Gear-Zone Guide to Goalkeeping Gloves

Posted by Nicki | March 13, 2012

Here at Gear-Zone we have gloves galore, for running, winter hiking and mountaineering, skiing, wicket keeping….and football.

Our range of goalkeeping gloves includes the Reusch Keon Pro A1 specifically designed for wet-weather matches, Nike’s Goalkeeping Classic for senior footballers, and Reydon Precision Training’s junior gloves for younger players.

Built as much for saving you from breaks and sprains as for saving the ball, goalkeeping gloves feature padded fingers and thumbs to prevent damage to your digits, and many have built-in safety protection to stop the fingers bending backwards into the injury zone.

All are designed to provide superb control when catching, holding and throwing the ball, with excellent grip, padded backhands for punching, and extended palms for maximum contact.

Youngsters in particular - with their still-growing bodies and developing bones - are reliant on good, solid protection.

Specialist Gloves for Youngsters

That’s where specialist goalkeeping gloves come into their own, with Reydon PT’s Junior Protection and Junior Vortex 2 in particular being designed for younger players looking to make an impression on the pitch, without the danger of serious injury stalling their career before it has a chance to get properly started.

Today, with all the state-of-the-art equipment available, it’s hard to believe that goalkeepers only began wearing specialist gloves in the 1960s.

Until then, even the likes of England’s Peter Shilton, Gordon Banks and Ray Clemence started out with nothing coming between them and the ball.

Parrying away thunderous shots, coming into contact with waywood boots as they followed through at full power, and exposing susceptible thumbs and fingers to serious damage was all part of a day’s work.

Now, thanks to the likes of Nike, Reusch and Reydon, help is at hand.