Boot Testing - Traction Test
After a few miserable weeks, the weather has picked up and I am now able to get back out on the field and do more testing. This weekend I went out and decided to test the traction of my boots on the wet and muddy pitches.
adidas F50 adizero Synthetic 1.5 FG
adidas F50 adizero Leather 2 FG
The next boot was the leather Adidas F50 Adizero 2 FG. This boot is a good choice for someone who wants the adizero feel but prefers a leather upper. This boot like the synthetic adizero performs well, but not as well on muddier pitches. The stud pattern is the same as on the previous adizero but the upper I feel performed well as it has the sprintweb band which helps the foot stay in place as the leather forefoot and synthetic leather mid-foot are quite flexible. Once again it did keep my foot locked in place but the boot slid from under my feet on the slippy pitch. I give these boots a 7/10 once again as I feel they performed the same on this pitch as the synthetic adizero, the only difference is the feel of the upper.
adidas Copa Mundial
The next boot is the most tried and tested boot that is around and that is the Copa Mundial. This is a full leather boot made up of ultra soft kangaroo leather once broken in. This boot also includes a classic soleplate and stud pattern which although is designed for FG pitches, I feel it performs quite well on the muddier pitches due to the wide soleplate. When I planted my foot to make the turn, the boot planted into the ground well and felt stable when pushing back off. The boot didn't slip on the ground but I did feel my foot slipping in the boot to the front of the boot, but something that I didn't feel affected the performance. I feel even though my foot was slipping in the boot, the fact that the boot stayed securely in the ground made up for the slippage in the boot. This is why I feel the Copa Mundial deserves an 8/10.
Nike Mercurial Miracle 3 SG-Pro
The last boot I managed to test before the rain came pouring down was the Nike Mercurial Miracle. This boot is a soft ground boot so I expected it to perform better than the FG boots, but I wanted to see by how much. The boot when turning feels great on feet. Your foot is kept in place by the tight fit of the upper and you can see in the picture how the sides of the boots are keeping my boot locked in place (near the lace holes). My foot didn't feel to slip when my foot was planted and when I pushed off so this is good news. The SG studs are much longer than the FG studs so dig in deeper to the ground, allowing for better grip in the mud. I feel that this is an obvious choice for when the ground is muddier as it does allow for better grip and push off, but should be avoided if the grass/pitch is only wet, not soft. I gave the Nike Mercurial Miracle 3 a 9/10.
Overall, it was clear that there was always going to be an obvious winner as the Miracle was the only SG stud pattern, but I wanted to see how other stud patterns and upper materials performed on the direction change and I feel that this test did that well. I will be doing more Traction Test posts when the weather gets a little better and will also be doing overall performance reviews.
Thanks for reading, ThatCoultasGuy.
adidas F50 adizero Synthetic 1.5 FG
The first boot that I tested was the synthetic adidas F50 adizero 1.5 FG. This is boot that I feel is a good choice for a wet day as the synthetic upper won't absorb any water and will stay the same throughout the match. The boot itself is comfortable at first, but can get a little uncomfortable after 30 minutes or so around the sides of the foot. When making sharp cuts, the synthetic adizero is good as the upper is stiff yet flexible so is able to keep your foot locked in place and stop your foot moving around. From the picture, it is clear that the boot has kept the foot locked in place and made sure that it's not moved around. The soleplate and stud pattern which is fantastic on firmer pitches is good on wetter pitches also but on muddy pitches such as this one, it is not so good. You can see the foot hasn't moved around in the boot but you can see the boot has slidden along the ground. I would say however that the boot did well so I gave it a 7/10.
adidas F50 adizero Leather 2 FG
The next boot was the leather Adidas F50 Adizero 2 FG. This boot is a good choice for someone who wants the adizero feel but prefers a leather upper. This boot like the synthetic adizero performs well, but not as well on muddier pitches. The stud pattern is the same as on the previous adizero but the upper I feel performed well as it has the sprintweb band which helps the foot stay in place as the leather forefoot and synthetic leather mid-foot are quite flexible. Once again it did keep my foot locked in place but the boot slid from under my feet on the slippy pitch. I give these boots a 7/10 once again as I feel they performed the same on this pitch as the synthetic adizero, the only difference is the feel of the upper.
adidas Copa Mundial
The next boot is the most tried and tested boot that is around and that is the Copa Mundial. This is a full leather boot made up of ultra soft kangaroo leather once broken in. This boot also includes a classic soleplate and stud pattern which although is designed for FG pitches, I feel it performs quite well on the muddier pitches due to the wide soleplate. When I planted my foot to make the turn, the boot planted into the ground well and felt stable when pushing back off. The boot didn't slip on the ground but I did feel my foot slipping in the boot to the front of the boot, but something that I didn't feel affected the performance. I feel even though my foot was slipping in the boot, the fact that the boot stayed securely in the ground made up for the slippage in the boot. This is why I feel the Copa Mundial deserves an 8/10.
Nike Mercurial Miracle 3 SG-Pro
The last boot I managed to test before the rain came pouring down was the Nike Mercurial Miracle. This boot is a soft ground boot so I expected it to perform better than the FG boots, but I wanted to see by how much. The boot when turning feels great on feet. Your foot is kept in place by the tight fit of the upper and you can see in the picture how the sides of the boots are keeping my boot locked in place (near the lace holes). My foot didn't feel to slip when my foot was planted and when I pushed off so this is good news. The SG studs are much longer than the FG studs so dig in deeper to the ground, allowing for better grip in the mud. I feel that this is an obvious choice for when the ground is muddier as it does allow for better grip and push off, but should be avoided if the grass/pitch is only wet, not soft. I gave the Nike Mercurial Miracle 3 a 9/10.
Overall, it was clear that there was always going to be an obvious winner as the Miracle was the only SG stud pattern, but I wanted to see how other stud patterns and upper materials performed on the direction change and I feel that this test did that well. I will be doing more Traction Test posts when the weather gets a little better and will also be doing overall performance reviews.
Thanks for reading, ThatCoultasGuy.
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