Position specific rehabilitation for rugby union players. Part II: Evidence-based examples

Abstract 

It has been stated that a rehabilitation programme should incorporate sport-specific exercises and subject a player to at least as hard demands as they will encounter on return to competition. Research has empirically demonstrated the quantities, times spent, and work to rest ratios for the demands of rugby and report that they do vary between positions. Utilising this information, this article has provided evidence-based examples of how sport-specific exercises can be progressed. The aim of these exercises is to provide the physiotherapist or conditioner with a means to ensure the safe return to optimum competition. The examples have concentrated on the high-intensity (HI) activities of rugby such as running, tackling and scrummaging as these have been shown to vary most between positions. The article also provides an example of how the HI activities can be combined with the low-intensity (LI) activities of the game, e.g. walking or standing, to reflect the work to rest ratios experienced by each playing position. In conclusion, this article recognises that data are not currently available for all the demands of rugby union and that this needs to be addressed before a fully evidence-based programme can be achieved.

Keywords: Fitness, Positional demands, Rehabilitation