## 4 Discussion  
The biomechanical exploration of the diving header in soccer, as revealed by the current pilot study, provides valuable insights for skill advancement and strategic application. The use of a static hanging ball with three different offensive distances and heights mimics locations where players intend to head the ball, aiding the identification of players' intended header locations and investigating spatiotemporal features of movement modulation. The identified general pattern of the diving header introduces considerations for optimizing the skill execution. The observed speed drop in the head, occurring before impact in all but one trial, presents a new biomechanical nuance, potentially impacting the momentum transfer and warranting further attention in training programs. One novel and practical result is the use of the maximal standing long jump test for quantifying effective offensive range (EOR), which creates a user-friendly approach for estimating EOR in coaching practice. The maximal standing long jump test underscores the athletic prowess of the subjects. Its results obtained from this study confirm that the subjects selected possess mean jumping distances surpassing the excellent threshold [22]. These physically excellent subjects exhibit an EOR exceeding 4.5 m, emphasizing the potential attacking reach facilitated by adept jumping abilities. The normalized EOR (i.e., 2.64 times body height) provides an even more useful and practical means for easily estimating EOR with varying body heights of physically excellent players. For instance, Swedish professional soccer player [PERSON], standing at 1.95 m [13], who achieved multiple dividing header goals in his professional career [13,15], could attain an EOR of 5.15 m. Previous studies [9,12] suggested that soccer shots can be executed within a three-dimensional volume surrounding an attacker's body, known as the players' effective/proprioceptive shooting volume. The quantified EOR in this study exhibits a notable deviation from the prior theoretical estimate (1.5 times body height for diving header) [12], registering a substantial increase of 76% (calculated as \([2.64-1.5]/1.5=76\%\)). This outcome supports the contention that commencing the learning and training of diving headers in soccer practice holds great potential for markedly enhancing scoring opportunities. Another innovative result is the introduction of the concept of ball speed enhancement (BSE), with accomplished subjects achieving enhancements surpassing 9 m/s. Previous study has shown that professional players can add up to 4.5 m/s (BSE) to a flying ball's speed with jumping or standing headers [17]. The current study reveals that diving headers can double the BSE achieved by traditional heading techniques, making it a more effective offensive technique. Additionally, a comparative study on ball speed between a passing kick for heading and a maximal instep kick (22 m/s and 29 m/s, respectively) [35] suggests that diving headers could have a potential to surpass maximal instep kicks in generating a more powerful shot, i.e., 22 + 9 = 31 m/s diving header potential > 29 m/s maximal instep kick. These findings add practical relevance to diving headers, implying that scientific training programs for diving headers should be initiated in soccer coaching practice. The in-depth analysis of various parameters associated with the diving header reveals intriguing correlations. The head speed at impact demonstrates a strong correlation with