New style of play aims to reduce football injuries on the field

Football players across Manitoba are learning a new way to play the game this season, in an effort to reduce injuries on the field.

Safe Contact is an education module for coaches that focuses on safe tackling and blocking techniques.

Earlier this year, Football Canada announced all clubs and amateur teams under its umbrella would have until the end of March 2017 to have all their coaching staff take the course.

Football Manitoba's communications co-ordinator, Corey Weir, said work is already underway in Manitoba to meet the target. 

"The premise of Safe Contact is to keep the tackler and the blockers head out of the play," said Weir.

"What you want to do is you want to make sure that the child or the athlete is not leading with his head because it can affect the neck and the head area."

Weir said about half of the 1,300 coaches affiliated with Football Manitoba have already received the training.

Part of the new mandatory training also includes an online course that focuses on concussions.

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"Concussions is obviously something that has been big, and that's big in any sport," said Weir. "This is just football's way of being proactive about trying to limit the amount of injuries from the neck up."

Weir also works as the director of coaches for the Greendell Falcons. He said so far, feedback about the Safe Contact clinics has been positive.

'I think coaches are really responding to it," said Weir. "I think we are going to start to see that progression in the next few years of the younger guys coming up through the system and showing signs of you know really taking it in."

More than 80 coaches already trained

The commissioner of the Winnipeg High School Football League believes the training will help reduce injuries.

Rick Henkewich said about 82 high school football coaches got the training this year.

"What Safe Contact has done is taken us back a few years where we didn't lead with the head because the helmets weren't meant to be led with the head," said Henkewich.

"We developed helmets that became weapons and now we are realizing that's wrong. So, we've gone back in time and we are going back to the old style."

Henkewich said the coaches who took the training have already put it into practice.