CUT: Roll finger with wrapped fingertips on outer fingers, extended wrist.
FIT: True to size.
LATEX: 5mm "Contact"
FEATURES:
AVAILABILITY
Direct from Michael at www.MDGSports.com
www.ACAsports.com
Or from Me! PM me
PRICE
Retail is £50.
REVIEW
After seeing these a few weeks ago I was really interested in them, so I sent a message via the website. Michael, a professional keeper with Northern Irish league side Glentoran, got back to me straight away and was extremely friendly. We spoke at length about the gloves, which have been placed in local sports stores in Northern Ireland and I believe you'll be seeing them worn by professional keepers in the UK this season.
Michael offered me the opportunity to act as a sales agent for the brand as there's currently no retail presence in South Wales. I agreed on the condition that I'd have to try them out first - I'd never sell something that I didn't believe in. I received my pair this week and was immediately impressed by the fit, construction and quality of the materials. They fit spot on in my normal size 9 with perfect finger lengths and thumb cut. My favourite part of the gloves is the wrist bandage, which is made from an extremely soft and comfortable textile material. I was also impressed with the packaging of the gloves with the striking black and yellow glove bag and an excellent insert card with
I gave them one prewash, but they really felt like they would grip straight from the packet. They took a couple of days to dry thoroughly as they're full latex. The 5mm palm sounds very thick, but actually gives a great feel of the ball. There's not too much in the way of backing material, unlike some other gloves which have a 3mm palm and then 3-4mm of backing.
I wore them at training tonight and they were superb. Although they felt quite slick when rubbed together, they gripped the ball superbly. Our training balls are average quality Macron balls which move around everywhere and are not very keeper friendly, but I felt confident and my handling was excellent. The glove is sturdy and feels strong which gave me added confidence. The palm took on a slightly mottled appearance as it picked up dirt, but this seemed to enhance the grip rather than detract from it.
DURABILITY
Used for a full training session, I didn't give them any special treatment or try to save them in any way. There's a small nick in one fingertip from tipping a shot over - that's life! I also have a small abrasion on the left pinky which is pretty standard and happens to all my gloves...I still can't work out why. In any case, top range latexes are always limited in their durability and only time will tell how long these last. The palms are spotless though after the one session.
SUMMARY
A great addition to the top range of gloves, so far there's nothing about these gloves that suggests they are out of their depth. I firmly believe that these will be very popular. The cosmetics are spot on, good looking but understated. The grip is superb and the company's owner is extremely approachable (much like our Kenny!)
PROS
CONS
RATINGS SO FAR (ratings out of 5)
Dry Grip: 5
Wet Grip: N/A
Durability: 4 so far
Fit: 6
Cosmetics: 5
Value: 4 One could argue that the abundence of budget gloves available makes it difficult to justify shelling out £50 for a pair of these. However, I'm a particularly addicted glove collector and I haven't worn a better glove in a long time.
Overall Rating: Depends on the wet grip. If they grip as well as in the dry, they'll be a 5 for sure.
RECOMMENDATION: Definitely reccommend trying these out.