Melbourne Heart FC High Performance Manager, Medical, Martin Wollin, outlines the team’s pre-season physical screening process in the second of this two part series inside the treatment room.
With pre-season kicking-off today, Melbourne Heart FC-s High Performance department has been hard at work, conducting a comprehensive screening program to ensure the side is ready to tackle the rigours of football at the elite level.
High Performance Manager, Medical, Martin Wollin, outlines the process in the second of this two part series inside the treatment room.
For part one, click here.
In terms of injury prevention tests, we also have all our players- strength tested in terms of their thigh muscle strength. It-s a known risk factor for hamstring injuries if for instance you have a big weakness from one side to the next, or a big difference between quadriceps and hamstring strength.
They-ve all been through a computerised isokinetic strength test and as a follow through, they need to meet certain criteria from that test which we think will reduce the likelihood of hamstring injuries, which is the most common injury in football.
If they don-t meet those criteria, they will have individual strength programs to correct that and then have follow up tests again on a regular basis until they pass those criteria set by us.
In terms of fitness tests, the players will all have a nutrition consultation with our club dietician in order to be on top of their diet and get input in that area.
They-ve had their anthropometrics taken as a comparison to where they were at the end of last season, and we-ve also planned to have every players- vision checked and eyesight and sports specific vision testing.
We-ve got a specialist coming in to do that for us. All in all, we get a very good picture and profile of where our players are at in terms of how ready they are to train, what areas they need to improve on in order to prepare for the season ahead.
Long gone is the time where we just rocked up for training, trained and treated injuries and illness when they occurred. It-s just part of our philosophy of being a proactive High Performance unit in trying to maintain our players- welfare as best we can in an industry which is high risk.
