Recently I attended the International Olympic Committee (IOC) World Conference on Injury and Illness Prevention in Monaco. The Conference involved some of the best researchers from all over the world and included discussion regarding a number of sports. Football being one of the main ones.

As the title of the conference suggests the main focus was how to prevent injuries in athletes. To do this we need to understand what are the most common injuries for footballers, what is likely to contribute to them occuring and then what we can do to prevent it. This article will focus on hamstring strains.

In elite football the most common injury is a hamstring strain. Players with an acute hamstring are, on average, out of full training for 21 days and this can cost a high level club approximately 500 000 Euros/injury! This is a huge expense for such a common injury. Obviously in Australia those sums are not comparable however there is much to be done.

The only scientifically confirmed risk factors for hamstring strain are: age and previous history of injury. In other words, if you are an older player and have strained your hamstring before then you are at a high risk. However there was some very encouraging evidence that by increasing specific hamstring muscle strength and muscle activation then we may be able to prevent not only hamstring tears but may also be able to prevent Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) tears – especially in female footballers.

There are many exercises that can strengthen hamstring muscles in various positions. The main ones that have been shown to increase hamstring strength and activation are: kettle bell swings, Romanian Deadlifts and Nordic protocol hamstring curls. These specific exercises target and result in the highest amount of muscle change and therefore should be considered in every prevention program.

Matt Whalan

M.Phty B.ExScRehab(Hons)

www.figtreephysio.com.au