Luka Bjelanovic1,2, Silvester Liposek3, Marijana Geets Kesic2
1Rugby club Nada, Split, Croatia
2University of Split, Faculty of Kinesiology, Split, Croatia
3University of Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia
Emphasizing Sport-Specific and Anatomical Factors of Injuries in Amateur Rugby: A Prospective Study
Sport Mont 2025, 23(1), Ahead of Print | DOI: 10.26773/smj.250202
Abstract
This study aimed to examine injury occurrence, emphasizing the sport-specific and anatomical factors associated with injury occurrence during match and training in amateur rugby players. The participants were 101 players from Croatia (all males, 24.64±4.23 on average, 9.4±4.1 years of experience in rugby). The variables included specific sport factors and injury occurrence factors. Sport data were collected at the beginning of the three-month period, and the occurrence of injuries and factors related to injury occurrence were tracked over the three months throughout the competitive season. Two of the three injuries were traumatic, with no significant difference between backs and forwards in traumatic vs. overuse injuries (χ2=2.28, p=0.13). More than one-third of all match-related injuries occurred between the 21st and 40th minutes of the match, with tackling being associated with almost 60% of all match injuries. Thirty percent of training injuries occurred during running, followed by 23% of injuries that occurred during warmup. Wearing blade studs was a specific injury risk factor (OR=4.11, 95% CI: 2.32-6.87 in comparison to all other types of footwear), with similar odds among backs and forwards (OR=1.78, 95% CI: 0.53-5.78). To prevent injuries in rugby, special attention should be given to players who regularly wear footwear with blade studs and those with improper tackling techniques. Further studies on younger players and females are warranted.
Keywords
rugby union, anatomy, match, training, warm-up
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