How Pre-Season Screening Helps Identify Injury Risks Early?

Key Takeaways

• Preseason injury screening gives you a clear picture of your strength, movement and history before training load ramps up.
• A screen highlights risk factors you can work on, but it cannot predict who will or will not be injured.
• Your injury history, side-to-side differences and control under sport-like movements often tell a physio more than any single score.
• The real value comes from turning the results into a training plan and re-testing, not from the screen alone.

Most athletes find out about a weak link in round three, when a hamstring grabs or an ankle rolls. Preseason injury screening moves that discovery to a time when you can still do something about it. A physio checks how your body moves, how strong it is and what your history looks like, then uses those findings to shape your training.

This article explains what a screen involves, what it can and cannot tell you, and how it connects to our injury prevention programs.

Why Preseason Is the Best Time to Check Your Injury Risk

The weeks before a season are the best window for screening because you still have time to act. Training load is about to rise, games will add speed and contact, and any weakness is likely to be tested soon after. Finding it in November costs a few extra exercises. Finding it in April can cost a month on the sideline.

A sudden jump in training is also one of the bigger injury risk factors in sport, so screening works best alongside a sensible build-up. If you want to see how that fits together, our guide to load management strategies explains how physios increase training gradually.

What Preseason Injury Screening Can and Cannot Tell You

A screen identifies risk factors, which are things that make an injury more likely and that you can often change. Examples include a weak calf, limited ankle movement, a big difference between your left and right leg or poor control when landing.

It does not predict injury. Research on popular movement screens, including the Functional Movement Screen, has produced mixed results, and some studies have been small or have not accounted for how much athletes train. Injuries also depend on workload, fatigue, contact, playing surface and plain bad luck. No single test or score can tell you that you will or will not get hurt. The most useful way to think about a screen is as a starting point for a plan, not a verdict.

What Your Physio Looks at During a Screen

A good screen covers the areas that matter for your sport rather than running everyone through the same list. Depending on your age, sport and history, it may include:

• Injury history: Past sprains, strains, surgeries and niggles that never fully settled.
• Range of motion: Hips, ankles, shoulders and spine, compared side to side.
• Strength: Key muscle groups such as calves, hamstrings, glutes and shoulders.
• Balance and control: Single-leg stability and how well you stay steady under load.
• Movement quality: Squatting, lunging, hopping and landing patterns.
• Sport demands: How your position, training volume and playing surface affect your risk.

This is different from assessing an injury you already have. A full movement assessment looks at how you move in detail, whereas a screen is wider and quicker, aimed at spotting risks across your body before symptoms appear.

Why Your Injury History Matters More Than Any Test Score

A previous injury is one of the strongest reasons to look closely at a particular area. An ankle that has been sprained before is more likely to be sprained again, and a hamstring that has been strained tends to need extra attention for a long time.

The reason is that old injuries often leave behind small deficits, such as reduced strength, stiffness or a habit of protecting the area. These can sit quietly for months. Telling your physio about every previous injury, even ones that felt minor, gives the screen far more direction than a number on a test sheet.

Strength and Asymmetry Testing Without Overreading the Numbers

Strength testing usually compares one side to the other, because large differences can point to an area that has not fully recovered or is under-trained. A simple single-leg test, such as repeated calf raises or a single-leg squat, can show a lot without any equipment. Clinics with force plates or hand-held dynamometers can measure it more precisely.

The numbers still need context. There is no universal cut-off that separates safe from risky, and some people are naturally stronger on one side. A physio looks at the whole picture, including your sport, your history and how you move, before deciding what needs work. Strength is also only one piece, which is why our article on why strength alone is not enough matters for readiness.

Balance, Hop and Landing Tests Show What Daily Life Hides

Walking and stairs ask very little of your body compared with sport. Balance, hopping and landing tests are closer to what happens on the field or court, so they can reveal problems that daily life never exposes.

A physio might watch how steady you are on one leg, how your knee tracks when you land, or how smoothly you hop and change direction. Wobbling, collapsing inwards or landing heavily on one side can point to weakness or poor control. These tests are especially useful for sports with jumping and cutting, where the knee and ankle take the most load.

Common Risk Areas by Sport

Different sports tend to stress different areas, so a screen is often tailored. This is a guide, not a rule:

Netball and basketball put a lot of load through ankles and knees from repeated jumping and landing, so balance, calf strength and landing control matter. If you have had a sprain before, our ankle pain treatment page explains why it should not be ignored. Football, rugby league and AFL involve sprinting and sudden stops, which puts the spotlight on hamstrings, groins and hips. See our guide to hamstring, thigh and groin pain if you have had trouble there. Swimmers and throwers load their shoulders and upper back, so shoulder range, strength and shoulder blade control often come first.

How a Screen Turns Into a Training Plan

A screen is only as useful as what happens next. After testing, your physio should explain what they found in plain language and agree a plan with you. This usually includes:

• Targeted strength work: Exercises for the muscles or sides that tested weaker.
• Mobility work: Drills for stiff joints that limit your movement.
• Movement coaching: Practice landing, squatting or changing direction with better control.
• A load plan: A realistic build-up of training volume and intensity.
• A re-test: A repeat of key measures several weeks later to see what has changed.

The plan should also fit around your normal training, not replace it. Small, consistent changes tend to work better than a long list of extras you will not keep up.

When to Book Your Screen and How to Prepare

Aim to screen around four to eight weeks before your first game or the start of heavy training, which gives enough time to make changes. Earlier is fine if you are returning from injury. A mid-season re-check is also worth considering if you have had a setback.

Wear clothes you can move in, bring your usual sports shoes and write down your injury history, including anything that still niggles. Screening suits most athletes, from juniors to masters players, and it is especially useful if you have been injured before, taken a long break or are changing sport.

Conclusion

The aim of preseason injury screening is not to find a reason to worry. It is to give you and your physio a clear starting point so you can fix small problems while they are still small.

At All Elite Physiotherapy & Performance, our injury prevention programs combine screening with a plan built around your sport, your history and your training load. If your season is coming up and you want to know where your risks sit, book an appointment and we will help you start the year with a plan.