In Episode 13 of Soccerscene’s Off the Pitch Podcast, podiatrist Sam Turner explored the topics of performance versus comfort in football boots, how important it is for professional and NPL athletes to have multiple pairs of boots and addressing the current long-standing issues in women’s sports footwear.
In the detailed discussion, one of the main topics was about the amount of boots required throughout a professional or semi-professional season to ensure a lower risk of injury.
“A-League players are playing over 30 matches including finals then practice matches and Australia Cup plus the four training sessions a week, the miles build up quickly,” Turner said on the podcast.
“I would want players to change their boots every four to six weeks, that’s very quickly. If not, we’d probably like players to have 4 or 5 boots on the go at once so they don’t go dead or flat.”
Turner spoke about the difficulties of making this a reality in the Australian football space considering the lack of funding or high player wages.
“That’s what we want from a professional aspect but in reality, that becomes incredibly difficult because unless you get sponsored, you don’t have access to that. You’re paying for boots generally at full price that comes out of your wage,” he said.
“If you’re a rookie player or an A-League W player, who probably aren’t paid enough, this sort of set up is real tough to maintain.
“It’s probably something the players association and the league need to have a look at and doing something like the AFL where they provide each player with five pairs of footwear. It takes the financial burden off the player.”
Podiatry education and resources are growing amongst the professional football space; however this is still a science that many players and coaches don’t quite understand the importance of.
Click hear the full interview with Sam Turner, on Episode 13 of Soccerscene’s Off the Pitch Podcast – available on all major podcasting platforms.
