If having watched David Kettle playing for Surbiton in the Euro Hockey League, for Wales, or in the NOW Pensions (as it's called now!) English national hockey league, you might have noticed the modifications he has made to his TK rhp (right hand protector) glove. The mods are very similar to what Tommy Alexander (ex-Scotland junior and team mate with Kettle whilst at Surbiton, who's now at HWHC) was experimenting with when using Obo and brought across to his innovative approach with TK now that he uses their foam. Kettle uses a thumb strap rather than a strap across the wrist, to hold his stick/hand in place when diving or making saves with his right hand. But I wanted to talk through some of the additions I have been working on to show further options when modifying kit to get the most of it.
The TK glove itself is very popular in Europe, with Stockmann, Blaak and Jenniskens all using it for instance, before making their switch to the Obo hi rebound rhp. The majority of the Belgian internationals and domestic national league goalkeepers also use it because it offers a hybrid between strong ground work and aerial shot stopping, areas of the game which goalkeepers need to excel at in both areas, to come out on top, at the highest levels of the game. Either way, there is always room for improvement in anything, and a few tweaks here and there can ensure the greatest level of perfection, for you to get the most out of your kit. Although normally only possible if it's the kit you own rather than borrowed (in case people aren't best pleased with your application of goalie knowledge!!).
So, on with the show!
Anyway, for the first part, I cut away the wrist, which can quite limit your ability to turn at the wrist, in order to be able to get maximum movement for pushing and turning away the wrist, when making the 'punching' motion to turn away the shot up and over the bar, or away over the line. I used a sharp craft knife (best to cut away from yourself and be sensible!), getting rid of the foam that sort of wraps round the wrist. You can see below how it manages to offer more movement for these types of saves, able to push the wrist/move the glove further up at the diagonal than before, with the glove "out of the packing" as it were.
The next step was sorting out the strapping around the wrist. I removed the velcro from the back of the foam that was cut away (which is quite easy to do as it's only glued down with a thin layer of glue, so easy to peel off), so that I could use the long reach of the strap that normally attaches to the glove, to keep the hand in place when playing, since I wasn't going to set up a thumb strap etc. I then glued the velcro side to the front of the glove (as I think Antoni Kindler does), carefully using a hot glue gun (with suitable ventilation, you definitely don't want to get high off the fumes!!) to stick the back of the velcro side to the face of the glove. Once dry, you can then pull the strap out and over the glove, so it stays in place on the back of the glove, so when you play, you have something to hold and help secure, your arm, in place.
The final addition was to enable more movement when using the glove on pitch for ground work vis a vis stick clearances, diving and "barrier" saves. So I decided to cut away the circular part of foam that you also see on the new Mercian glove and Obo's gloves, that keeps the stick on place at a horizontal angle. This allows you to move the stick further, up and down the face of the glove, for extended reach with stick saves etc. Instead of relying on the foam to do the work for you, you instead work on your technique to get the stick on the angle you want it to be at necessary for the save selection you require.
So that's all really folks! At some point, I may write a more in-depth article/video explanation for you to repeat if you fancy trying out these mods, but they definitely work, and don't take too long to put in place!
The TK glove itself is very popular in Europe, with Stockmann, Blaak and Jenniskens all using it for instance, before making their switch to the Obo hi rebound rhp. The majority of the Belgian internationals and domestic national league goalkeepers also use it because it offers a hybrid between strong ground work and aerial shot stopping, areas of the game which goalkeepers need to excel at in both areas, to come out on top, at the highest levels of the game. Either way, there is always room for improvement in anything, and a few tweaks here and there can ensure the greatest level of perfection, for you to get the most out of your kit. Although normally only possible if it's the kit you own rather than borrowed (in case people aren't best pleased with your application of goalie knowledge!!).
So, on with the show!
Anyway, for the first part, I cut away the wrist, which can quite limit your ability to turn at the wrist, in order to be able to get maximum movement for pushing and turning away the wrist, when making the 'punching' motion to turn away the shot up and over the bar, or away over the line. I used a sharp craft knife (best to cut away from yourself and be sensible!), getting rid of the foam that sort of wraps round the wrist. You can see below how it manages to offer more movement for these types of saves, able to push the wrist/move the glove further up at the diagonal than before, with the glove "out of the packing" as it were.
The next step was sorting out the strapping around the wrist. I removed the velcro from the back of the foam that was cut away (which is quite easy to do as it's only glued down with a thin layer of glue, so easy to peel off), so that I could use the long reach of the strap that normally attaches to the glove, to keep the hand in place when playing, since I wasn't going to set up a thumb strap etc. I then glued the velcro side to the front of the glove (as I think Antoni Kindler does), carefully using a hot glue gun (with suitable ventilation, you definitely don't want to get high off the fumes!!) to stick the back of the velcro side to the face of the glove. Once dry, you can then pull the strap out and over the glove, so it stays in place on the back of the glove, so when you play, you have something to hold and help secure, your arm, in place.
The final addition was to enable more movement when using the glove on pitch for ground work vis a vis stick clearances, diving and "barrier" saves. So I decided to cut away the circular part of foam that you also see on the new Mercian glove and Obo's gloves, that keeps the stick on place at a horizontal angle. This allows you to move the stick further, up and down the face of the glove, for extended reach with stick saves etc. Instead of relying on the foam to do the work for you, you instead work on your technique to get the stick on the angle you want it to be at necessary for the save selection you require.
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