There was an increase in the frequency of rugby union spinal injuries worldwide during the 1970s and early 1980s. The United Kingdom and Australia have since had some success in reducing this increase in spinal injuries. These changes were the result of actions by rugby union authorities in response to recommendations by medical advisors; legal action by injured players has also played a part. ...

The 15-a-side Fiji rugby team trains well in preparations for any rugby competition but rarely performs to expectations. In order to help the Fiji local based rugby players to identify some key basic areas in improving their performance, a series of workshops were conducted to assess their nutritional status and dietary habits in relation to energy demand during rugby matches. The nutrition wor...

OBJECTIVE To determine the frequency, nature, circumstances, and outcome of schoolboy rugby injuries and to compare these injuries with those occurring in senior rugby clubs. METHODS The study was a prospective cohort study, conducted on 1705 (98%) of 1736 eligible players from nine Edinburgh schools and 1169 (96%) of 1216 eligible players from all 26 senior Scottish Rugby Union clubs (South ...

OBJECTIVES To examine bilateral ball-passing skills whilst running amongst first-grade rugby union footballers. DESIGN Within-group design SETTING NSW Rugby Training facilities, Moore Park, Sydney. PARTICIPANTS One international player used as a case study and twenty, first grade rugby union players. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES High-speed film was first used to capture the performance of an i...

OBJECTIVE To determine the frequency and nature of injuries sustained during the IRB 2011 Rugby World Cup. DESIGN A prospective, whole population survey. POPULATION 615 international rugby players representing 20 teams competing at the IRB 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand. METHOD The study was implemented according to the international consensus statement for epidemiological studies in...

Rugby league is a collision team sport played at junior and senior levels worldwide, whereby players require highly developed anthropometric and physical qualities (i.e. speed, change-of-direction speed, aerobic capacity, muscular strength and power). Within junior levels, professional clubs and national governing bodies implement talent identification and development programmes to support the ...

BACKGROUND Severe cervical spine injury in rugby union (rugby) exerts a major impact on the individual who sustains the injury and on the broader society. Since the late 1970s, authors of rugby case report studies have postulated that the underlying mechanism of cervical spine injury is hyperflexion of the neck. However, this is in conflict with findings from more recent experimental studies. T...

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As mouthguards provide protection of the teeth, jaws, adjacent soft tissues and also protect the brain against concussion following impacts to the mandible, the use of mouthguards in contact sports is strongly recommended. It is therefore essential to gauge regularly the use of mouthguards in the various contact sports at all levels of competition. Of the 30 members of the 1984 Australian Rugby...