Kosi's Mum

[Kildonan]

Mum put through wringer by Kosi
The Australian
July 10, 2006

ST KILDA star Justin Koschitzke yesterday made an encouraging return from his severe head injury, but is still at least a fortnight away from a senior comeback.
Wearing a helmet, Koschitzke played a half for the Casey Scorpions reserves, in the second tier of the VFL, and showed no hesitancy to dive into physical contacts despite fracturing his skull only two months ago.

St Kilda coach Grant Thomas watched the 23-year-old key-position player while sitting next to Koschitzke's mother and was impressed with what he saw.

"He threw himself into it as we would expect, a little bit too much for our liking, but that's Kosi," Thomas told the pre-game lunch before the Saints played Collingwood at Telstra Dome yesterday.

"He's just a very competitive person, and there were about three or four occasions in each quarter where we thought 'Oh no', but that's Kosi.

"He just threw himself into it as hard as he could. I was sitting next to Lorraine Koschitzke, his mum, and she just grabbed me on the thigh -- it was the thigh -- every time he went in hard on the footy. It's just tremendous to have him back playing a half."

Koschitzke fractured his skull when he was knocked out by a hip and shoulder from the Bulldogs' Daniel Giansiracusa in round six.

The big Saint's run of bad luck then continued when he fainted on television, during a live cross last month, although the Saints were adamant it had nothing to do with his injury.

Team-mates Aaron Hamill (knee) and Raphael Clarke (quadriceps) will also play in the VFL next week as they continue their return from long-term injuries.

"It's always a challenge because we've got to be smart as a team," Thomas said of managing the trio's return to the top level.

"Last year we rushed a couple of players back and it hurt us in the end, but guys like him (Koschitzke) and Hamill and Raph Clarke have got to get further footy into them and then come back in a few weeks and strengthen us."

Meanwhile, Thomas ruled out any interest St Kilda might have in recruiting Brisbane star Jason Akermanis, who appears destined to leave the Lions.

 

[Kildonan]

We sometimes forget that the players have families, girlfriends, kids etc. and the grief that they go through just knowing their son (or whatever) is employed in a very high risk occupation, playing AFL.

Compare AFL to your own occupation.
What is the injury rate at work?

The AFL's average career length is in very short.
How much does injury impact on this?

No wonder Kosi's mum is concerned.
I know how concerned I am when my 14 year old son goes in scrabbling for a loose ball or up for a contested mark. These are risk laden actions, but they are part of the game. My son is up against kids who harbour no ills against him. Kosi is up against men, and as we have seen with Roo, there will be a long initiation of opponents who will want to test Kosi's resolve.

 

[Kildonan]

AFL takes a top mark for sports injuries, but don't give it away
Michael Davis
The Australian
July 08, 2006

AUSTRALIAN football causes more injuries than any other sport - but that's no reason to hang up your boots, says the AFL's best player, Chris Judd.
Judd, who plays with the West Coast Eagles, had two shoulder reconstructions before he reached elite AFL level, and recently returned from a hamstring injury.

But the benefits of playing far outweighed the risks, he said yesterday at the launch of a report on sporting injuries. "I've been pretty lucky since I started playing AFL footy, but as a junior I had a few problems," he said.

"The benefits of playing AFL, especially for young kids at a community level, certainly far outweigh the negatives. But there are a few older blokes running around who are not that well-conditioned, and I guess they should be aware of the risks."

The report, by sports medicine expert Peter Larkins, is based on figures from general practices, public hospitals and health professionals around the nation.

"When we talk about injuries we're talking anything from a bruise to major surgery," Dr Larkins said.

"On this criteria, combined with participation rates, Aussie rules is the nation's most injury-prone sport."

Dr Larkins said people might be surprised to see rugby league and union - "like Australian rules, two crash-and-bash sports" - come in at No9 and No10.

"These two sports have a high incidence of neck and head injuries, but when related to participation numbers are not as high as Aussie rules. In Aussie rules, players tend to get a range of injuries, whether at the elite or junior level."

Dr Larkins said he did not want people to stop playing sport, but many needed to take precautions, such as warm-up exercises, to prevent getting hurt. Those on get-fit programs should adopt a "hasten slowly" approach.

The report predicts 5.2million people will suffer some injury as a result of exercise this year.

The survey shows the fittest people in the nation live in the ACT, with 76 per cent involved in some sort of physical exercise - 2 per cent more than in Western Australia. The lowest participation rate is in South Australia, where only 57.7 per cent of the population exercise regularly .

Tasmanians are the heaviest, with an average body mass index of 27.2 per person, followed by those in NSW and the ACT, both on 25.9.

People aged between 18 and 24 are most at risk of injury, and ankle and knee problems are most common. Sports injury rates peak in the winter months - May, June and July - because cold muscles, tendons and ligaments increase the risk.

Sports injuries cost the nation about $2billion a year, Dr Larkins said.

Individual activities, rather than team-based sports, are more popular. Walking, aerobics, swimming and golf are the top four.