The relationship between training/match load and injuries in academy players during a provincial under 19 rugby union season

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dc.contributor.advisorLambert, Michael Ien_ZA
dc.contributor.advisorBurgess, Theresaen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorVan Wyk, Johanen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2016-02-09T12:15:33Z
dc.date.available2016-02-09T12:15:33Z
dc.date.issued2015en_ZA
dc.descriptionIncludes bibliographical referencesen_ZA
dc.description.abstractBackground: The influence of professionalism has filtered down to junior levels in rugby union. The increased demands on junior professional rugby players has an impact on their fitness characteristics, training load, match load and injury profiles. Although many studies have been conducted on senior rugby union players, not much is known about junior players as they make the transition into the senior ranks. The aim of this study was to describe the training/match load during the pre-season and competitive in-season in a squad of under 19 academy rugby players and then to relate this to the injuries (contact and non-contact) sustained during the different phases of the season. A secondary aim was to measure the physical ability of the players through the season. Methods: Injury and training data from players in the Western Province under 19 Currie Cup squad (n=34) were recorded on a daily basis throughout the rugby season (42 weeks). The training load was represented by the time (minutes) spend in each activity associated with training, conditioning and match play. The players also underwent measurements of body mass, stature, body fat percentage, upper body muscular endurance (pull ups), and muscular strength (1RM bench press), sprint times (10m and 40m) and anaerobic capacity (5 meter shuttle run). All tests were conducted in January and June, which coincided with the beginning of pre-season and the beginning of the competition phase respectively. Results: Over the season 71 injuries were recorded, comprising 17 pre-season injuries, 18 pre-competition injuries and 36 competition phase injuries. There was no difference between the occurrence of contact and non-contact injuries during the different phases of the season. Although there was no significant difference between the injury rates during the different phases of the season, there was a significant difference between the injury rates in training (4.4/1000 player hours) and matches (74.1/1000 player hours). The most common body parts injured were thighs, hip/groin, ankles and shoulders, with injuries to the hand/finger and knee being the most severe. Muscles and ligaments were the structures that got injured the most. The average duration of days to return-to-play after an injury was 17 days. There were significant changes in the physical characteristics of the players in the six months between the test batteries. In addition to getting taller, players generally improved their fitness characteristics with significant improvements occurring in the bench press (8%), pull ups (113%), vertical jump (13%) and the 5 meter shuttle run (6%). Conclusion: The training load of the junior professional rugby players is similar to the load of senior professional rugby players. This represents a sudden increase compared to the previous year when the players were at school. A long-term research project with a database of rugby schools will assist in bridging the gap between the demands of junior rugby and junior professional rugby. Players joining a professional academy system after school need physical, emotional and tactical fast tracking as they are competing in a highly competitive environment for senior professional contracts. This accounts for the relatively high rate of injury throughout the season. Players need to be carefully monitored and managed during the season to detect symptoms reflecting poor adaptation to the training load.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationVan Wyk, J. (2015). <i>The relationship between training/match load and injuries in academy players during a provincial under 19 rugby union season</i>. (Thesis). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Health Sciences ,Division of Physiotherapy. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/16929en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationVan Wyk, Johan. <i>"The relationship between training/match load and injuries in academy players during a provincial under 19 rugby union season."</i> Thesis., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Health Sciences ,Division of Physiotherapy, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/16929en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationVan Wyk, J. 2015. The relationship between training/match load and injuries in academy players during a provincial under 19 rugby union season. University of Cape Town.en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Van Wyk, Johan AB - Background: The influence of professionalism has filtered down to junior levels in rugby union. The increased demands on junior professional rugby players has an impact on their fitness characteristics, training load, match load and injury profiles. Although many studies have been conducted on senior rugby union players, not much is known about junior players as they make the transition into the senior ranks. The aim of this study was to describe the training/match load during the pre-season and competitive in-season in a squad of under 19 academy rugby players and then to relate this to the injuries (contact and non-contact) sustained during the different phases of the season. A secondary aim was to measure the physical ability of the players through the season. Methods: Injury and training data from players in the Western Province under 19 Currie Cup squad (n=34) were recorded on a daily basis throughout the rugby season (42 weeks). The training load was represented by the time (minutes) spend in each activity associated with training, conditioning and match play. The players also underwent measurements of body mass, stature, body fat percentage, upper body muscular endurance (pull ups), and muscular strength (1RM bench press), sprint times (10m and 40m) and anaerobic capacity (5 meter shuttle run). All tests were conducted in January and June, which coincided with the beginning of pre-season and the beginning of the competition phase respectively. Results: Over the season 71 injuries were recorded, comprising 17 pre-season injuries, 18 pre-competition injuries and 36 competition phase injuries. There was no difference between the occurrence of contact and non-contact injuries during the different phases of the season. Although there was no significant difference between the injury rates during the different phases of the season, there was a significant difference between the injury rates in training (4.4/1000 player hours) and matches (74.1/1000 player hours). The most common body parts injured were thighs, hip/groin, ankles and shoulders, with injuries to the hand/finger and knee being the most severe. Muscles and ligaments were the structures that got injured the most. The average duration of days to return-to-play after an injury was 17 days. There were significant changes in the physical characteristics of the players in the six months between the test batteries. In addition to getting taller, players generally improved their fitness characteristics with significant improvements occurring in the bench press (8%), pull ups (113%), vertical jump (13%) and the 5 meter shuttle run (6%). Conclusion: The training load of the junior professional rugby players is similar to the load of senior professional rugby players. This represents a sudden increase compared to the previous year when the players were at school. A long-term research project with a database of rugby schools will assist in bridging the gap between the demands of junior rugby and junior professional rugby. Players joining a professional academy system after school need physical, emotional and tactical fast tracking as they are competing in a highly competitive environment for senior professional contracts. This accounts for the relatively high rate of injury throughout the season. Players need to be carefully monitored and managed during the season to detect symptoms reflecting poor adaptation to the training load. DA - 2015 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2015 T1 - The relationship between training/match load and injuries in academy players during a provincial under 19 rugby union season TI - The relationship between training/match load and injuries in academy players during a provincial under 19 rugby union season UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/16929 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/16929
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationVan Wyk J. The relationship between training/match load and injuries in academy players during a provincial under 19 rugby union season. [Thesis]. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Health Sciences ,Division of Physiotherapy, 2015 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/16929en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentDivision of Physiotherapyen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Health Sciencesen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.subject.otherSports Physiotherapyen_ZA
dc.titleThe relationship between training/match load and injuries in academy players during a provincial under 19 rugby union seasonen_ZA
dc.typeMaster Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelMasters
dc.type.qualificationnameMPhilen_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceThesisen_ZA
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