Physios and medical staff being lost to women’s sport after lack of investment

A lack of investment in physios and other support staff in women’s sport is leaving players at greater risk of injury and hinders the development of female athletes, according to staff across multiple clubs.

Several women’s sports club sources told ABC Sport that high-quality physiotherapists, strength and conditioning coaches, and high-performance managers are being lost to the industry due to low pay and short contracts.

This issue was cast into the spotlight last month when the Cronulla Sharks were forced to apologise after advertising for a volunteer physiotherapy position for their women’s team, which involved four training sessions a week, match-day duties and rehab planning.

Following backlash from physiotherapists and the NRLW community — which included the Australian Physiotherapy Association labelling the ad as “exploitative” — the club amended the role.

“We can put up our hand and apologise,” Cronulla chief executive Dino Mezzatesta told Code Sports.

“How the site is designed, that’s where they traditionally get posted, and it comes across as a volunteer role, but it’s never been a volunteer role, it’s always had attached to it an honorarium for that period of time.”

The NRL’s Women’s Rugby League Action Plan 2023-2027 includes the development and retention of quality coaching, high-performance, and medical staff as a key pillar of growth.

But the Cronulla incident sparked a conversation in the women’s sporting community about the importance of investment in high-performance medical staff, who many argue are being undervalued.

‘Unique to female bodies’

Laura Bashford, head of high-performance at the Essendon Royals NPLW and Port Melbourne VFLW, said it was important clubs had high-quality high-performance and medical staff with a deep understanding of women’s unique physiology.

“[Support staff] who are able to build trust and rapport with their athletes, requiring in-depth conversations that touch on sensitive topics that are unique to female bodies, like menstrual cycles, endo, PCOS, pelvic floor dysfunction and RED-s,” Bashford said.

“These conditions can significantly impact performance, and it can be frustrating for players to have to repeat the same conversation at the start of each season when staff change over.

“So having consistent support staff that have a well-rounded understanding of their athletes’ history, and can empathise with athletes whilst providing meaningful support is incredibly important.”

Bashford added that there is a greater emphasis on relationship-style coaching in women’s sport, which contributes to individual and team success.

“This season in the VFLW, there are more women high-performance managers than there have ever been, largely in part due to player demand, and I think we’re breaking the mould and seeing the benefits of having women represented in this space,” Bashford said.

“But we are at risk of hindering our athletes’ development long-term through the loss of these highly qualified and experienced staff to other codes or private practice in order to sustain themselves.”

While codes such as AFLW and NRLW have made huge strides towards professionalism on the player front, including in pay and contact hours, resourcing and support staff have not made the same leaps forward.

Many are forced to work other jobs to support themselves, which limits their time and availability with players.

This is often due to clubs being hamstrung by salary caps.

Medical staff important in injury prevention

The reliance of elite athletes on club medical staff for body management was emphasised during the AFLW’s condensed fixture last season, when 11 rounds were squeezed into 10 weeks, resulting in a heightened risk of injury.

One club had five games within 19 days, and another four games within two weeks. During this time, Collingwood star Brit Bonnici went down with a calf injury and North Melbourne captain Emma Kearney with a hamstring strain.

Tailored strength and conditioning training is crucial in injury prevention, including ACL ruptures, which have plagued a variety of women’s codes.

Deakin researcher Tess Rolley reviewed every ACL injury from the first four years of the AFLW — when figures showed women’s players were nine times more likely to do their ACL than their male counterparts — and suggested a greater emphasis on prevention programs would reduce the high injury rate.

Fremantle star defender Ash Brazill told the ABC back in 2021 that after she did her ACL, the ramifications of season-ending injuries were far-reaching.

“Long-term consequences are probably the most drastic — we’re looking at early onset of osteoarthritis, we’re looking at reduced quality of life and an increased risk of secondary ACL injury,” she said.

“We want to stop this injury before it happens.”