A sporadic history of my boots thus far...

This blog is all about boots.  With all the new gimics, synthetic materials and technology that go into todays boots, I thought I'd take you on a trip down memory lane with some of the many pairs of boots, I've worn, torn and sworn in.  This is meant to be in chronological order but I may have got a few mixed up, (my memory isn't what it should be, maybe too many headers?!)

Mitre Pro's - I didn't actually have Mitre Pro's but a similar, cheaper, heavier and nasty pair without flap over tongues.  These were my first and probably worst pair.  To be fair they were really crap, like so many of the players that wore them, but I loved them, and they started me off on the right foot (no pun) in my footballing career

Puma Maradona's - My Mum obviously got these knock off from some where as my little brother had the Puma Gascoigne's.  I preferred his as the Puma flash down the side was flouresent yellow, and on the Maradona's I had it was neon pink (again slightly different to the picture) They were pretty decent boots, but wearing them after the whole 'Hand of God' saga then Italia '90 made me feel like a bit of a traitor to my homeland as my brother knocked about in the better looking and more patriotic Gazza versions!

New Balance - This is probably the only pair of New Balance boots ever made and I was one of the unlucky few to get hold of a pair.  I remember going with my Mum to the dodgy sports shop up the High street to get some boots.  The fella in the shop said Byran Robson had a pair of these New Balance boots, he must have been the only other person then! No matter how much I scrunched up my toes he said they fit perfect and for a cheap price the deal was done and my fate sealed, I couldn't wait to grow out of them, unlucky for me they were quite big so it took a while.

Puma Kings - These were my first quality pair of boots and they were hard wearing, steady and heavy, again like so many of the players that wore them.  Puma Kings are always associated with left footers to me, I think that's probably down to Stuart Pearce, Andy Hinchcliffe and David Unsworth.

I actually got a pair of the all black Puma Kings when I was about 11 by chance (again some ropey deal my Mum got from some bloke who had a wholesale sports company or something)  They were nice and I got my first pair of mouldeds.

Asics - Again, like the rascal New Balance, not a popular pair of boots, but I actually picked these out myself (again from the dodgy sports shop up the High street) but mine had greeny/blue moulds on the bottom and an all black tongue.  I liked them, a lot, they were one off's and I liked that about them.

Nike Tiempo Premier 1996(ish) - I had the ones with the blue Nike on the bottom, not the Ian Wright ones with the red/yellow fade.  These were my first top notch pair of boots and I loved the look (still do) the over sized swoosh and massive NIKE on the heel made these boots simple but outlandish, Eric Cantona wore them, enough said.

Adidas Copa Mundial - After the Tiempo's there was no looking back.  The next pair of professional grade and iconic boots was Copas.  I loved making sure the tongue was pulled down the right amount and perfectly straight on my first pair, later on I'd cut the tongue straight off and want the metal and mould stud combo that the pro's had.  Great boots, and still are.  Look the business.

Mizuno International - These things were buttery soft and beautiful.  Sadly they were as strong as left foot at the time.  I had two pairs rip on me. They looked lovely, and made me feel rapier like when I played, if only for a few games.

Umbro Speciali - From the soft and smooth culture of the Mizuno's to the hard wearing 'I don't give a monkey's' attitude of the Speciali's was a bit of a jump.  Every player worth their salt growing up in England in the 90's had a pair of these.  The were just made for that, the 1990's English player, I had them in studs and moulds, and they lasted and fit well, and occasionally saw me play well. Shearer, McManaman and Owen wore them, and wore them well.

Adidas Predator Precision - I'd always loved the look of the Preds, from the first pair the Rapiers, to the 1996 Touch (with the red tongues and 'MADE IN GERMANY' proudly stitched into them) to the flamboyant and futuristic Accelerators I'd always wanted a pair, now I didn't have to wash peoples cars and try and save to get a pair as the lovely Adidas Rep at the club and schoolboys teams I represented was giving them to me for free!  These were my first pair of metal and moulded blades.  The moulds were heavy and had 'Adidas Equipment' on the heel, I love them.  I still have a pair, brand spanking, but they're my retirement fund (currently going for $300+ on ebay!)

Adidas Predator Mania - The hook was in, I loved Preds and was becoming loyal to the brand.  Again, getting some from a Rep helped, but these were some of my favourites.  I only ever had the black and red ones, but plenty of lads opted from the Lunar White, or Gun Metal Gray, even the blue leather ones.  Had them in the a set of 6 studs too, hard to find them, and I still have them now! Lush!

Adidas Predator Pulse - These were a bit of a let down compared to the previous versions.  The elastic band for keeping the tongue down and in place was a little more sturdy, but that was the only real improvement, they were lighter, but not significantly.

Umbro XAI III - John Terry wore these, and if they were good enough for JT they were good enough for me.  These were alright, comfy, fairly sleek and had smaller studs which was good for turf and hard natural surfaces.  Had some silly rubberized circles on the leather from some nonsense, steady training boot.

Nike Tiempo Premier - These weren't a patch on the previous Tiempo's and I didn't like them much, the big tongue, swoosh and text on the earlier model, which was my favourite part was all gone, replaced by smaller and less intrusive design.  Bland.

Adidas F50 - These were the first pair in the now extensive and modern line of the F50 range.  The majority of the boot was an odd thick canvas like material with leather running down the middle and over the laces creating a huge strike zone.  This made me try and smash everything with the 'laces' area, and it felt lovely when you connected. Sadly these little beauties went 'missing' from the changing room one day...

Nike Total 90 Air Zoom II - These were my first white pair and I didn't really like them.  They had side laces, again a first for me, and a lot of padding on the larger instep surface.  I found I was side footing a lot in these.  Didn't have the same feel as normal boots, too thick, padded and disconnected.

Adidas Predator Powerswerve - These came in a host of colours, again I stuck with the traditional black and red.  They had a stupid powerbar inner sole with little pieces of carbon like sand that shifted around when you ran and was meant to give shots more power.  Luckily it came with a normal inner sole too that had form instead of carbon sand and felt normal.  The laces also ripped away from the upper on these easily, and heels split on other peoples.

Adidas Predator X - These were the first Preds in a while without a tongue, I liked them at first, but then went off them.  Steady boots, not amazing.

Adidas Adipure II - I really liked these as an evolution of Copa's.  They are clean and crisp and looked the part.  Felt nice, decent leather and the no tongue was a bonus on these unlike the Preds above.

Adidas Predator IV - Got these in white for cheap and they are good quality boots.  More of a traditional style and look to the other boots on the market.  I suppose looking back at the boots I've owned, played in and ruined over my career these are the kind of boots I like, clear no-nonsense design, comfortable, no tongue, moulded studs/blades and made by Adidas, who in my humble opinion make the best boots.

Adidas Predator Adipower - The latest and greatest in predator technology.  These are super lightweight on the new F50 chassis and are feather-light compared the the preds of old.  They still look the part with the black and red, but have a multitude of random colours for the more eccentric of players.

Some great boots here and some not so great ones.  Hopefully some of you will have had a little trip down memory lane too.  As I said before, these are boots I personally wore.  Other great boots growing up and worth a mention that my mates had, Hi-Tech Kings Cup(Paul Merson - Billy Perry), Lotto Stadio (Hristro Stoichkov - Luke Southgate)