(14 Jun 2015, 9:39 am)MurdnunoC wrote With regard to how rigorous a medical at a football club is, it all comes down to how much money the club in question is willing to spend.I get ya point there mate...
Unless someone has an irregular or unusual heart-beat which merits further medical testing, a standard medical (involving a stethascope) will not reveal anything about the heart unless the patient discloses they are suffering from any additional pain around that area or anything else which may indicate a heart condition.
If someone thinks they have good chance of making a career out of any sport, not just football, it's not out of the question to suggest some athletes may suppress any information which could hamper their progress. Sadly, this might include the odd twinge here and there - only known to the athlete - and not to the medical examiner. Regular medicals won't reveal anything more than is obvious to examiner or anything the patient is willing is disclose.
A more rigorous medical should involve a echocardiogram which would reveal any further heart defects. However random screenings iaren't cheap and it's unlikely that lower league clubs are going to fork out for such tests even though it could potentially save lives. There's also a cost/benefit analysis to look at here: I would imagine a very high percentage of players are likely to pass which means, essentially, an echocardiogram will be looked at as a mammoth waste of financial resources.
Fitness tests will be included in the medical but, once again, I'd imagine very few athletes who have progressed to a professional level are going to fail. Generally speaking, a fitness test won't reveal any heart conditions either.
But would be uncalled for to make clubs have a defibrillator on site at games? I don't know how much they are, so don't know if it would work financially for clubs, but if you have one, if it does happen where someone collapses, it can give someone a chance