With kit offering goalkeepers different options to wisely suit their playing style, "mods" (not the ones that went around on mopeds and beat each other up by Brighton pier) are still a great way of pushing boundaries and the boat at to get the most out of your gear. For those that prefer to keep the left arm unpadded to gain full range of movement a la Vivaldi, Fair etc. arm padding becomes a bit tricky to get that bend at the elbow joint fully without restricting it. Some goalies like Chris Hibbert and Ashley Watson in the English national league go for a set-up with the arm pads cut above the elbow, to protect the upper arms without limiting their movement for glove saves. But they play a more stand-up, reactive style, so when blocking in a barrier down low, the elbow is still exposed and therefore in danger.
And so an alternative is to have the lower arm padded with another chopped up style of arm protection. The upper arm (bicep) is more fleshy and more likely to bruise (in theory), so with the lower arm protected against direct hits and vulnerable when charging out with the arms out down low to get more coverage on the shot, this is more useful for goalkeepers that like to charge out or put themselves in harm's way to close down a shot or shooter.
And one way is to cut the arm pad below the elbow, so that there is more forearm padding. Here it is, noticing the Mazon pad cut in half at that point, leaving the elbow cup out to stop it restricting movement there; the first half pushed up the arm to cover the bicep, with the lower one pushed down past the elbow, protecting the arm area of the arm between wrist and elbow. This then gives good protection whilst not infringing the wrist to get decent movement for those reactive glove saves:
And so an alternative is to have the lower arm padded with another chopped up style of arm protection. The upper arm (bicep) is more fleshy and more likely to bruise (in theory), so with the lower arm protected against direct hits and vulnerable when charging out with the arms out down low to get more coverage on the shot, this is more useful for goalkeepers that like to charge out or put themselves in harm's way to close down a shot or shooter.
And one way is to cut the arm pad below the elbow, so that there is more forearm padding. Here it is, noticing the Mazon pad cut in half at that point, leaving the elbow cup out to stop it restricting movement there; the first half pushed up the arm to cover the bicep, with the lower one pushed down past the elbow, protecting the arm area of the arm between wrist and elbow. This then gives good protection whilst not infringing the wrist to get decent movement for those reactive glove saves:
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