Co-curricular - Junior Sport
Week 5 Update
No matter how hard we try to prevent injuries in sport, we must come to terms with the fact that from time to time they will occur. How we deal with them and plan the recovery process is the key to longevity in our chosen sporting endeavors. The body has an amazing ability to heal if we give it a chance.
There are many different types of injury, from minor soreness and bruising to more extreme injuries, such as fractures and dislocations. All have a prescribed rehabilitation process and time depending on the individual. Some people heal a little quicker than others. These injuries, painful as they may be, are often the easiest to see, treat and recover from. There is one injury that I often receive the most questions about and frustration with, from both students and parents/carers, and that is concussion.
Let me be quite blunt with the description of concussion. Concussion is a brain injury, often caused by a rapid deceleration of the head or a sudden blow. This causes the brain to hit the walls of the skull, resulting in bruising, or in more severe cases, a bleed. For boys in our care, it is crucial that we acknowledge the seriousness of this injury and act in accordance with doctors’ recommendations and club and school policies.
Adhering to policies and procedures can be difficult, as everyone has their own variation. At St Patrick’s College, we align ourselves with the Australian Rugby Union guidelines for concussion. I encourage everyone to become familiar with our policy, as it is not always through sport that boys can suffer from such injuries. In short, boys with concussion are not permitted to participate in sport for 19 days, followed by a gradual return-to-sport process. In the first few days after the incident, the boys should try to minimise over-stimulation which can make symptoms worse. Things such as reading too much, reading and looking at screens, should be limited. Most of the time, the injury causes a level of lethargy and sleepiness, and boys are likely to want to stay in bed. After this initial period, symptoms often subside, and boys are ready to return to school. Boys need to be able to complete activity with no reoccurrence of symptoms before they are allowed back into games on the weekend.
Fingers crossed that the weather fines up before our Round 5 fixtures this weekend, with all teams getting out on the field. It has been very frustrating for everyone involved in Winter Sport this term, with the number of cancellations due to bad pitch and weather conditions. Again, thank you for your patience.
We wish the boys trialling for CIS Rugby all the best this week; we look forward to hearing of your experiences after the trials. Put your best foot forward, work hard and rewards will follow.
John Locke
Junior School Coordinator of Co-curricular