PhD candidate, James Ball, based in the Discipline of Sport and Exercise Science, has had a lifelong passion for sport, which has led to many professional and personal opportunities.
“During my undergraduate degree, which was a Bachelor of Sport and Exercise Science, I developed a strong interest in performance analysis, which led to an Honours project in partnership with the Essendon Football Club.”
“Working with athletes in a high-performance, fast-paced environment was something I had always aimed for. I loved the challenge, the environment, and the opportunity to build strong connections within the industry, all while learning a huge amount about performance analysis and elite sport.”
“That experience really confirmed my passion for working in elite sport and performance analysis and ultimately played a big role in shaping the direction of my Honours and PhD research.”
James’ research focuses on understanding the relationship between individual and team performance in soccer.
“Traditionally, individual and team performance have been measured and analysed separately, but my work aims to explore how the two are connected and influence each other within a game,” he explains.
“This is important because gaining a better understanding of these dynamics has practical implications across many areas of sport, such as tactics and game strategy, player development, recruitment and opposition analysis.”
James is supervised by Dr Matthew Varley and Minh Huynh, whose expertise in performance analysis and sport analytics continues to guide his research journey.
When he finishes his PhD, James would like to keep his options open.
“My dream role would be working in the performance analysis team for the Brisbane 2032 Olympics, as being part of such a historic event would be an incredible experience.”
“As someone from Tasmania, I'm especially interested in joining the recruiting or analysis team for the new Tasmanian Devils AFL club. There’s a strong personal pull in contributing to my home state’s first AFL team, helping to build its foundations and shape its future success.”
“Lastly, I'd love to gain experience in sports consultancy. This is an area I'm passionate about and I hope to build my own business down the track.”
