Prevalence of Musculoskeletal Injuries among Adolescent Recreational Netballers in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa.

Background: Netball injuries remain an area of concern for professional and recreational South African players. This study profiled the prevalence of acute musculoskeletal injuries among female adolescent non-elite recreational netball players in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa. Materials and Methods: Data were collected from 413 high school players who participated in the Kwa-Zulu Natal Netball School league. Players completed a self-reporting questionnaire for demographic information, acute musculoskeletal injuries and training history, mechanism of injury, types and nature of symptom, and severity of pain during the previous 12 months. Results: Two hundred and fifty-eight (62.0%) players sustained acute musculoskeletal injuries, with the knee (31%) and ankle (23.7%) injuries being the most prevalent. The mechanisms producing the musculoskeletal injuries were poor landing (37.8%), being pushed by an opponent (22.7%), colliding with a team mate (20.8%) and rapid rotational movement (18.5%). The injured netballers have played netball for longer period of years than uninjured players (p<0.05). Conclusion: Netballers have a high prevalence of acute musculoskeletal injuries, which are predominant in the knee and ankle.

Plyometric training improves power and agility in Jamaica's national netball team / El entrenamiento pliométrico mejora la fuerza y agilidad del equipo nacional de netball de Jamaica

OBJECTIVE: Plyometric training is widely used in conditioning, power training and in prevention and rehabilitation of injuries in some sports. This study sought to investigate the effect of a three-week plyometric training programme on jump performance and agility in Jamaican national netball players. METHOD: Eighteen national netballers participated in a Plyometric training programme. Subjects were evaluated using the Vertical Jump Test, the Broad Jump Test and the Illinois Agility Test prior to the start of the programme and at week 3. DATA ANALYSIS: The data were analysed using SPSS version 12 for Windows. A One-Sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov Test showed normal distribution of data and a paired samples t-test was used to determine whether the mean change in jump performance and agility was significant. RESULTS: All eighteen subjects completed the three weeks of training. Three subjects were shown to be outliers at week 3 and this resulted in data from 15 subjects being analysed. At the end of the three weeks, there were significant improvements in Vertical Jump Scores (p = 0.023), Broad Jump Scores (p = 0.002) and Agility scores (p = 0.045). CONCLUSION: Three weeks of Plyometric training can lead to significant improvements in jump performance and agility and should be integrated into the national training programme at intervals yet to be determined.

OBJETIVO: El entrenamiento pliométrico se usa ampliamente para el acondicionamiento, y entrenamiento de fuerza, así como para la prevención y rehabilitación de lesiones en algunos deportes. Este estudio buscó investigar el efecto de un programa de entrenamiento pliométrico de tres semanas sobre el rendimiento en salto alto y la agilidad de las jugadoras del Equipo Nacional de Netball de Jamaica. MÉTODO: Dieciocho jugadoras nacionales de netball participaron en un programa de entrenamiento pliométrico. Las sujetos fueron evaluadas usando la prueba de salto vertical, la prueba de salto largo y la prueba de agilidad de Illinois, antes del comienzo del programa y a la semana 3. ANÁLISIS DE DATOS: Los datos fueron analizados usando la versión 12 de SPSS para Windows. La Prueba de Kolmogorov-Smirnov para una muestra mostró una distribución normal de los datos y una prueba t de muestras pareadas fue usada para determinar si el cambio promedio en el rendimiento del salto y la agilidad fue significativo. RESULTADOS: Las dieciocho sujetos completaron las tres semanas de entrenamiento. Tres sujetos mostraron tener valores atípicos en la semana 3, y esto trajo por resultado que se analizaran datos de 15 sujetos. Al final de las tres semanas, se produjeron mejoras significativas en las puntuaciones del salto vertical (p = 0.023), las puntuaciones del salto largo (p = 0.002) y las puntuaciones de la agilidad (p = 0.045). CONCLUSIÓN: Tres semanas de entrenamiento pliométrico pueden llevar a mejoras significativas en el rendimiento y agilidad, y deben integrarse en el programa de entrenamiento nacional a intervalos aún por determinar.

Physical profile comparison between basketball and netball players in Malaysia based on performance and playing position

The aim of the research is to compare the physical profile between Malaysian women basketball players and netball players. The physical profile measures were height, body mass, and body fat. The subjects were divided into two groups based on their playing performance and positions. The playing performance consisted of elite/senior, junior, and reserve players. Meanwhile, the playing positions consisted of forward/attack, centre, and guard/defence. The percentage of body fat was determined by means of skinfold measurement at seven different locations. Results showed that there were significant differences in body fat percentage between basketball player and netball players (p < 0.01). The elite/senior basketball players were reported to have the lowest body fat percentage as compared to other basketball or netball players. While for the playing position, guard/defence position basketball players were reported to be the shortest and have the lowest body fat percentage as compared to other playing positions. In conclusion, Malaysian basketball players were found to have better physical or bodily advantaged in terms of playing contact sports as compared to the Malaysian netball players.

The impact of an eight-week aerobic and strength-training programme on agility and leg power of Malaysian netball players

The purposes of the study were: (1) to determine the agility and leg power among Malaysian national junior netball players and (2) to determine the impact of eight-week aerobic and strength-training programme on these two variables. A total of 21 netball players from Bukit Jalil Sport School were selected as the subjects in this study. The SEMO Agility Run test was used to determine the agility level while leg power was measured using the Vertical Jump test. Pre-test and post-test results showed no significant differences in the agility and leg power level among the netball players. The mean values for the agility and leg power post-test were 12.59 (SD = 0.56) seconds and 50.24 (SD = 4.90) cm respectively. The pre-test and post-test results for different playing positions recorded the highest improvement in agility and leg power among attacker, followed by centre, and defender. Thus, the training conducted in this study was found to have improved agility and leg power marginally, especially among attacker and centre netball players.