Every senior professional rugby player in Ireland will soon have access to performance monitoring and GPS tracking technology thanks to a new partnership.
The providers of the technology, STATSports, has inked the deal with the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU), the authorities of the sport in Ireland.
Players will have access to STATSports’ “Apex” device. It integrates a range of technologies into one, including GPS, an accelerometer and Bluetooth LE. With this Bluetooth connection, it is able to connect with a wide variety of devices at one time including heart rate sensors, electromyography (EMG) shorts, smart watches and tablet devices. The device, which looks like a smartphone, has eight hours of battery life and captures over 50 performance metrics, from acceleration, to balance, to heart rate. All this data is provided to coaches in reports created by the company’s platform.
STATSports, based in Newry, Northern Ireland, boast existing clients like English Premier League teams Manchester City and Arsenal FC, as well as the NFL’s Oakland Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs. The company will supply its technology to the Irish men’s, women’s, under 20s and other representative teams as part of the partnership, including the teams from the four Irish provinces of Leinster, Munster, Connacht and Ulster.
“In high-performance sport, and particularly in an environment where player welfare is a key priority,” Nick Winkelman, the IRFU’s Head of Performance & Science, said in a statement. “It is a necessity for our provinces and representative teams to have access to quality data that can inform and shape performance, recovery and injury prevention.”
“We are proud to offer a world-class product to not only the national team but all four provincial teams throughout Ireland who compete at the highest level of club rugby in Europe,” said Sean O’Connor, co-founder at STATSports. “Plus, with STATSports being founded in the island of Ireland, it is even more significant.”
