It's sport science not voodoo medicine

(Justin Crow is a physiotherapist and exercise physiologist. He is currently employed as rehabilitation coach at the Essendon Football Club.)

Darren Berry should be congratulated on his appointment as new head coach of the South Australian Redbacks. He may well have his work cut out, coaching a side that only recently broke through for its first piece of silverware in 16 years, beating New South Wales for the Twenty20 title. Berry has suggested that a key to turning his squad around will be to instill old-fashioned values such as a loyalty to club cricket, and he might be right. However, his suggestion in a recent Sunday Age article that an overemphasis on sport science has been a factor in the recent decline in Australian cricket warrants further scrutiny.

Australia is renowned as a world leader in the field of sport science. Sport scientists are experts in analysing current research and trends to improve sporting performance and reduce injury risk. Given Australia?s relatively small population base, the performance of our athletes on the international stage is outstanding. Interestingly, Australia?s drop from first to fifth in the ICC's Test cricket rankings has been accompanied by a drain of Australia?s top sport scientists overseas. England?s raid on Australian sport science expertise in preparation for the London Olympics has been unprecedented, while both the Indian and Sri Lankan cricket teams? employ sport scientists educated and trained in Australia.

Berry?s gripe with sport science appears to stem from a frustration with his bowlers being restricted by recommended training loads. Specifically, he suggests that in order to prepare bowlers for long spells of bowling they need to do increased amounts of bowling. This comment reeks of one of my colleague?s favorite sayings, ?throw enough eggs against a wall, and eventually you?ll find one that won?t break.? Coaches who over-train their athletes in the hope that the one who survives will become a champion are unsuited to countries such as Australia that have relatively small populations. Consequently, we must strive to nurture our young elite sports people to maximise their chances of success.

Cricket Australia should be commended for their implementation of bowling guidelines and restrictions on our young fast bowlers. This approach might not be consistent with ?old values? but it cannot be disputed in terms of its strong scientific basis and efficacy. When performed to excess, the repetitive nature of fast bowling is well known to contribute to stress fractures of the lower back, an injury that requires a prolonged period to rehabilitate. You only need to look at Australia?s recent ICC World Cup bid to understand just how devastating injuries can be to a team?s performance.

Last year, I was employed in the sports science team at the Collingwood Football Club. The week following the drawn grand final was a fascinating one. The players already knew their game plans, structures and opponents inside and out, so that the week was essentially a sport science arms race to see who could best recover their players and prepare for the replay. Visits to St Kilda beach were only the tip of the iceberg in a week that was carefully structured to rejuvenate the Collingwood playing list. There is no doubt in my mind that Director of Sport Science, Dr David Buttifant, can take much of the credit for the team?s performance in the rematch.

The sports science team led by Dr Stuart Cormack at the Essendon Football Club is no different and forms a key part in the everyday running of an elite AFL program. Sophisticated player monitoring systems are put in place to track how players cope with workload and, without sport science intervention, coaching staff risk losing their players to fatigue and injury. Current game trends are closely scrutinised to guide conditioning and training sessions. Coaches are now able to base decisions on objective data rather than relying too heavily on instinct alone.

I consider the role of a sport scientist is to support the coach. This means using their knowledge of the latest research and trends to help facilitate their coach?s philosophies and coaching methods. Instead of restricting a coach, sport science aims to assist coaches in their decision-making. A strong relationship between the disciplines of coaching and sport science is integral to the success of many Australian teams at the elite level.

Darren Berry commented that he would love to know comparative injury rates between now and 20 years ago. I?d recommend his first point of call should be to ask his sport scientist.

Source: http://www.backpagelead.com.au/cricket/4044-its-sport-science-not-voodoo-medicine

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