New 2012 wicket keeper gloves side by side review

Gloves in this review.

Gray Nicolls legend keeper gloves

Gray Nicolls Powerbow players keeper gloves

Puma IPL pulse 6000 keeper gloves

Kookaburra Haddin 1000 keeper gloves

Puma Cobalt 6000 keeper gloves

So ive been doing a bit of a pole on my facebook page with people from around the world asking them whats important to them when selecting their keeper gloves and these are the things that seem to come up all the time. Grip, flexibility, comfort, fit, webbing, softness, looks & protection.

So im going to score these gloves on a few different levels and all levels out of a simple 3 points. Zero being the lowest and 3 being the best.Im going to leave looks and fit out of the equations as thats subjective and different for every person.

1: grip ( how grippy is the rubber in the catching areas )

2: Palm Protection ( what is under the surface and realistically is it adequate )

3: Finger tip protection ( caps and padding on the fingertips )

4: Wrist protection ( whats the padding like on the wrists )

5: flexibility ( soft and supple, or do they need to be played in over a few games etc )

6: Quality ( is it made from old crappy materials or state of the art lightweight material )

7: weight ( how much does it weigh, lighter is better )

Gray Nicolls legend keeper gloves

1: grip : ( 3 ) good level of grip but found all the gloves to have the same grip level regardless of grip pattern e.g. octopus suction cup, hexagon cups etc.

2: Palm Protection : ( 3 ) all gloves had similar gel padding and couldn’t tell any difference between the lot

3: Finger tip protection : ( 1 ) very soft squash-able cups in the fingertips. Im thinking thats a bad thing.

4: Wrist protection : ( 1 ) very soft low density foam. im thinking keepers would prefer a more thigh pad type of hard shell in there instead of the soft foam.

5: flexibility : ( 3 ) very soft and flexible material used on the outer covering.

6: Quality : ( 3 ) i cant find any faults

7: weight : ( 1 ) 10.7 oz. 3rd heaviest glove out of the 5 reviewed today.

Score : 15 / 21

Overall im more impressed by these gloves now that ive messed around with them a bit. Flexibility of these gloves are supreme. you can use them straight out of the packaging. they are supple and soft and catch well. At about $85 these gloves are very good and worthy of any international player and not out of the budget for moms and dads who are looking for a cool christmas present for their son.

Gray Nicolls Powerbow players keeper gloves

1: grip : ( 3 ) good level of grip but found all the gloves to have the same grip level regardless of grip pattern e.g. octopus suction cup, hexagon cups etc.

2: Palm Protection : ( 3 ) all gloves had similar gel padding and couldn’t tell any difference between the lot

3: Finger tip protection : ( 1 ) very soft squash-able cups in the fingertips. Im thinking thats a bad thing. Same as legend gloves.

4: Wrist protection : ( 0 ) very soft low density foam. im thinking keepers would prefer a more thigh pad type of hard shell in there instead of the soft foam. Very small padded area, maybe undersized. helps with weight reduction but overall the glove seems a little smaller than the rest. tighter cut.

5: flexibility : ( 3 ) very soft and flexible material used on the outer covering.

6: Quality : ( 3 ) i cant find any faults

7: weight : ( 3 ) 10.0 oz. the lightest one in the pack.

Score : 16 / 21

I felt these gloves had a slightly tighter cut than the others and it was brought to light in the weight of the gloves. they seem just a little tighter, smaller padded areas etc. the grip level , quality, flexibility is all as good / bad as the legend gloves as it uses the same synthetic lightweight flexible material on the back of the hands which means they are match ready right out the bag. overall a good solid set of gloves. Quite bright but some of us LIKE to be the centre of attention right??

Puma IPL pulse 6000 keeper gloves

1: grip : ( 3 ) good level of grip but found all the gloves to have the same grip level regardless of grip pattern e.g. octopus suction cup, hexagon cups etc.

2: Palm Protection : ( 3 ) all gloves had similar gel padding and couldn’t tell any difference between the lot

3: Finger tip protection : ( 3 ) very similar more durable / harder caps at fingertips i feel would provide better protection with good foam inserts.

4: Wrist protection : ( 1 ) Thin soft inadequate padding but provided some durability because of the durable leather used in the construction. Didn’t feel quite as soft as the Gray Nicolls gloves.

5: flexibility : ( 2 ) mainly high quality durable leather used in construction meaning the gloves are slightly more stiff coming out of the packaging than the Gray nicolls gloves so the Puma Pulse IPL keeper gloves may take a bit more time to wear in.

6: Quality : ( 3 ) i cant find any faults. Top quality materials and leathers.

7: weight : ( 1 ) 11.0 oz. These gloves were the heaviest in the pack but did have the most leather covering the cup area. Meaning they are a good mix between the normal cup and the T- Cup style gloves. If you look closely on the picture the cup is almost 100% covering the thumb to finger web area.

