## 4 Discussion
With this increased focus on the nutritional aspect of players' development at the elite level, it was expected that elite hurlers would perform significantly better when anthropometric testing was considered within this study. Previous research has indicated that elite hurlers are relatively heterogeneous with respect to body size [10]. Within this study, there were minimal differences at the elite level when height and body mass were considered, although the taller players were still centered across transitional lines of the field (half-back and midfield). These positions are still associated with winning primary possession, a key factor when puck-outs and restarts are considered. At the sub-elite level, this heterogenous trend was more pronounced, with midfielders significantly taller than full-backs (5.8 cm), half-backs (5.8 cm), half-forwards (7.2 cm), and full-forwards (7.1 cm) (all values mean difference). Differences in body mass were minimal across positions. However, it was noticeable that players were heavier, but also leaner at the elite level. Practitioners may consider the manipulation of players' body composition important, as key performance characteristics, including speed, endurance, strength, and power, can be directly influenced by variations in adiposity and lean body mass [30; 31]. Our data shows that at each independent level, there were further positional differences at the sub-elite level regarding the sum of seven skinfolds, %AT and FFM. Sub-elite midfielders had significantly reduced skinfolds compared to half-backs (\(-24.9\) mm), half-forwards (\(-18.9\) mm) and full-forwards (\(-17.6\) mm), with full-backs having less than half-backs also (\(-19.9\) mm). Additionally, sub-elite midfielders had reduced %AT compared to half-backs (\(-1.9\%\)), while midfielders had greater estimations of FFM than half-forwards (9.7 kg). Elite level players had a significantly lower sum of seven skinfolds across all five positional lines, with differences ranging from 15-37 mm. At half-back, half-forward, and full-forward elite players decreased %AT (2.4-3.7%) and increased FFM (5.1-6.7 kg). The consistent implementation of preparatory programs at the elite level, coupled with increased running performance demands and increased nutritional considerations, may explain the consistent decrease in skinfolds and adiposity while seeing an increase in FFM across elite positions [6; 9]. This increase in FFM can reflect positively in terms of muscular density and force production, which can, in turn, result in superior speed, power and jump performance during competitive play [32; 33]. Similar to most field-based team sports, possession of the ball (sliothar) is a key determinant to the outcome of the game, as the team in possession has the ability to score while essentially preventing the opposition from scoring. One of the most important aspects of hurling match-play is the ability to win primary possession in contested aerial duals, with the art of \"high fielding\" considered a particularly important skill to develop [1; 2; 4]. The decrease in adiposity at the elite level would likely have pre-empted a disparity in lower limb power output due to the enhancement in a player's power to weight ratio [7]. We observed no significant differences across positions at each level individually when CMJ, CMJ PP and CMJ RPP were considered. While not significant, a hierarchical trend was still evident with the transitional line's performance improved. This was in agreement with previous literature for the elite hurlers [10]. Interestingly, CMJ performance was lower than previously reported profiling results at the elite level [10]; this can potentially be explained by an increase in the tactical approach in the game nowadays. Teams are more conscious of retaining possession and utilizing short puck-outs and a short passing game, resulting in a reduction of aimless long deliveries where a greater dependency was placed on aerial duals.