PR

New Head Physiotherapist Julie Snow joined the Knights little over a month ago and has quickly adapted to the Knights way of life as she familiarises herself with the Castle Park surroundings.

Pre-season training has presented a full schedule for the former Saracens staff member as her crucial task of keeping the Knights squad in the best possible health for the season ahead grows with each niggle and knock.

“It has been a fast turnaround for me; quite a change of pace. I came off the back of a late finish and now I’m straight into the Knights season and Doncaster life.

“On a day to day basis the training is pretty similar to other pre-season structures I’ve been involved in. You have weights, skills, drills and a lot of group work rather than individual.

“The main difference I’ve found here is probably the number of players I work with. I’ve come from an environment where there has been more than one therapist so there are a few extra bodies for me to look after here.”

The Knights preparation for the coming season is well underway with the side’s first home fixture in just over a month’s time against Cambridge on Saturday, August 18 at Castle Park and Julie won’t be stopping in the run-up to a hectic season with many challenges ahead.

“Pre-season can bring up many small issues and injuries from the end of last season that are still ongoing and obviously need to be addressed.

“There are lots of training ground injuries caused by overload or stress work which is totally normal. The players do a lot of high intensity training over a short period of time whereas, during the season, injuries tend to be more impact related as a result of incidents in the games.

“Common pre-season injuries are things like shin splints, which stem from training on the harder ground over summer, but so far there has been nothing serious especially in these wet weather conditions.

“Strength and Conditioning Coach Dougie (Flockhart) has done a good job of getting them all fit and the squad should all hopefully be in good shape for the start of the season and most importantly injury-free.”

Written by Michael Casey