By Ruth Whelan
Ruth Whelan, a physiotherapy (what we call physical therapy)
manager from UPMC Beacon Hospital in Dublin, Ireland, was invited by Pittsburgh Steelers
head athletic trainer John Norwig to join the medical staff – including
physicians from the team’s official health-care provider, UPMC –
on the Steelers sidelines during their game last week against the Minnesota Vikings. Herewith, an Irish view to a completely foreign game
(with a few parenthetical Irish-to-American translations):
|
Ruth Whelan |
On Sunday 29th,
Sept. 2013, the Pittsburgh Steelers played Minnesota Vikings as part of the
NFL International Series in the iconic Wembley Stadium before a crowd of 90,000, and I
had the privilege to stand pitch side. (Translation:
“pitch” is the field.)
Two years ago, Ambassador Dan Rooney introduced me to John
Norwig, the head athletic trainer for Pittsburgh Steelers. John was visiting
the Rooneys in Ireland and, given his connections with UPMC, John took some
time out of his trip to tour our hospital facility: UPMC Beacon Hospital in Dublin,
Ireland. From this chance encounter, John and I stayed in contact, and our
friendship grew stronger through our mutual affiliations with UPMC and our love
of sports rehabilitation. Little did I know at the time that one day John would
give me the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see first-hand his role with Pittsburgh
Steelers.
My invite from
John not only included presence pitch side at an NFL International Series game
in London, but also unlimited access to the training sessions, mock games (translation: practices) and training
rooms in the two days leading up to the game – a truly golden ticket.
The first
sighting of the Steelers’ world left me gasping for air. The sheer size of the
players, the magnitude of the entourage and the precision of their planning was
unimaginable. On day one, I was really struck by the size of the support teams
that include a UPMC consultant neurosurgeon, UPMC orthopaedic surgeon, UPMC
internal medicine physician, strength and conditioning coaches, position
specific coaches. . . . It was an effort to control my emotions with each
introduction!
On match day (translation: gameday), the excitement
commenced the minute we boarded the coach (translation:
transportation, not Mike Tomlin) with a police escort all the way to
Wembley and fans waving at our bus as we drove through the streets of London!
As if this was not enough, I managed to find myself sitting beside Troy
Polamalu and Ryan Clarke (sic) on the
coach.
Four hours before Kick-off, it was straight to the locker
rooms. The Steelers had two interconnecting locker rooms; one for the offence
and one for the defence (translation:
hey, that’s how the Canadians spell it, too!), both immaculately presented.
Each player’s uniform was presented perfectly in each booth (translation: locker). Players got ready at their own pace and used the cues from the
coaches as to when they had to be on the pitch. Calls like “Offence 2 minutes,”
“Defence 3 minutes,” “Team 5 minutes” echoed through the locker rooms. John and his team worked effortlessly to
ensure each player’s every need was addressed from taping and stretching to
ensuring each player was appropriately hydrated.
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Whelan with Steelers defensive end Brett Keisel. |
The calmness in
the dressing room was in complete contrast to the roars of the crowds out on
the pitch. And then, when you think you have seen everything, a final pleasant
surprise: silence descended as they stood while one of the teammates led them
in prayer. It was a truly amazing and moving sight to observe.
Just before kick-off,
we lined up behind the team in the tunnel and had the privilege of running
behind the team onto the pitch to the roars of the crowd – what better way to
experience life as a Pittsburgh Steelers footballer!
While the game
did not go our way, it was clear that each team player had given it his all;
each play carried out with maximum intensity and gritty determination. Coaching
staff motivated players during every minute of each play – running up and down
the line (translation: sideline),
calling players into huddles, scribbling notes for half-time. Athletic training
staff had worked hard to ensure players were physically fit for each play and that
each stayed hydrated. Medical staff observed every tackle and looked at replays
to ensure there were no unaccounted for injuries. It was a true team effort on
and off the pitch.
Given my limited
knowledge before this weekend of American football, I can readily see why it is
the No. 1 sport in the U.S. It offers a true sporting
spectrum of strength, skill, speed, agility and pace coupled with passion and
nail-biting excitement. The Pittsburgh Steelers game brought
this and more to Wembley. They have a new No. 1 Irish Fan. Let’s hope they come
to Ireland sometime soon so that more sports lovers can get a taste of what I
experienced first-hand!
A huge thank you to John Norwig for this once-in-a-lifetime
opportunity!
Labels: physical therapy, Pittsburgh sports, UPMC Center for Sports Medicine