recreation, Anaheim, California, March.
26.
Sage, J.N., Bailey, N., 1978: "The Relationship of Leadership Selection and Positional Placement in Women's Intercollegiate Field Hockey". A paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the California Association for Health, Physical Education and Recreation, San Francisco, California, March.
27.
Saxton, C.K., 1973: "The ABC of Rugby". Wellington, NZ : NZRFU.
Stogdill, R.M., 1948: "Personal Factors Associated with Leadership: A Survey of the Literature". In: The Journal of Psychology , 25, 35-71.
30.
Trapp, K.J., Landers, D.M.1979: "Team interaction and the emergence of leadership and interpersonal attraction in field hockey". In: Journal of Sport Psychology, 1, 228-240.
