Actually I�d suggest that�s a simplistic view on cramping.Originally Posted by wolftone57
It has less to do with hydration in terms of pure water, than electrolytic balance (particularly sodium, but calcium and potassium also play a role as well as a number of other minerals) - grab a Gatorade bottle for a fairly comprehensive list.
Now, some people (or perhaps a person) might blame Horse for this lack of �hydration� but if you watch a game of AFL standard football, you might notice some people running around with drink bottles and bum-bags? They�re called sports trainers. It�s their responsibility to give players water or electrolytic drinks. And if you watch closely, they run around a lot during a game, offering drinks to players, before the players are actually thirsty. Horse probably isn�t even directly responsible for those instructions, that�s the sports scientists or medical director. But I�m sure Horse wants it done in the best interest of his players ... and given the trainers are out there offering sports bottles of water or electrolytes, means the message is getting out there. The next link in the chain is the player actually accepting the proffered hydration. Now, I�ve noticed that this link is probably the weak one as I occasionally (or even frequently) observe players declining the proferred fluids. Short of Horse administering an IV of fluids to the players, I think it�s a little harsh to say that he is directly responsible for insufficient hydration. As the old saying is paraphrased �A Horse can lead a player to water but cannot make him drink� ... and in this instance, the player isn�t even being led to the water, water is brought directly to the player.
But even this is a simplistic view regarding cramping.
There is another theory that neuromuscular fatigue contributes to cramping. Now, there are many factors that can contribute to neuromuscular fatigue. I am happy to go into the physiology of it but it�s a little complicated. If I simplify it for brevity, muscles, of overworked, can cramp. Again, I emphasise the multifactorial nature of this, but one can be harder playing surfaces can, creating larger ground reaction forces on the limbs, that over the course of 120 minutes of an elite level football match, could result in ... anybody? ... you up the back ... yes, cramps.
Ok it has been extensively complained about that the new WA oval�s surface (you know, last weeks game?) is - at this stage - hard under foot. It�s a pretty big leap to accuse Horse of orchestrating this to scuttle his own players.
If the logical (if naive and ill-considered) comeback against the hard surface theory is the West Coast players hard to deal with it too, well, yes they did but they also train on it, facilitating neuromuscular fatigue adaptability ... they get used to it.
Horse (and his team) do also address neuromuscular fatigue (simply from the perspective of high intensity activities, such as a football game) issues by implementing a dynamic warm-up and stretching programme. We see it pre-match on the ground (and with TV coverage, in the change rooms). From all appearances Horse (or his staff, under his instruction) are doing the correct thing here too.
I can�t attest to the overall level of fitness of our players, as I don�t have specific data from their skin folds and fitness testing base-lines and progression. I can say that, a State League football team that I worked with was exhaustive in its pre-season assessment, monitoring and progression of pre-season fitness. And this was several years ago when standards were less lofty than today. I hypothesise that a professional elite level AFL club today would be more meticulous than a semi-professional SANFL club back then. I�m personally confident that Swans players are fit - but I�m happy to be proven wrong.
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