NRL, soccer, rugby, AFL, hockey, netball… the list is almost endless of the sports that re commence as the colder months come round. Not to mention touch football, oz tag etc.

The types of injuries that tend to be sustained in these sports are unsurprisingly, heavily biased to the lower limbs, particularly ankles and knees. Of course, the unpredictable nature of sport means that some injuries are unavoidable. There are however, steps that you can take to help prevent injuries that result from lack of strength, fitness or flexibility.

Research into sporting injuries suggests that they most often occur in the first 4 weeks of a new season. Pre-season training is an important factor in getting this injury rate down.

Preseason training obviously needs to be sports specific, although there are some components that should be included in any program.

Strength
Upper limb, lower limb and especially core strength is really important to most sports. Football is no exception, especially with the one on one, two on one or three on one combat that often occurs in contact sports!

To improve strength, a muscle must be challenged – a typical weight program will require lifting loads of 10RM (repeated measures). That is, a weight that you can safely lift 10 times but not 11. You must use correct technique and there should be no pain. The idea of challenging the muscle this way it is to stimulate growth of muscle fibres and hence, increase muscle bulk and overall strength.

When starting a weights program your focus must first be to lift properly. Any program or new exercise should begin with concentrating on technique, using a small weight that you can lift 30-50 times is recommended to begin with.

We recommend that any new program should be commenced under the guidance of a personal trainer to get you started safely.

Fitness
Running is crucial in most types of sport and this is certainly the case in all football codes. Sprint training in particular, is a key factor and requires special attention. The 40m sprint is a common tool that is used in assessment of speed and can be easily measured. It is relevant in many sports, including football, where short quick bursts are required with rapid acceleration. It is suggested that, in order to improve sprint speed, a number of factors should be addressed – technique, strength, plyometrics and sprinting (Marshall).

Sprinting however, is only part of the game! Most sports have 40 – 45 minute halves (or more if there is injury or extra-time). Endurance training is also essential to allow players to get through a game and should include sustained cardiovascular exercise such as going for longer runs of 30 – 45 minutes. This should also include some changes of pace to simulate game activity.

Flexibility
The third component of any exercise program should be a comprehensive stretching program, including all of the major muscle groups in the body. Maintaining good muscle length is vital to preventing injuries that can occur from overstretching or moving uncontrolled into awkward positions.

To increase muscle length, stretches should be done daily and be held for at least 30 seconds. You should not feel pain, but a comfortable, moderate stretching sensation in the area of concern. Stretches are best done at the end of warm-up.

Skills
Each football discipline has a specific set of skills that must be practised as part of any pre-season training. This is best done while working with the team and under the supervision of a coach and trainer and incorporated into fitness work.

Injury Management
It is really important in any sport that injuries are dealt with immediately. If you’re playing at a level where there is a club physio, this will allow immediate assessment of the risk of continuing play. Club trainers are also trained in doing a basic assessment of many injuries and can give a quick analysis of the situation and whether it is appropriate to continue play.

When neither of these options are available, the participant must take greater responsibility for themselves and discontinue play if there is any question of serious injury. When a player is no longer able to continue play, they can frequently believe they are ‘letting the team down’, but it is far greater to leave them a player short for the remainder of one game than risk further injury and leave them short for months!

As always, initial management of injuries should include basic first aid – Rest, Ice Compression, Elevation. Most injuries will settle reasonably quickly. If there is ongoing pain after 1-2 days, it would be wise to seek the opinion of a health professional. If you feel the injury is quite serious, you should head for the emergency department in a hospital (especially on the weekend).

Special Groups

Touch Football
So many injuries are sustained from this sport! It seems that people generally think of it as a less serious option and is frequently played on a once-a-week basis with little warm-up, very little training and next to no preseason work!

It is important to remember that all the components listed above (strength, fitness, flexibility and skills) are just as important in this game as any other… and the chance of injury just as high!

Women in Sport
There has been a huge influx of women participating in football (especially soccer) worldwide over the past 10 years. While overall, the injury rate for women is lower than it is for men, the types of injuries are the same as for men - most injures are to the lower limb and are made up of types of injuries such as contusions, sprains or ligament ruptures.

Ankle sprain is the single most common injury. To prevent ankle injury, strength, flexibility and proprioceptive training is necessary. Proprioception is the way the body knows its position in space and is most commonly improved by balance exercises, such as using a wobble board, standing on one leg with your eyes closed, throwing/catching a ball while on one leg. Bracing of the ankle is recommended for those who have had a sprain within the season or have had recurrent sprains over the previous seasons.

Knee injuries are also fairly common, with the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) rupture being the most feared! Risk of ACL rupture is increased on poor playing surfaces, when there is hamstring weakness and in the hot weather.

Injury prevention can be difficult and there will always be accidents and injuries happening in sport, as people push themselves toward peak performance. The chance of injury however, can be greatly reduced by maintaining your strength, flexibility and fitness, actively engaging in sport specific skill development and ensuring you undertake an effective and appropriate pre-season training program.

References:
1. http://www.pponline.co.uk Short and sweet - why all sportsmen and women should consider 40m sprinting! (Marshall)
2. Health and Fitness for the Female Football Player (Grimm, Silver & Mandelbaum)