Incidence, site, and nature of injuries in amateur rugby league over three consecutive seasons

Tim J Gabbett

School of Physiotherapy and Exercise Science, Faculty of Health Sciences, Griffith University Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia

Correspondence to:
Correspondence to: Mr Gabbett, School of Physiotherapy and Exercise Science, Faculty of Health Sciences, Griffith University Gold Coast, PMB50 Gold Coast Mail Centre, Queensland, Australia 9726 Email: t.gabbett{at}mailbox.gu.edu.au

Objectives—To report the incidence, site, and nature of injuries in amateur rugby league over three consecutive seasons.

Methods—Six hundred players registered with an amateur rugby league organisation were studied over three consecutive seasons. All injuries sustained during the amateur rugby league matches were recorded. Information recorded included the date and time of injury, name of injured player, anatomical site and nature of injury, and position of the player.

Results—The incidence of injury was 160.6 per 1000 player-position game hours, with forwards having a significantly higher incidence of injury than backs (182.3 per 1000 v 142.0 per 1000, ² = 14.60, df = 1, p<0.001). Over 25% of the total injuries (40.6 per 1000) sustained during the three year period were to the head and neck, while injuries to the face (21.3 per 1000, 13.3%), abdomen and thorax (21.3 per 1000, 13.3%), and knee (17.8 per 1000, 11.1%) were less common (² = 21.83, df = 8, p<0.01). Muscular injuries (haematomas and strains) were the most common type of injury (45.7 per 1000, 28.5%, ² = 17.98, df = 7, p<0.05). Significantly more injuries occurred in the latter stages of the season (² = 22.94, df = 1, p<0.001), with most injuries (70.8%, ² = 162.29, df = 1, p<0.001) sustained in the second half of matches.

Conclusions—The results show that muscular injuries and injuries to the head and neck are the most commonly sustained injuries in amateur rugby league. Furthermore, injuries are more often sustained in the latter stages of the season and during the second half of matches. These findings suggest that fatigue or accumulative microtrauma, or both, may contribute to injuries in amateur rugby league players.

Key Words: rugby; injury; amateur; football

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