Africa-Press – Eswatini. It has transpired that some team bosses want injured players to play.
This was revealed during the Medics Symposium which was held yesterday at Sigwaca House in Mbabane. There were over 10 team doctors who attended the symposium and the instructor on the day was Eswatini Football Association (EFA) Medical Committee Chairperson Welcome Motsa. Also present during the event was Premier League of Eswatini (PLE) Football Manager Pat Vilakati and EFA Representative Sifiso Zondo, who is also the country Referees Manager. It was discussed how some team managers or bosses tried by all means for their key players to play even if they were injured. Team medics revealed that they were having challenges in as far as giving players the green light to play. “The return to play is vital for us medics. As medics you should be cautious when a player should return or not. Head injuries should be classified as emergency,” said Motsa to the team medics.
One team doctor said it was dangerous to give players a green light to return when they have not examined how bad the injury was. “We had a scenario during the South Africa and Botswana game in the COSAFA Cup. The player was given a green light to play but was later substituted,” said one team doctor.
challenge
Another team doctor said the challenge that they faced was that players wanted to play even when they were injured. “They will tell you they are fine and the injury is not bad, only to discover it is serious. The pressure also comes from coaches; they want the player because he is the pillar of the team; this forces us to let him play,” said another team doctor. Another team doctor suggested that healthy team talks were good so that players, coaches and team managers alike understood the danger of letting a player play while injured. “However the health talks have advantages and disadvantages as some players hide that they are injured. Some learn from the health talks.”
Motsa encouraged team medics to do health talks in response to the point suggested by one of the team doctors. “You must do a health examination before a player returns from an injury. Working with referees is key because they will ensure that a player is taken not allowed to play when injured,” said Motsa. Another team doctor said key players usually played even when injured. “Team bosses tell us to do our magic to ensure that a certain player plays even when he is not fit to play. They even suggest to us to give the player injection because they need that particular player.”
Motsa urged team medics not to allow it to happen because it could aggravate the injuries. “Let us not do quick fixes as it shortens the player’s career. Team medics must consult each other. Some give a player a green light when another said the player was not fit to play,” added Motsa. He also encouraged team doctors to have records of injured players so that they knew how to treat them.
For More News And Analysis About Eswatini Follow Africa-Press
