News

Prevention is better than cure

Wednesday, 08 August 2012

Scotland’s best young players are set to benefit from one of the most advanced screening programmes ever undertaken in youth football in the UK.

The Scottish FA’s Regional Performance School curriculum has been developed with the help of experts in different fields, to support the players both on and off the pitch.

As the players prepare to start their first term next week, staff from the Sports Health and Injury Clinic at Hampden Park will conduct a screening process to establish performance profiles for each individual player.

All of the players taking part in the programme are talented, and have the potential to forge a career in the game. However there are other factors that may make them predisposed to injury, such as movement faults, muscle imbalance or biomechanical issues.

The performance profiles created for each player are designed to reduce the time that they miss through preventable injuries by identifying and correcting any such faults at an early age.

Johanne Wilson, senior physiotherapist at the Sports Health and Injury Clinic said:

“In the past, physiotherapy was about treating injuries. Now, and specifically as part of performance programmes, there is a pro-active approach, with a focus on injury prevention. This kind of screening is carried out regularly in other sports, but generally with older athletes. 

“The players will be screened both at their schools and at the clinic, in person and using video analysis.

“This is a scientific process and we will be recording specific qualitative data. We will be assessing joints and muscles, and how individual players perform certain functional movements.

“It is important that the players go through this process at the start of the programme. The players are at an age-group where they often suffer injuries as their bodies adapt to growth spurts. If we can highlight those who are at risk and why, before the football programme starts, the players should lose less time training and playing through addressing preventable injuries.”

The data gathered from the screening process will also help the seven elite performance coaches to build individual training programmes for their players.

Wilson continued:  “An important part of our remit is coach education. We have been working closely with the coaches who will be with the players every day, so that they can use the information the profile provides to build and develop individual training programmes for each player.

“Players can develop injuries through bad movement patterns or by performing an exercise at the wrong level. This type of analysis helps the coaches to set appropriate levels for each player and individualise their programme. 

“By working with individual players at the outset, rather than having a blanket approach for the whole group, the players will benefit from tailored programmes that will adapt as they develop.”