We don’t half take a bettering don’t we? Every single one of us puts our bodies on the line for the sake of not allowing the other side to score, and what thanks do we get? The opportunity to be inactive for 80% of the game whilst it’s throwing it down with icy rain! Wow, some thanks!
So what can you do to help keep the chills at bay? Well firstly take a look at what you are wearing….
I know when I was a junior goalkeeper (yes, I really was young once!) I would wear padded trousers on my legs and also T-Shirts under my jersey to try and repel the chill in the air….and needless to say it failed miserably! The padded trousers in particular, just soaked up the rainwater, stuck to my legs and weighed an absolute tonne on my youthful frame! The best thing that I ever did was to ditch the ultra absorbent sponge like trousers during game play, and stuck instead to the team shorts, with cycling shorts underneath. I figured out that should it ever stop raining, my skin will dry far quicker than the padded trousers ever could, and it proved to be one of the best decisions going!
Psychologically though, it was very hard leaving the dressing room wearing shorts instead of trousers!
The same argument can be used for a T-Shirt under your jersey; it simply soaks up any water and holds it next to your skin up until you can jump in the shower at the end of the game! There are plenty of options nowadays for the “Under Armour” type clothing and these have been a real god send since their release. Do not underestimate the value of investing in this type of clothing.
If it was absolutely lashing it down then I would wear a rain top under my jersey (long before Buffon wore his too – yes, I really am a trendsetter!). This was a great addition to my match day attire; it kept me lovely and warm due to reflecting the body heat, and also relatively dry too. The only downside with this was when the padding in my shorts got soaked full of water, they would often slip down due to the slippery material of the rain jacket (not all the way down, just far enough to annoy) but by making sure the drawstring was fastened as tight as it could go prevented this a little!
Aside from the way you dress, you need to make sure you keep the blood flowing. If it’s a busy game for you then I doubt very much that you’d feel the cold however if you are relatively quiet then at some point, that little voice is going to whisper in your ear “I’m freezing!”
Wet goalkeeper gloves do not aid this chill, so ensure you keep making fists to squeeze the water out of the latex and also repeatedly perform the “windmill” exercise with your arms; this will drive the blood down into your fingers and help to maintain their warmth.
Similarly for your legs, bouncing, jogging on the spot, bounding on the spot with your knees to your chest are all ways to get that warm blood pumping around your body – in essence keep active during the game, but never let your attention drift away from the action! If you decide to go for a little jog or a skip, then ensure that you always have full knowledge of what is happening on the pitch.
A final little tip for you, and one that I picked up from a senior pro at one of the training grounds I worked at is……………..VASELINE! To stop that horrible cold toes feeling, then liberally coat your toes with this amazing stuff. Yes, it will feel horrible and ‘squidgy’ but it miraculously helps to retain the heat and has been an absolute blessing of a tip for me over the years and in actual fact, even now, I still use this trick as a spectator!
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