Australian Rules Football

Safety rules and procedures in Australian Rules Football are important because of the degree of body contact. The nature of the activity makes it unsuitable for very young students. The rules should be modified to match the age of the students.

As part of the process of safety self-regulation, all persons engaging in this activity should identify the hazards, assess their significance and manage the potential risks including any additional hazards not mentioned here

Hazards that may be encountered in Australian Rules Football include:

• equipment (e.g. goal posts, behind posts)
• body contact

The categorisation of these conditions is subjective and offered as a starting point for risk management planning. The actual degree of risk is best ascertained by persons with intimate local knowledge present at the site of the activity.

Participation in Australian Rules Football involves high risk (level 3).

One adult present should have knowledge of, and an ability to perform, first aid procedures. Minimum requirements; Senior First Aid (e.g. QAS, St. John's Ambulance) or the equivalent.

During competition, a qualified first aid officer/sports trainer should be located in an accessible position to the field(s) of play to provide immediate first aid assistance. There must be phone access to call an ambulance if required.

If an adult other than a registered teacher is engaged for instruction, a registered teacher should be present to take overall responsibility.

The qualifications listed in this section are minimums for each type of situation. Leaders are encouraged to seek training to raise their qualification level above the minimum listed.

The leader should be:

• a registered teacher with competence (demonstrated ability to undertake the activity) in the teaching of Australian Rules Football
• an adult who has Level 1 (Youth) coaching qualifications from the Australian Football League, when a teacher as described above is not available.

Competition games should be controlled by competent coaches and officials.

A first aid kit should be available at all venues where lessons and competitions are conducted.

Initial introduction of the activity should include:

• appropriate warm-up and warm-down activities
• rules, safety procedures and prerequisite skills before students play the game
• progressive and sequential skill development
• modified games that match skill and fitness levels of students

Students should:

• participate only if medically fit
• have progressed through the skills and knowledge areas associated with Australian Rules Football before participating at a level governed by the full laws of the game
• be selected on the basis of ability and suitability for the position/s they are to play. (Training should be specific to player position)
• wear correctly fitted mouthguards for playing and practising.

The playing area should be level, grassed and free from obstacles and loose objects, away from buildings, pedestrians and other activities.

A minimum space of five metres should surround each field.

Goal posts should be padded.

Player equipment including footwear and other protective items should comply with age and standard levels appropriate to the laws of the game.

When playing on a field, if one or more students are wearing footwear, all students should have footwear. All boots should be made of safe materials, provide protection for the feet, and have non-slip soles.

Boots should be inspected before each match. Any boots with loose, sharp-edged or excessively worn studs and sharp-edged soles should not be worn.

• Queensland School Sport
• HLS-PR-013: Developing a Sun Safety Strategy
• SCM-PR-002: School Excursions
• HLS-PR-005: Injury, Illness and Dangerous Event Recording and Reporting
• HLS-PR-003: First Aid for Schools and Non-school Locations