How Rice Can Keep You Safe and Fit During a Football Match

They’ll always hit you and hurt you

Defend and attack

There’s only one way to beat them

And that’s … with rice?

 

No. We’re not rewriting a classic football anthem or advocating a change of diet, but showing you the acronym to remember when you do get ‘hit and hurt’ by spraining or straining one of your limbs. Just focus on this four-letter word out of the many that probably come to mind:

 

R est

I ce

C ompression

E levation

 

Rest

Don’t be tempted to limp on with your in-match injury as this could make it worse and you probably won’t be up to much either. Instead, relax the affected limb. Sit or lay on the ground if it is your leg and, depending on the seriousness, only move with support. (We’re talking about people propping you up, not cheering you on from the stands).

Stories of ‘soldiering on’ are often a mix of bluster, bad advice and incredible luck, as is the case with the legend of Bert Trautmann, below.

 

Ice

Apply an ice pack to the area for a maximum of 10 minutes to reduce pain and swelling. Put a damp tea towel or triangular bandage between the pack and your skin to prevent damage and frostbite. This can be repeated as long as you let the skin rest and return to normal temperature between applications.

 

Compression

Wrap a bandage around the injured area tightly enough to compress but not constrict movement or blood flow in the area. For the first 10 minutes, you can apply the bandage over a crushed ice pack if you like.

 

Elevation

Elevating the injured area can reduce swelling further.

Going back to resting again for a moment, don’t rush to get playing again as soon as possible next week. Take plenty of time until all pain has ceased and, if it’s your leg that’s damaged, wait until you can put your full weight on it and move as normal. If the pain is serious, an X-ray or visit to a doctor may be needed.

 

A lucky legend, a little-known fact and a warning

Some of the more football-savvy among you will know that Bert Trautmann is the famous Manchester City goalkeeper who famously broke his neck halfway through an FA cup match and played out the rest of the game. What’s not so well known is that Bert was incredibly lucky not to have killed himself by doing so. He had cracked the second vertebra in his neck straight through. Any movement of the two halves would have likely paralysed and probably killed him. Somewhat luckily, his third vertebra also dislocated in such a way that it pressed the cracked second one together, saving his life. Doctors stated later that this second injury could be considered one in a million stroke of luck.

Whatever the case, the injury took many months to recover and he never returned to form again. If he had rested the injury properly as above, he would have probably recovered much faster and more fully. So remember your rice!

 

Remember R.I.C.E.

So there you have it. What you’re looking at is the master plan, or is that some more John Barnes rap sneaking into the blog? Never mind. If you want to learn how to get people back ‘in motion’ after an injury, consider taking one of our first aid courses. You can do it slow or fast, just do it at the right time.