Why sleep will be a key tactical difference in Melbourne’s NFL match

A leading sleep expert says the Los Angeles Rams will have a crucial adrenaline edge over the San Francisco 49ers after making the bold decision to arrive only the day before their historic NFL clash at the MCG.ESPN have confirmed the Rams are due to complete their 15-hour flight and arrive only 24 hours before their Friday morning game on September 11 (10.35am AEST kick-off) in Melbourne, while fierce NFC divisional rivals the 49ers have opted for a more conventional approach, arriving a week out from the clash.Rams coach Sean McVay and his team will arrive in Melbourne a day out from their September 11 clash at the MCG.APThe Rams are treating this trip like all of their away games, and have road-tested the best way to avoid deep jet lag. They have sent employees to Australia and back within a pre-planned time to determine the best way to handle the trip, given Los Angeles is 17 hours behind Melbourne.Sleep expert Leon Lack, a professor of psychology at Flinders University in South Australia, said the Rams had made the right call.“I think they [Rams] are probably right, and I think it will give them a slight advantage over the 49ers because the game is scheduled for 10.30am – a pretty early start,” Lack said.“There is a [17-hour, with LA still on the previous day] difference between the west coast of the States and Melbourne which means their body clock will be seven hours later than when they first arrive in Australia. What that means for the Rams contingent is that 10.30am is likely to be 5.30pm for their body clocks.“Their body clocks will likely not have changed very much in that one day.”Lack said the reaction time and muscle strength of players is at its best late in the afternoon.He said the Rams could go to bed early on Thursday night in Melbourne, and wake about 4am on Friday, which would be late morning on Thursday at home, giving them something of a typical lead-in they would normally have.Lack said the 49ers’ body clocks would adjust to the local time through their week here, but they would have to prepare for an unusual early morning start.San Francisco’s Jordan James, with the ball, tries to get past the Las Vegas Raiders in a pre-season game on Thursday.Getty Images“They will be playing the game quite early in their body-clock day compared to late afternoon for the Rams,” he said.“I think the San Francisco 49ers have made a mistake, in thinking that they will adjust their body clocks, not taking into account it’s a very early start to the game.“The 49ers will be facing a very early start according to their body clocks, which have delayed over the prior week, and they will not be in the best position to be as strong and as fast as the Rams.”But Stephanie Rogers, the 49ers’ chief marketing officer, said they, too, had been guided by experts.“In terms of the strategy behind staying for a full week rather than a shorter trip, our health and performance experts determined that a full week gives the team the best chance to win on the field,” Rogers told this masthead.“The goal is to entirely replicate a standard week of practice back home. Staying the week also allows their players to properly adjust to the time difference and get back on their normal nutrition and hydration schedules after the long flight, which is crucial for world-class athletes.”Former NFL punter Sav Rocca said there was merit in each approach.“Which is the way to go? The flight in itself, I think, drains you a little bit. It’s not a two-or-three-hour flight – it’s a 14-hour flight. You get dehydrated, but I am sure they have got a plan going in,” Rocca, also a former star goalkicker for Collingwood and North Melbourne in the AFL, said.The 49ers will acclimatise to local conditions by arriving in Melbourne a week early.Getty Images“I am sure if they [the Rams] stick to the time zone … it will be a night game for them.”In London last year, the Rams arrived on the morning of the game, beat the Jacksonville Jaguars, and then immediately flew home.Rams coach Sean McVay maintains he is yet to discuss travel details with his team, given he wanted them to focus on their immediate pre-season preparation after a season in which they fell just one game short of the Super Bowl.The Rams have closed out their pre-season campaign with three wins, while the 49ers had two victories, their focus now firmly on Melbourne.49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said the franchise was looking forward to the trip.“I wish we played them here for what we usually look at as a home game, we’ll see how it is in Australia,” he said.“We’ll play the Rams wherever; going there, it is what it is. It’s going to be a fun atmosphere, and always when we play the Rams, it’s a big, tough game. Looking forward to it.”That the Rams are the host team has made their decision to arrive so close to kick-off a particular surprise, as it means their players will do little promotional work ahead of the sold-out clash.However, players have been sent out to conduct promotional work and school clinics over the past year.Streaming behemoth Netflix and ESPN have the international rights to the clash, which will be beamed into US markets in the early and late evening. Seven has the local free-to-air rights.News, results and expert analysis from the weekend of sport sent every Monday. Sign up for our Sport newsletter.Jon Pierik is a sports journalist at The Age. He covers AFL and has won awards for his cricket and basketball writing.Connect via X or email.From our partners