Sore hip after playing football

[mark_ddickenson]

Last few weeks i've noticed when playing football my right hip/groin was getting a bit sore after playing for a while, was only really a problem for the last 10 minutes or so of a match, if i was playing for less than an hour it never became a problem. On the days following a longer game i found it very difficult to lift my right leg anywhere above about 45 degrees from vertical, from then i on i started doing extra stretches on my groin on that side before playing and now it seems to pain is only in the hip joint itself. When playing yesterday morning i noticed the pain flare up again towards the end of the match then it was stiff and a bit sore today, i went and had a bit of a kick around with some friends for about half an hour and it wasn't really noticable when playing. Any ideas what it could be ? The pain now seems to be isolated to the outside of my right hip either when lifting the right leg or applying pressure to the area.

[Heidi]

Given that it only comes on after a long period of exercise I would suggest that it is muscular in nature.
Give it a couple of weeks rest from football or any other form of exercise and get to stretching all the hip muscles, especially the hip flexors and the glutes (buttocks).
Some massage may also help.