Systematic Injury Prevention: Group Testing Case Study

Testing One Team Case Scenario

The head coach of the men’s soccer team has requested your consultation to assist with implementing an injury prevention system in preparation for the upcoming season. The soccer team has been plagued with time loss injuries to key players, resulting in several disappointing seasons. The coach recognizes that in order to be successful and competitive in the conference, his best players need to be healthy and on the field.

Let’s run through the major areas of preparation for a successful testing day.

Time Allocation: Test Selection, Staffing & Equipment
Your resources include 5 people, 1 Y Balance Test Kit and 2 FMS kits and you have approximately two hours to test 25 athletes.  Since this is your first time testing, I would recommend that you perform the Functional Movement Screen and Y Balance Test Lower Quarter to get the most information with the least amount of testing. The testing calculator reveals that with 5 novice staff (4 testers and 1 coordinator), you should be able to test 25 players in under 2 hours.  

Station Setup

Testing Flow

Plan to arrive early to arrange your equipment according to the stations in the table. Begin your set up with at least 6 Y Balance practice stations made with athletic tape in order for the athletes to perform the necessary warm-up repetitions in preparation for the YBT. Take a few minutes to review the test criteria with the testers.

The team will arrive at the designated testing time and begin by watching the 2 minute YBT instructional video. (The video is available for download in your online Y Balance Test Certification Course.) The team can watch this video as a group and then fill out the injury and health history questionnaires. Following the video, the athletes will be directed to the YBT practice stations where they will perform 6 “warm-ups” in each reach direction on both legs.

Following the YBT warm-up, the athletes proceed to any open FMS or YBT stations with their testing forms. Since this is your first testing session, you should collect the forms once testing is complete and enter the results into the Move2Perform software afterward. This will allow time for you to review the individual/group scores and formulate a plan prior to meeting with the athletes and coaches.