I asked this a couple of weeks ago and here we go again, another player (Bothroyd) just pulling up with a leg injury.
To my mind, and I'm sure it's reality as well as perecption, this happens far more at Cardiff than any other club. So why?
This season, we've had Kennedy, McCormack, Quinn, Feeney (in training) and now Bothroyd - and we're only 5 games into the season.
Last season, players affected included Bothroyd (twice), McNaughton (twice), Kennedy, Scimeca, McCormack (twice), McPhail, Ledley, Blake and, I think, Parry.
To me, that hints of being more than just bad luck.
2 comments:
Most hamstring injuries are the cause of imbalance in the pelvic region. Highly trained athletes at the limit of their potential fitness must have balance between the muscle groups, ligaments, tendons of the legs and lower torso. Old time players used to get more knee injuries because the fitness levels were not as high as today and any weakness was found in the instability of the knee joint. Once this was recognized strengthening the hamstring compensated for the weakness of the knee joint by further supporting it when cutting and turning. However, some players are born with shorter or weaker hamstrings than others. This can lead to inflexibility and also pelvic and lower back injuries. The key is a firmly held pelvic and lower back region at least for the majority of players. The fitness regime must be individual for each athlete though this is not really possible in a team sport where players are generally trained together for the most part. A track athlete can have an individual program but that is not 100% possible for a footballer. With a highly trained player at the limit of their fitness potential even small imbalances can make a hige difference.
Overtraining can also be an issue though you have to assume that would not be the case at a professional level. However, trying to strengthen hamstrings to compensate for or prevent knee injuries is a well know issue.
Hope this helps.
Oh ... and inequality in leg length or any opposing bone structures will also do it.
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