M.Phil. (Biokinetics) / As with any other athletic activity, football participation carries an inherent risk for injury. Inadequate rehabilitation and incomplete healing have been identified as some of the key reasons for the high levels of injury in football. The majority of football injuries occur in the lower extremities. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between functional movement patterns and injury in junior football players. South African youth development players (119) participated in the study. This study adopted a quantitative and descriptive research approach. An injury questionnaire (retrospective) was completed and Functional Movement Screening (FMS) was used to assess each participant. The relationship between injuries suffered previously and FMS score was analysed. Kolmogorov-­‐Smirnov and Shapiro-­‐Wilk tests were used to determine normality. A Levene’s test for equality of variances was conducted. Independent sample t-tests were used to test inter-group differences. The confidence level was set at 95% (p≤0.05). The findings reflected that injuries, in this group, were prevalent with 87.3% of the sample having sustained a previous injury. Lower limb injuries were the most prevalent (76%); 58.8% of the lower limb injuries were of a non-contact nature and 41.1% were due to contact. The mean FMS score was 12.9, which, according to previous research, is linked to an increased risk for injury. There was a significant difference in FMS score between players who sustained a lower limb injury, compared to those who suffered an injury to another part of the body (p=0.032). This study found that injury was prevalent in junior football players and that FMS is a useful tool to screen for injury risk. The primary recommendation is for injury prevention strategies to be established in youth development football in South Africa.

UK health and safety legislation aims to protect employees from injury at work; professional footballers as employees are therefore covered by this legislation. A risk assessment approach to health and safety issues, as required by the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1992, has been undertaken to establish the epidemiological and aetiological factors related to injuries in professional football and to identify management and training procedures to reduce the incidence and severity of injuries. Issues of injury frequency and causation during the period 1994 to 1997 were addressed through two routes. First, during the 1994 World Cup Finals, 1996 European Championships, and 1994 to 1997 English league seasons via match analysis. Second, player injuries at four professional football league clubs were recorded by the club physiotherapist. These results provided complementary evidence showing an overall injury rate of 8.5/1000 playing hours, injury rates during training and matches being 3.5/1000 and 27.7/1000 playing hours, respectively. Two thirds of the injuries occurred during competitive match play, the remainder during training, the highest incidences of match and training injuries taking place during the first month of the playing season (P<O.05) and the pre-season period (P<0.05), respectively. The lower extremity was the site of 87% of the reported injuries, 41% and 22% of all injuries being muscular strains and re-injuries, respectively. Injury profiles differed between youth and senior players (P<0.01). Additional information was recorded through an assessment of club training routines and a survey of professional footballers' knowledge and application of injury prevention strategies. Issues relating to current injury prevention practices, player's perception of injury risk and advice received relating to these issues were addressed. These results provided supportive evidence showing poor understanding of and adherence to accepted athlete training procedures and the implementation of injury prevention practices. The studies suggest that a substantial number of injuries could be prevented in English professional football through identification of the hazards presented to players, an assessment of the existing risk levels and implementation of more rigorous control measures. Deficiencies in injury prevention practices indicate a need for wider education of players and coaches regarding the hazards and risks associated with professional football and the availability of medical and sports science knowledge to reduce these levels of risk.

>Magister Scientiae - MSc / The study aimed at identifying the current state of injury related care for Malawi super league football players. To achieve this the study determined the average time taken by soccer players in Malawi to return to active participation following an injury, identified the type of treatment received by football players, determined the management of football injuries by team doctors in Malawi, established the responsibilities of football coaches in the management of injuries in Malawi and established the financial and medical support received by football players after sustaining an injury