Physios

[mainstand]

With the comments being made on the forum last week about Nick moving on from Saints. And St Mirren announcing that they had parted company with their physio by mutual consent.

I wonder with smaller squads and faster and faster matches if these guys are now being placed under greater and greater pressure to get players fit and ready for a saturday when in years gone by both them and the players were given sufficient periods of time to rest to allow injuries to heal.

I can't think of Saints or teams in general having as many injuries during Frank Christie's cold sponge days now you have a doctor, a physio and an assistant physio on the bench and scans and all sorts to diagnose an injury.

I read an article by John Beatie where he said rugby players were getting too big and too muscular in Footballs case has the game got too fast, the players too athletic and the equipment too light?

Any thoughts?

Please don't take this thread down the personal route towards any physio (as I think they have a thankless job) just a general discussion on Saints and football in general.

[O'Rourke]

I have to agree that the game has changed so much from the late Frank Christie's days as you've mentioned. He probably worked with a squad of maybe 15 or 16 guys and the side barely changed from week to week.

Different story now and the physio has a different and more important role in keeping players fit than the old trainer types did.

I assume that the club will seek to replace Nick with someone in a similar role. The physio who worked with Craig Brewster at ICT was from Tayside. I don't know where she is at the moment but she would be a very able replacement.

[Scobby_SJFC]

Like everyhting else with football it is now a buisness to get the maxium out of your investments and in this case that is the players and the quicker a physio can get a player back to healthy the better and therefore there is bound to be more pressure currently than in the past

[mainstand]

That would be Emily Goodlad who has her own practice in Inverness.

[O'Rourke]

That would be Emily Goodlad who has her own practice in Inverness.

That's her. I met her a while back but couldn't remember her name.

[john1962]

Players are wimps now.

[CynicalSaintee]

There is evidence to suggest that it's to do with their boots, too thin, light and weak and don't offer any sizable amount of protection. Plus the fact the game is much faster and the players physically stronger and more athletic and can do more damage to each other.

[Center Half]

There is evidence to suggest that it's to do with their boots, too thin, light and weak and don't offer any sizable amount of protection. Plus the fact the game is much faster and the players physically stronger and more athletic and can do more damage to each other.

They cant play if its wet, snow,ground hard with frost, and struggle to play two games a week

What happened to real football players , Brush the lines clear of snow, i loved a wet muddy park, frozen hard pitches wear trainers and it was like playing at bells five a side a bunch of fairy dancers in my opinion now.

[jinky]

Players are no longer players, they have to be athletes now.

If you compare a highly tuned F1 car with a corsa, you know the F1 car will give you far greater performance, but it's going to break much more often.

Until about 5 years ago, metatarsal was not a word that you ever heard.

[mainstand]

Players are no longer players, they have to be athletes now.

If you compare a highly tuned F1 car with a corsa, you know the F1 car will give you far greater performance, but it's going to break much more often.

Until about 5 years ago, metatarsal was not a word that you ever heard.

I think that really sums it up Jinky the players are now athletes. Mark Mcghee reckoned that if he was given a young athlete who is strong and good at running and balance his coached would be able to turn him into a footballer.

Sports science has been used by clubs to turn players into machines. In the Scottish rugby squad for instance the players started having ice baths after every session but they have now worked out that they should not have ice baths after a weights session as they need the muscles to bleed to get stronger so have now banned ice baths and cold showers after a weights session. Result is the guys will get even stronger and bigger.

Boots are the problems with the metatarsals they are like bloomin slippers.

[BlueJ]

Mark Mcghee reckoned that if he was given a young athlete who is strong and good at running and balance his coached would be able to turn him into a footballer.

That's basically what happened to Gabby Agbonlahor. They just missed out the final bit of his transformation about how to put the ball in the net!

[The Neutral]

The physio's and sports science also mean players can play for longer.. go back 20 years and an outfield player who hit 30 would be coming to the end of his career. That has now been pushed back to at least 35.. look at Giggs and Scholes.. can't play the full game anymore but can still put in a good shift from the bench

[BlueJ]

Players are no longer players, they have to be athletes now.

If you compare a highly tuned F1 car with a corsa, you know the F1 car will give you far greater performance, but it's going to break much more often.

Until about 5 years ago, metatarsal was not a word that you ever heard.

I'm always amazed at the billions of pounds pumped into F1 to develop machines so advanced they don't work.

As has been said, football's a business. Who wants to pay a hefty price for a product that keeps breaking down?

I think players have always been athletes. In the same era they were having a fag in the dressing room pre game track and field guys wouldn't have had nutritionists etc to look after them. The fitness levels required in each's sport would have been similar.

Footballers have always needed to be strong and run for 90 minutes. Its just that these days they're light years ahead in resources to do so, just like most sports.

Is it for the better? That's one of those questions that'll never be answered!

[THE LARK SAINT]

I'm always amazed at the billions of pounds pumped into F1 to develop machines so advanced they don't work.

As has been said, football's a business. Who wants to pay a hefty price for a product that keeps breaking down?

I think players have always been athletes. In the same era they were having a fag in the dressing room pre game track and field guys wouldn't have had nutritionists etc to look after them. The fitness levels required in each's sport would have been similar.

Footballers have always needed to be strong and run for 90 minutes. Its just that these days they're light years ahead in resources to do so, just like most sports.

Is it for the better? That's one of those questions that'll never be answered!

Aye and half a dozen points in the Tay motel before the game too!

[Cagey]

I have to agree that the game has changed so much from the late Frank Christie's days as you've mentioned. He probably worked with a squad of maybe 15 or 16 guys and the side barely changed from week to week.

Different story now and the physio has a different and more important role in keeping players fit than the old trainer types did.

I assume that the club will seek to replace Nick with someone in a similar role. The physio who worked with Craig Brewster at ICT was from Tayside. I don't know where she is at the moment but she would be a very able replacement.

Was it the case that in the good old days the players just got a cortizone injection & played on only for them to be crippled in later life.

[BlueJ]

Aye and half a dozen points in the Tay motel before the game too!

Sure, will that be half a dozen points of Guinness.

[john1962]

Was it the case that in the good old days the players just got a cortizone injection & played on only for them to be crippled in later life.

Alan McGraw the old manager is the only example I can think of.