We, as Cumbrians, are blessed with a plethora of sports to watch. From the classics of football and rugby league, to the extremes of speedway or even uppies and downies (Google it!).
But with all sports, comes everything behind-the-scenes. This can include staff, volunteers, and most importantly, the medical equipment. You will all know from school especially, a red or green medical bag filled with everything you need for injuries such as medical tape, plasters, bandages, the list goes on.
But what about when it’s worse than just a cut or a graze? Well, then it’s not a simple plaster to the elbow and you're fine. This is when it becomes a team effort to ensure the safety of the injured, but also keeping spectators informed and safe.
I had never experienced this until just a couple of weeks ago. I was watching my local side away to a team in Liverpool when a freak accident caused a serious leg injury to one of their players.
I was taken aback at first, as you’re never really taught what to do in a situation like this. It’s common knowledge with minor injuries, but a major injury is completely different.
This is when it’s important to make sure the player keeps warm and alert, and luckily for us, we brought a huge blanket in our equipment bag that day, even though we were going to leave it at the club.
From that point on, I realised that no matter where you play, what sport you partake in, you should always be prepared because you never know what’s going to happen.
Injuries in sport are very common, especially minor leg injuries such as strains and aches, and we often take having quick access to deep heat sprays or braces for granted.
But these types of medical equipment can prolong a players career, and keep them safe on and off the pitch/field/track.
Medical equipment and being prepared for anything and everything is so important, but often, it isn't until we witness an accident or become a part of one that we start to not take it all for granted.