Playing With An Injury? - Don't Do It!

How many of you have continued to play when you know that you have an injury? Little niggles can become big problems if they go untreated, but many players worry about losing their place in the team and say nothing.

You can’t give 100% if you are not fully fit, and early treatment, or even injury prevention, is much better than being unable to play for a long time because you ignored the signs of injury and did not seek advice.

If you suspect you have an injury please inform your team manager and arrange a consultation with the physiotherapist as soon as possible.

Basic Advice

RICE - Even minor knocks and sprains will mend better if you treat them quickly. Remember the RICE treatment.

Rest the injured limb. (A good excuse not to do the washing up!)

Ice – keep a pack in the freezer, or use ice cubes in a plastic bag. Frozen peas can come in handy! Make sure that you don’t put ice directly onto the skin, get a damp tea towel and place this on your skin and then put the ice on. Apply for 15-20 minutes every couple of hours if you can.

Compress the injury with a bandage or “Tubigrip”.

Elevate the injured limb – get your feet up and let someone else make the tea.

If you have an acute injury, take paracetemol rather than ibuprofen as inflammation/swelling has chemicals which help your injuries heal and ibuprofren is an anti-inflammatory.