Football Forum | Ticket Forum | Off-Topic Forum | All

Jam rock Ammer 11:15 Mon Jan 26
Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

Anyone done this and if so how is it / was it !? 2 years back snapped my cruciate and meniscus damage playing in a match and had to have ACL reconstruction just wondering on chances of playing again. To tell the truth as much as I love the game am terrified of it all going wrong again and being crocked for life, especially with not being on Premiership wages. cheers...

Pottsymctevez 4:24 Wed Jan 28
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

I tore my ACL, ML and meniscus when I was 21 in january 2012 , it took me about 8 months post op to play competitively again but in truth Im only getting back playing anywhere near the way I used to be now 3 years later.
Id highly recommend taking the pateller graft opposed to the hamstring graft as since the op I have had massive issues with related hamstring and I have lost a yard of pace off the mark.
In regrads to playing I am conscious of knee when turning sharply but I am confident at the same time.
My knee used to swell up for the first year or so after I began playing again but havent had any problems.
My advice would be to build up good strength in core, hamstrings, quads and glutes and also incorporate flexibility work.

Jam rock Ammer 7:59 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

Cheers Guybrush

Guybrush 7:58 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

Jam,

The general consensus is 9 months before playing football again. Some players do get back before, however the risks of a recurrence are increased.

Jam rock Ammer 7:37 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

I recall the surgeon trying to convince me that I wouldn't need an op but I told them I want to carry on playing (even at my age) So he said oh, ok no probz blah blah. He didn't realise I was still playing and thinking I was an old 50 not a young 50 !?
Gavros I hear your frustration mate hope it works out 4 u.

Gavros 7:18 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

My replacement is patella tendon. I was massively gutted with the first one going as I'd worked really hard to strengthen my leg (to the point it had regained all its strength). Also very annoyed at the irreversible wastage of the hamstring thanks to the graft.

Jam rock Ammer 6:47 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

Infidel it was probably down to my age !

Jam rock Ammer 6:46 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

PS I'm 50 going on 30 !!

Infidel 6:46 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

Jam

As you are an active footballer you should have been advised by your surgeon to have a patella replacement and not hamstring.

The hamstring option is for people who don't want to play impact sports.

I had my first replacement done in Atlanta in 1996 and the second one in Italy in 2001 and in both cases the surgeons asked me if I wanted to carry on playing football, skiing etc and I said yes. They then told me it had to be a patella replacement, no argument.

Did you not have that conversation with your surgeon?

I'm amazed they let you have a hamstring replacement.

Jam rock Ammer 6:45 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

Gavros yes mate hamstring graft I tried playing around 10 months after did a shimmy and broke down lol...had another MRI told I'd been lucky not for it to go....been a bit reluctant ever since but am itching for a game !!

Gavros 6:42 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

did they do a hamstring graft for you? My hamstrings been fucked since they did mine. Always cramping up. The next one theyre using doner material, which hardly bears thinking about either.

Jam rock Ammer 6:40 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

Blimey a right variety of outcomes some worse than others I guess every case is different and Northern that bit about them brothers sounds mad !?
Since I had my op I was interested to see how the pro players that suffered the same got on after (even given the superior instant treatment) one that I watched as it was close to the same time I did mine was Essien and it seems he's struggled to get back to where he was. Anyway cheers for the feed back on this!

Gavros 3:53 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

Ive got to have TWO more operations after my ACL reconstruction failed. Fucking nightmare.

Northern Sold 3:50 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

Had a couple of knee dislocations while playing but luckily enough I managed to pop the leg back in ...no real grief apart from stretched knee liggies that kept me out a couple of weeks... one of me mates had both his ACL's done... the daft sod played on for a virtual whole season with his right ACL gone.... wondered why whenever he tried to turn he fell flat on his face... after it was discovered what he done I asked him whether it hurt through the season and said Fuck yeah!! Nut job... just like his brother that played on with a broken leg

veggie-hammer 3:34 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

Patella tendon cant be that strong!

Cleared a ball off the line playing 11 a side at the age of 17, dilocated my knee and shattered my kneecap.

Operation later still cant play, after dislocating it 6 or 7 times after the op theres nothing they can do.

Take up darts

Savage Henry 2:16 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

The patella one may be better but mine was hamstring and has held up so far.

I never had any pace so don't really miss it but you will probably lose a bit of acceleration, as long as you build the rest of your leg muscles up though you should be as good as new.

Jam rock Ammer 11:29 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

Cheers lads great help!...
infidel I wish I had known that earlier as I had the graft from my hamstring !!
As said half the battle is in your head as I am the type that likes to get stuck in Billy Bonds style lol however I imagine I'd have to adjust my game a bit !?

Mad Dog 8:28 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

Done my acl, pcl and my laterals 6 years ago.
Had 2 major reconstructive surgeries. They took hamstring out of both legs.
I'm now a goalkeeper as i can't go on pitch any more. Not worth it after all the grief i had. It took 2 years and a second opinion to get it diagnosed.

Infidel 6:50 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

Jam

I have had both of mine done. Right ACL snapped in a tackle in 1996. Left ACL went in 2001,again playing football.

The most important thing is to have the new tendon taken off your patella tendon and not the hamstring. The patella tendon is much stronger - takes 180 Newtons to break it vs 100 Newtons for the ACL you were born with. It's a bionic knee.

People choose the hamstring replacement because it's much less painful post op. The patella replacement operation is agony for months after, as anyone who has had it knows.But when it heals it's not going to break again.

I'm 52 now and still playing football every week.I play a 2 hour game outdoor on Thursday and indoor 5 a side on Sundays. I also ski and run about 20km a week. Almost 20 years after the first op I have never had any problem.

HTH

Jonah Lomas 3:28 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

Everyone gets a bit of shrinkage on cold days, it's nothing to be concerned about NC.

NCHammer 3:24 Tue Jan 27
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

Tore mine at 17. Back playing at 21/22. Now 35 and still have no problems with it when I play. My issues are on cold days.....

Savage Henry 11:55 Mon Jan 26
Re: Playing football after ACL Reconstruction

I tore my acl when I was 28, had operation and a year physio, started playing 5 a side worked my way back to 11 a side. Now 34 and regularly playing Sunday league for 3 years. poor standard but I was no messi before.

Still swells up sometimes and needs more rest and stretching but yeah go for it!

Hardest part is learning to trust it again and not to duck out of challenges, once you get hit on it and survive you feel great.

Page 1 - Next