INJURY rates declined in 2014, but knocks to shoulders and feet remain areas of concern, according to the annual AFL Injury Report released on Thursday.
While the incidence of new shoulder injuries remained relatively unchanged, the severity of such injuries increased, with Gold Coast skipper Gary Ablett the most high profile casualty.
Ablett has played just two games in 2015 after suffering a shoulder injury in round 16 last year and missing the remainder of the season.
Carlton's Dale Thomas suffered a shoulder injury in the opening minute of this season against and missed four matches, while a shoulder injury forced West Coast's Beau Waters to retire prior to the NAB Challenge.
The recurrence rate of shoulder injuries stood at 52 per cent in 2014, with a shoulder being re-injured on 13 occasions. This compares with just one recurrence in 2013.
There was also a higher rate of foot stress fractures in 2014, with Melbourne's Jack Trengove one player struggling to recover from such an injury.
The number of games missed per club per season due to leg and foot stress fractures increased from 10.9 in 2013 to 14.2 in 2014.
Despite those issues, the 2014 AFL Injury Report recorded an overall decrease in injuries for the year, with significant progress being made in reducing hamstring and groin injuries.
The incidence of 36.1 new injuries per club per season was a dramatic drop on a particularly bad 2013, where 41.5 new injuries per club were recorded.
It was also the lowest rate of new injuries per club recorded since 2007.
Along with the reduction in the number of injuries, the injuries themselves aren't lasting as long, with more players available to play at state league level when compared to previous seasons.
The average number of players playing AFL or state league football weekly was 35 in 2014, with 7.5 players missing on average through injury and 2.6 players missing through suspension, being a travelling emergency or having a bye in the lower grade.
In its 23rd consecutive year, the injury survey concluded "season 2014 was a successful season in terms of injury outcomes, with lower injury incidence and prevalence than in recent years".
The report said it was too soon to link the declining injury profile with the introduction of an interchange cap of 120, given the rule had only been in place for one season, saying that "further monitoring over the next few seasons is required to fully assess any attributable effects".
The AFL Commission is expected to make a decision on the interchange cap and substitute rule for 2016 before the end of the season.
There were also fewer ACL injuries in 2014 (down from 23 to 14) with more occurring later in the season than normal.
There have been nine ACL injuries already in 2015, with Tom Liberatore, Christian Petracca, Daniel Neilson, Michael Close, Matt Jaensch, Nathan Drummond, Mitch Brown, Eric McKenzie and Clay Smith all having knee reconstructions.
The high number of revision reconstructions in 2014 was once again a concern, with five in 2014 following on from a record high eight in 2013.
The revision reconstructions are not confined to LARS graft usage but have also occurred in traditional reconstructions, which the report says means "a review of techniques used by surgeons in AFL players is underway".
The number of games missed due to concussion has also increased, with the report surmising that it's due to a more conservative approach to concussion. The incidence remains low however, with an average 1.3 players per club missing games each year due to concussion.
AFL football operations manager Mark Evans said the annual survey was a useful tool in addressing injury concerns and protecting player health and welfare.
"The AFL is continuing to fund other studies and is particularly researching concussion and knee ACL injuries in further detail. Research led by Professor Julian Feller in 2015 will audit all ACL injuries dating back to 1999," Evans said.
