Demographic factors affecting the rugby player distribution in Malta

Abstract

Rugby has had its fair share of success in the last decade in the Maltese Islands, despite being made of a very small population of circa 400,000 inhabitants. Rugby was first introduced in Malta by the British in the late 19th century, and survived to contemporary times, relatively thriving, where it has acclaimed various international milestones in sports. In this research, demographic factors such as locality of residence, district population and also academic achievements will be taken into consideration and try to determine whether there exists any correlation between them. This statistical analysis will be done through the use of the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient of Correlation. Furthermore, an analytic view on aspects with regard to youth athletes will be shed light upon in order to suggest ways and means to promote an active recruitment drive for young talent and more importantly the key aspect of youth development. Youth athletes are considered as fundamental to the survival of any sport and all teams should strive in order to try and make their transition to the first team as smooth and fast as possible.