Why didn't GAA goalkeepers not wear gloves in the 90's?

pgj2015

Just saw the 1992 all ireland final between donegal and dublin on tv yesterday, I think both keepers weren't wearing gloves. was it seen as soft or something? Because soccer goalkeepers were wearing them in the 70's and 80's.

riffmongous

pgj2015 wrote: »

Just saw the 1992 all ireland final between donegal and dublin on tv yesterday, I think both keepers weren't wearing gloves. was it seen as soft or something? Because soccer goalkeepers were wearing them in the 70's and 80's.

Square ball rule maybe meant that the goalie wasn't being so pressured every time he went up for a ball and he could afford to be a bit looser with his handling.. Nowadays it's all so professional that nothing is left to chance but back in those days it might not have been seen as so important?

pgj2015

riffmongous wrote: »

Square ball rule maybe meant that the goalie wasn't being so pressured every time he went up for a ball and he could afford to be a bit looser with his handling.. Nowadays it's all so professional that nothing is left to chance but back in those days it might not have been seen as so important?

I would have thought for shot stopping they would be very important. Not sure why they wouldn't prefer gloves stopping a ball blasted at them.

Lundstram

I put this question drunkely to an Ireland finalist goalkeeper one night. He said there was no such thing a GAA gloves back then apart from them Mikasa yokes but they were pretty crap. Why not soccer gloves? Too expensive. That was it.

There wasn't as much money wasted on county teams back then as there is now.

I think it was also partly down to it being seen as soft wearing gloves too.

This was Christy Byrne of Kildare. Still a goalkeeper for his club 22 years after that All Ireland final.

pgj2015

Lundstram wrote: »

I put this question drunkely to an Ireland finalist goalkeeper one night. He said there was no such thing a GAA gloves back then apart from them Mikasa yokes but they were pretty crap. Why not soccer gloves? Too expensive. That was it.

There wasn't as much money wasted on county teams back then as there is now.

I think it was also partly down to it being seen as soft wearing gloves too.

This was Christy Byrne of Kildare. Still a goalkeeper for his club 22 years after that All Ireland final.

That is crazy that it would have been seen as too expensive to buy a pair of gloves to be worn by an inter county goalkeeper. shows you how times have changed. it would be bad enough having no gloves on a nice day but what about when it was raining.

Dr. Kenneth Noisewater

I played GAA in primary school, this would have been mid 1990's and I was a goalkeeper, never played without gloves. Not the Mikasa ones either, the proper soccer ones. A lot of the lads who played outfield had them too, but we were only kids in fairness.

youcancallmeal

Lundstram wrote: »

I put this question drunkely to an Ireland finalist goalkeeper one night. He said there was no such thing a GAA gloves back then apart from them Mikasa yokes but they were pretty crap. Why not soccer gloves? Too expensive. That was it.

There wasn't as much money wasted on county teams back then as there is now.

I think it was also partly down to it being seen as soft wearing gloves too.

This was Christy Byrne of Kildare. Still a goalkeeper for his club 22 years after that All Ireland final.

Yes this is the answer. The gloves with a decent latex palm that all goalkeepers wear now would have been expensive and hard to get back in the 80s but by the 90s they were definitely available so probably a personal choice for keepers then. Nowadays county goalkeepers(even some senior clubs keepers) will be given gloves free by the likes of Reusch, Uhlsport etc. When quality goalkeeper gloves did become widely available there was a period around the late 90s early 00s that a lot of outfield players wore them.

shockframe

A few didn't wear them. Charlie Nelligan and John O'Leary played without them quite often.

A lot of it might have been to do with weather. Gloves would be more essential on a bad day. O'Leary though always played without them regardless. Seems wild.

Have they gotten lighter? The ball used in soccer is lighter than it was in the early 90s but has more or less remained the same in Gaelic. Players do fine regardless it would seem.

youcancallmeal

shockframe wrote: »

A few didn't wear them. Charlie Nelligan and John O'Leary played without them quite often.

A lot of it might have been to do with weather. Gloves would be more essential on a bad day. O'Leary though always played without them regardless. Seems wild.

Have they gotten lighter? The ball used in soccer is lighter than it was in the early 90s but has more or less remained the same in Gaelic. Players do fine regardless it would seem.

There is many types of gloves available now, some would be quite lightweight and thin which suits the modern soccer ball and keepers who want more 'feel' on the ball. The latex used in top end gloves has improved immensely over the years, particularly how it performs in wet conditions. Even the outfield players gloves will have very good grip in all conditions but are not very durable, especially with all the 'non-ball contact' that goes on

partyguinness

When I played during the late 80s and early 90s the mentality was you only really needed gloves if conditions were wet.

Playing during the summer months with gloves even Irish summers meant sweaty uncomfortable hands. Goalies were a lot less involved back then- certainly no pass backs.

I imagine a goalie standing around with hot sweaty hands in a pair of Mikasa was not appealing.

jacool

partyguinness wrote: »

I imagine a goalie standing around with hot sweaty hands in a pair of Mikasa was not appealing.

Thanks for planting that image - it is not appealing!

ArmaniJeanss

Catching the ball is less important than it is in soccer, I guess.

A lot of the time a parry or a punch is better.
You get no real reward for say diving to make a save and catching the ball, as players can challenge you immediately and you get penalised for not releasing. Whereas being able to dive and catch is a huge skillset for a soccer goalkeeper.

So you could see how they would have been regarded as unnecessary.

LuasSimon

Played GAA in goals for a number of years in 80s and 90s. Rarely wore gloves unless it was milling . Your hands became used to stopping piledrivers without gloves and you developed a leather type palm of hand over the years lol and you never complained off been in pain .
There was little emphasis on gloves for any players unless it was raining including the goal keeper. It wasnt said but any player wearing gloves on a fine day would be regarded as a bit of a woman ( before all this PC madness).

partyguinness

Wasnt it all the rage to squirt a bit of orange juice on your hands to make it sticky?

Any idea what year the kicking tees came if for the keepers?

partyguinness

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Any idea what year the kicking tees came if for the keepers?

Not sure exactly but I feel it was within the last decade.

partyguinness

partyguinness wrote: »

Not sure exactly but I feel it was within the last decade.

The young lads in goals now wouldnt survuve without glooves or a kicking tee now :pac:

pgj2015

id say the kicking tees are in around 20 years at this stage.