About Sep Rafiee & The Manual Layer
Welcome to The Manual Layer, an educational space dedicated to the clinical art, physical science, and hands-on reasoning behind effective recovery.
I am Sep Rafiee, a manually trained physiotherapist with 24 years of clinical experience. After graduating from the University of Queensland in 2000 and beginning clinical work in 2001, I had the privilege of developing my hands-on treatment philosophy directly under Emeritus Professor Dr Gwen Jull AO—one of the world's foremost authorities on manual therapy.
In a modern healthcare system that is increasingly shifting toward hands-off consultations, generic exercise printouts, and automated recovery sheets, I choose a different standard for my patients. I believe that true injury resolution requires direct, physical assessment and precise manual therapy techniques.
Experienced Hands-On Care & Sports Medicine
Throughout my two-decade career, my foundational training in traditional manual assessment was sharpened in diverse clinical and team settings. Alongside managing busy private practices, I spent years working closely with contact and field sports injuries at the absolute highest level.
My sports medicine background includes serving as:
Assistant Physiotherapist for the Australian Wallabies
Head Physiotherapist for the Queensland Reds
Head Physiotherapist for Brisbane Roar FC
Lead Physiotherapist for the Worcester Rugby Football Club
Managing injuries in elite rugby environments requires rapid, precise clinical decisions and highly specialized hands-on joint and soft-tissue rehabilitation. Whether treating an elite player preparing for a match, an endurance runner, or a local patient dealing with chronic spinal and joint stiffness, my clinical philosophy remains identical: precise physical palpation and targeted manual treatment are the keys to restoring normal mechanics and accelerating healing.
What to Expect From This Blog
While I treat patients directly in my independent practice, I use this blog, The Manual Layer, to translate my career experience into clear, actionable, and jargon-free insights. Here, we break down:
The actual mechanics of joint, spinal, and soft-tissue injuries.
What hands-on treatment physically changes to help your body shift out of pain.
Practical strategies to increase your body’s physical capacity and stay resilient.
Secure a Hands-On Assessment
I operate a focused, independent, sole-practitioner clinical space. If you are dealing with a rugby or sports injury, a persistent structural tweak, or joint stiffness that isn’t resolving, you do not have to manage it alone.
You can view my live schedule and book an individualised physiotherapy consultation directly through the link below:
👉 Click Here to View Clinic Availability & Book a Physiotherapy Appointment