Abstract :
Objective: This study explored psychophysiological stress in professional Australian Rules football athletes across the course of one competitive season. Methods: A sample of eight players listed with one professional Australian football club participated in this study. Each week during the competitive season (22 weeks), players self-reported their general fatigue and sleep using a paper-based scale, as well as providing a salivary cortisol measure. Testing occurred 48-hours after competition. Participants' weekly performance rating scores based on a points system metric of players' data obtained during competitive matches were also recorded by the club each week. Results: A significant inverse relationship was observed between cortisol and performance ratings, sleep and fatigue, and sleep and performance ratings. There was a significant predictive relationship observed, with cortisol levels and performance rankings ([R.sup.2] = .35, F (6,74) = 7.06, p Conclusions: This study shows a significant relationship between performance outcomes and psychophysiological stress in professional Australian football players. Professional clubs should look towards objective assessment protocols to measure athlete psychological stress to enhance current practice of self-report stress measures. Keywords: Professional Sport,Stress, Cortisol, Performance, Sports Psychology