SC Soccer Forums SCSoccer.com Forums Girls Varsity Soccer HS and Clubs need to do a better job....

I am a father of a 13yr old female soccer player. I love my daughter and would never let or ask her to anything that could harm her. But I feel my ignorance may have done just that. I feel I am an educated parent. I read all the soccer mags and any articles I can find related to soccer health. About 4 years ago I read about the high amount of Knee injury found in girls soccer. I was very concerned but the article said that it causes because girls tend not to have strong enough thigh muscles. But in the same trade they tell you not to have children do any type of weight training because it can cause problems with the growth plates. I was very relieved because my daughter has monster thigh muscles or she wouldn't need any extra weight training.

Last July she tore her left knee cartilage. She was devastated. She went in for surgery and the doctor said it would be good as new in about 6 weeks. We asked the doctor for the cause and said that it just happens. It seemed like a bad answer but in the doctor I trust. She went in for her rehab and it was pointed out that her left thigh muscle was 1 inch small than her right. It was told me that caused because of the knee injury and the lack of use of left thigh during and after the injury was corrected. Again I believed. She sat out most of the fall season and started back in January. She was kicking further and running faster than she had in a year or two. But here we are 3 months later and she has hurt the knee again. This time it is very minor but she will be out for two weeks. When we took her to the HS trainer her left knee was once again 1 inch small than the right. Over the 3 months her right thigh had grown 1 inch while her left thigh had stayed the same. So pay attention to the size of the thighs and make sure they are within a quarter of an inch.

The moral of the story is the club and HS teams need to do a better job informing the players and the parents on common health problems in soccer. They need to help setup relationships with gyms to help keep our daughters free from injury. I had the trainer tell me I need to have my daughter working out on weights. I agreed but I cannot find any of the gyms close by that allow 13yr olds in the weight room. How many good players do we lose for life because of injury before we wake up and do something. A good republican in the crowd will tell me that the club is for soccer only and the parent in responsible for the health of the child. I couldn't agree with you more, but unfortunately I do not know everything that life has to offer and I always welcome the help of others that would keep me from repeating the mistakes of the past.

A proud father!

My coach has been citized for allowing us to weight train. I guess I know why we lift before our season starts.

Sir

I'm 43 father of 2 girls 10/11 player/Coach for the U18 Lady's for Sumter Soccer Club and ST Francis Coed Team.

Try this with her:

1)Eat well but healthy foods and vitamins.

2)Swimming will keep her in shape, and will build the upper and lower part of the body slowly.
With out causing her harm try you YMCA.

3)Cycling on a safe Road using low gear,Sit on the seat for 100yds. Then of the seat sprint hard in high gear for 50yds.

If she jogs (running) get her a good pair of shoes.That will cause less impact on her bones etc.

Pumping Iron is fine,If you play RUGBY/FOOTBALL. But for girls light weights, And plenty of rest (SLEEP) is very important for young growing bodie's 10hrs a day no less.

I train 13 year old Magen McElveen from sumter,She plays for the CSC U13 Nightmares #9 in Spring, 89 ODP, Wilson Hall JV Coed #9 and in Fall Sumter United U18 #8.

Coach Didier Blanquart

Thank you for the advice. One of my daughter's problem is that she has a very strong kick and has had it since she was 9. So for years she has taken every goal kick, direct kick, and corner kick. I have counted her taking upwards of 100 kicks during a tourney weekend. This is the cause of the the right thighgetting so much bigger. Now she just has to work during the season and off-season to make sure the left thigh matches the right at all times.

I only tell this story as a warning to other parents. I also hope that clubs especially will start to work harder on the health of the player.

As a FORMER club and HS coach of girls for the past 8 or 9 years, I can tell you that my former club and in particular me as a coach have always tried to bring the strength and agility aspect of the game to the girls in their seasons through practice. Part of the problem is that with just 2 or perhaps 3 practices a week, there simply isn't enough time to do it ALL in practices. Some of this has to fall on the players. I would give workout handouts to them and strongly suggest they do them on certain days to help boost their muscular strength. Of course, when players are too busy doing other things to come to practice, then that only hurts their development as well.
As for the HS game, the coaches that are being implemented at this point and time don't always have the best knowledge when it comes to this type of training. I am happy to say that the percentage of serious injuries I have seen on my teams has gone below about 10% due solely to the efforts of this type of training and to the efforts of the players themselves. You get back what you put into it.
I have personally been through a torn ACL and I can tell you that coming back is hard work and I can also tell you that I thought I was in pretty good shape as well. The Trainers at most HS in this area are good at what they do, but remember that many of them spend 80% of their season working with Football players. So they may not be completely up to date on the latest when it comes to female athletes. There have been numerous studies of late about the high incidence of knee injuries in women. But when you look at it, the Men's US National Team has suffered about 10 of those in the past year and a half. So what's the answer? Look into some of the internet options that deal with these issues as they pertain to women...Some of them are very enlightening.
I understand what you are saying about the coaches needing to inform parents but realize that some of the coaches actually need to be informed as well. It wouldn't hurt for the clubs and schools themselves to invest something into their student athletes well being by sending the coaches to seminars or training on how to help reduce these types of injuries.
All that being said, sometimes you are just going to have those injuries happen. Sometimes they are just accidents and nothing more...In other words, no amount of training could have prevented it.
My statements here are meant only to let you know that there are coaches that care about this type of problem and we try to find ways of minimizing these injuries through our training. I hope you find the answers you seek and that your daughter enjoys many injury free seasons of the best game on earth.

Thanks. I just hope there are more coaches out there like yourself. Her injury could just be an accident and I have been reading all the literture for the last 4 years but I am not a trained medical professional. I guess the only thing I am suggesting is that at the club and HS level, they make an effort to help parents and kids out with understanding the issues and to help work out programs with different area gyms for the kids.

I also would like for the coaches to start talking to the parents more when the kids are under the age of 15. I have had coaches suggest training but they tell my 10 or 13 year old daughter before practice. According to the law I make all decisions for her until she is 18.

13 yr old girls do not need to be in a weight room.
The whole idea is nonsense. kids this age need ball skills, ball skills, ball skills.!!!!!!!