Training Injuries

Training injuries have been recorded in only a handful of studies. Injury incidence rates have been documented in the range of 0.7 to 2.3 injuries per 1000 player-training-hours (Fuller and Taylor, 2018; 2020). In practical terms, a squad of 30 players might expect to sustain one time-loss training injury for every 14 to 48 hours of training, on average. Mean time loss per training injury has been recorded between 20 and 92 days (Fuller and Taylor, 2017b; 2024c), with injury burden estimated between 16 and 149 days lost per 1000 player-training-hours (Fuller and Taylor, 2016; 2017b). Similar incidence rates have been reported for backs (0.4 to 2.7 injuries per 1000 player-training-hours (Fuller and Taylor, 2019; 2020)) and forwards (0 to 2.7 injuries per 1000 player-training-hours (Fuller and Taylor, 2016; 2025c)). Mean time loss for backs (65 to 104 days lost per injury) appears to be greater than for forwards (33 to 48 days lost per injury), and subsequently injury burden is also documented to be higher among backs (105 to 127 days lost per 1000 player-training-hours) than for forwards (8 to 69 days lost per 1000 player-training-hours (Fuller and Taylor, 2022; 2024c). 

On-field rugby skills training is cited as the activity most frequently associated with training injuries, notably activities involving full contact (17-60% of injuries (Fuller and Taylor, 2016; 2019)), and semi-contact activities (56% (Fuller and Taylor, 2017)). These findings in particular highlight the balance that coaches must find with balancing the need to expose players to contact training activities to develop players’ contact skills, but without exposing players to undue levels of injury risk. Tools like World Rugby’s Contact Training Load Guideline may be useful for coaches with prescribing contact training. 

Non-weights based conditioning and non-contact rugby skills share similar frequencies of injury (11-33% (Fuller and Taylor, 2015; 2017; 2019)). 

Coaching Tips 

• Tracking the pattern of injuries sustained by the players provides useful information to guide programming or coaching plans, and allocating resources for managing injury risk 
• Be mindful of any notable changes in injury profile, such as sudden or unanticipated changes in the frequency or severity of certain injury types or causes. Noting these changes can lead to early intervention and management of these risks. 
• Considering the practical implications of injuries should remain central. For example, injury burden can be useful in estimating player availability during a campaign, while injury severity can help with estimating the likely period of absence an injured player faces.