Scotstoun Stadium
21st August 2017
Some notes from the Player Welfare Workshop that took place at Scotstoun Stadium on 21st August.
Hosted by: James Wade (SRU Coach Development Officer)
Speakers: Peter Lavery (SRU Council & Board Member), Dr David Pugh (Glasgow Warriors team doctor), Karen Burnett (SRU Lead Child Protection Officer)
Peter Lavery:
Child protection is an absolute priority to the Union - compliance is essential.
Working party chaired by Dee Bradbury (SRU vice president) report to the SRU Board each month.
Child Protection training is being rolled out across the Union, with three levels:
Foundation - RugbyRight
Intermediate - Child Protection Officers
Advanced - employees & contractors
Concussion - Recognise, Respond, Report, Record
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PVG - Karen Burnettscheme record updates are required to link a member of the PVG scheme to the various clubs and organisations they work with. So if a coach has a PVG with another organisation, they still must complete a scheme update to link them to their rugby club.
As of 14th August, youth coaches without a PVG scheme record via the Club are not permitted to Coach at the Club.
If an adult is involved in coaching or managing kids (under 18s), then they must be PVG'd through the Club.
An existing PVG elsewhere, still requires a scheme update to be eligible for coaching at the ClubAllow up to 1 month for PVG forms to be processed - Club processing, SRU processing, Volunteer Development Scotland processing & Disclosure Scotland processing.
Remember - No PVG via the Club = no coaching at the Club
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Preventing & Managing Injuries - Dr David Pugh
Concussion Management
Concussion = traumatic injury to the brain - which can lead to death.
CTE - Chronic traumatic encephalopathy - is thought to arise from repetitive brain injuries (concussions).
Recognise & Remove = If in doubt, sit them out, and they must not return to activity that day.
SCAT version 5
Graduated return to play - timelines are different for adult & youth players.
Minimum rest periods:
Adults - 7 days
Youth - 14 days
For youth, "complete rest" means schools & other Clubs should be notified when a concussion has been suffered, so they can be excused from activity.
If a player suffers a second concussion within 12 months then they should seek advice from a healthcare professional with experience in sports-related concussion.
Injury stats shows a spike injuries between 10 - 15 age group - though this probably isn't any different from other sports.
In general, tackling and being tackled are the biggest injury risk area.
SRU have aspirations to have a qualified 1st aider or medic with each team by 2020.
First aid in Rugby Level 1 course is being rolled at cost of £35 per person.
Keeping Rugby Clean
We have to recognise that doping does occur in sport, so must get the message across about the risks involved.
SRU are promoting a Food First approach - well balanced diet + eating at the right time.
Scottish Rugby do not provide supplements for male U18s, U17s, U16s players or for players in the Womans Performance Programme.
There are massive risks involved in using supplements, "easy" for contamination to happen at manufacturing sites.
Useful websites for supplements and anti-doping:
Informed Sport
WADA
100% me
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James Ward
Age Banding
Under 16s should not play under 18 rugby - though dispensation may be granted for exceptional players
Under 18s should not play adult rugby - though dispensation may be granted for exceptional players
Game Time Directive
Game time directive was previously a recommendation from SRU but it is now a policy approved by Council & Board.
It recognises that rugby is a late specialisation sport, and is aimed at reducing the risk of player burnout, and go towards promoting a culture of multi-sport.
Rest & rehabilitation is essential for all players.
Youth players are allowed to play a maximum of 90 minutes in a 48 hour period.
Not adhering to the policy may result in disciplinary action.
Activate Warm-up
New activate warm-up programme comes from research from Bath University which shows that following the programme three times a week injuries were reduced by 72% and concussions by 59%.
The programme focusses on increasing neck strength, balance and movement.
RugbyRight for all coaches and referees to be completed 31st October.
see also:
SRU slideshow & Eat Clean video