Score : 16 / 21

These gloves are flashy and also are good quality. Perfectly good for many international players this year in the #IPL cricket tournament so who am i to say they are no good. I really like these gloves and would be perfectly happy using them. They are comfortable and durable and even better they are very limited editions. There aren’t many people wearing these.

Kookaburra Haddin 1000 keeper gloves

So before i go anywhere i will state these are the most expensive gloves on the planet, at $195 USD so keepers that wear these should never drop another catch again, EVER!!!

1: grip : ( 3 ) good level of grip but found all the gloves to have the same grip level regardless of grip pattern e.g. octopus suction cup, hexagon cups etc.

2: Palm Protection : ( 3 ) all gloves had similar gel padding and couldn’t tell any difference between the lot

3: Finger tip protection : ( 3 ) very similar to kookaburra more durable / harder caps at fingertips i feel would provide better protection with good foam inserts.

4: Wrist protection : ( 1 ) Thin soft inadequate padding but provided some durability because of the durable leather used in the construction. Didn’t feel quite as soft as the Gray Nicolls gloves. Similar to the Puma Pulse IPL gloves.

5: flexibility : ( 2 ) mainly high quality durable super soft kangaroo leather used in construction meaning the gloves are slightly more stiff coming out of the packaging than the Gray nicolls gloves so the Kookaburra Brad haddin 1000 keeper gloves may take a bit more time to wear in. I found the benefit the Gray Nicolls Legend and Powerbow players gloves have over the Puma and Kookaburra gloves is not the flexibility at the main knuckle ( as all the gloves are flexible there ) but rather the flexibility in the fingers as its easier to cup around the ball when it comes to the GN gloves.

6: Quality : ( 3 ) i cant find any faults. Top quality materials and leathers.

7: weight : ( 0.5 ) 10.9 oz. These gloves were 4th heaviest out of the 5 gloves reviewed.

Score : 15.5 / 21

For the price you pay for these gloves you would expect them to be the lightest, most flexible and have actual Octopus in the palms for catching the ball, but alas they are just a normal set of gloves. and whilst they offer super light and soft kangaroo leather they are no better really than a set of $100 keeper gloves. Buying these gloves would be like buying a $1000 cricket bat. There is just no need, its the same as all the others, but will maybe put you in the lime light for a few minutes when you show them to your friends at school.

Puma Cobalt 6000 keeper gloves

1: grip : ( 3 ) good level of grip but found all the gloves to have the same grip level regardless of grip pattern e.g. octopus suction cup, hexagon cups etc.

2: Palm Protection : ( 3 ) all gloves had similar gel padding and couldn’t tell any difference between the lot

3: Finger tip protection : ( 3 ) very similar to kookaburra more durable / harder caps at fingertips i feel would provide better protection with good foam inserts.

4: Wrist protection : ( 2 ) Probably the most padded section out of all the gloves tested but still soft foam style padding. I still think keeper gloves could benefit from a harder shell underneath the leather surface to provide better protection to the wrists. ( what do i know though right?

5: flexibility : ( 2 ) mainly high quality durable  leather used in construction meaning the gloves are slightly more stiff coming out of the packaging than the Gray nicolls gloves so the Puma Cobalt 6000 keeper gloves may take a bit more time to wear in. I found the benefit the Gray Nicolls Legend and Powerbow players gloves have over the Puma and Kookaburra gloves is not the flexibility at the main knuckle ( as all the gloves are flexible there ) but rather the flexibility in the fingers as its easier to cup around the ball when it comes to the GN gloves.

6: Quality : ( 3 ) i cant find any faults. Top quality materials and leathers.

7: weight : ( 2 ) 10.4 oz. These gloves were 4th heaviest out of the 5 gloves reviewed.

Score : 18 / 21

And it looks like we have a winner score wise but you will need to be the judge when you get yours. please head to my facebook page or website and tell me what you guys think. am i way off or do you think im spot on. These gloves are comfy, flashy, well made, provide good finger protection and also good grip. I think the Puma Cobalt 6000 gloves would be my choice if i wasn’t on a budget, BUT if i couldn’t spend more than $100 USD i would for sure be very happy with my Gray Nicolls Legend or Powerbow players gloves. they are flexible and are ready to use right out the box. Oh and for extra marks the puma cobalts come with free inners.

Alos something ive noticed is why dont keeper gloves have a nice soft towel section on the back of the hand to wipe sweat away from the eyes like batting gloves have on the wrist. i dont know, im just saying im sure it would be handy.

So the wrap up is for scores out of 21.

Gray Nicolls legend keeper gloves score : 15

Gray Nicolls Powerbow players keeper gloves score : 16

Puma IPL pulse 6000 keeper gloves score : 16

Kookaburra Haddin 1000 keeper gloves score : 15.5

Puma Cobalt 6000 keeper gloves score : 18

let me know what you guys think on my facebook page. www.cricketstoreonline.com