Prevent Injuries This Netball Season

One of the most popular team sports in Australia is netball. It is a fast-paced game with high intensity sprints and frequent rapid changes of direction. Due to the nature of the game and the repetitive jumping and landing actions, thousands of netball athletes are injured on the court every year in Australia. According to statistics, the two most common netball injuries are to the knee and ankle, with 42% being knee and 31% ankle.

What can you do to prevent a netball injury?

According to Sports Medicine Australia, the best thing you can do before a netball game is warm-up. In fact, a netball study found that athletes who did not complete a warm-up before a game increased their risk of injury by 48%! In addition, it is important to allow adequate time for warming up and ensure you are targeting the whole body.

What should you do in your warm-up to prevent injury?

In 2018, Netball Australia published the KNEE prevention program in conjunction with the Australian Institute of Sport. The program is an evidence-based warm-up to be completed by all netballers (i.e. junior, recreational and elite level) at least twice a week. If done correctly it is shown to reduce the risk of injuries to netballers. The program was designed with four underlying principles; good technique with take-off, landing, deceleration and change of direction. Below is an example of what the program might look like as a warm-up for recreational level netball:

WARM-UP:

• Jog forward and backward
• High Skips
• Butt flicks forward and backward
• Side skip and squat
• Forwards and backwards shuffle (left and right side)
• Forwards and backwards lateral shuffle
• Walking lunge
• Walking hamstring and gluteals
• Hip rotation walk
• Walking quadriceps

BALANCE/LANDING:

• Double leg and single leg jump & land
• Partner push
• Surprises
• Tuck jump and pause

STRENGTH:

• Squats
• Arabesque
• Plank

AGILITY:

• Defensive shuffle
• Sliding shuffle
• Lateral shuffle
• 'Y' drill

No matter what level of netball you play, make sure to include a proper warm-up this netball season to reduce your risk of injury. For more information and a detailed description of the full program, you can visit the Netball Australia's website here: https://knee.netball.com.au/ or contact TSIC with any questions. Call us on 9783 9990 or book online.