The second factor on deciding the weekly fluctuations in training load is the length of the competitive week. As the football codes become less tied to one state, the necessary consequence is that the team you support will often be playing interstate. There is now a fairly strong incentive for games to be scheduled to maximise their potential TV coverage, all of which means that for the footballer, the break between one game and the next can be as miserly as five days or as luxurious as nine. A five-day break means you are not going to work your players very hard regardless of who they are playing, especially if your opponent has an extra day or two to prepare for the game A n1ne-day break gives you the chance to train hard for a few sessions and still have time to ease off before match day.