With all the talk about player size and potential rule changes to try and stem the tide of injuries amongst elite rugby players it was interesting to compare and contrast my game last weekend with the u12’s and my games this weekend with the first and second xv.
I blogged last week that I had spent an enjoyable day in the sun - this weekend was very different and it wasn’t just the weather. The u12’s are very much still learning to play rugby and as such it is a totally different game, they also lack the size and strength to do themselves any real damage, plus physiologically at this age they are less likely to injure themselves.
Watching the first and second team this weekend the size difference between players is markedly evident and the game more closely follows the professional game with more time spent in contact and bigger, harder hits de rigueur. The injury count from this weekend was quite impressive. At the start of the game there were already limited subs due to injuries and it didn’t help when I had to stop one of them from being involved with a suspected MCL strain. Ten of the thirty players who started were injured during the course of the game plus there were two more serious injuries to opposition players (gleno-humeral subluxation and suspected clavicle fracture) it was the most challenging 80 minutes I’ve had to date.
There are fundamental differences between working in rugby and football and as someone who regularly does both I have to say I much prefer working in amateur rugby as the systems that they have in place ensure that any injured player can receive attention as quickly as possible. To explain: with rugby a sports therapist/physio can come onto the pitch during play, whereas in football you have to wait for the referee to give you permission (unless it is a head injury) to come onto the pitch - which with amateur football can be some time. Not ideal.
http://www.fitforsportclinic.com/
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