Shin-Pad Ankle supports - Are they worth it?

[Jamess]

I have shin-pads with bulky ankle supports, which I really hate and find irritating but feel if I get rid of them, Karma will exact terrible revenge with an ankle injury.

Was just wondering how worth it they are, will they save my ankles from utter destruction? or are they just useless add-ons which are designed to sell more products.

Would like to know everyones thoughts.

http://www.innovation-trading.co.uk/ShinGuards.jpg

Bit like these bulky ones.

[Quentin]

I've all but quit wearing shin guards all together due to the ankle guards. I have a 2 or 3 year old set of Nike guards that have detachable ankle guards, but the shin guard goes all over the place if I only have the shin guard.

I had the Reebok guards from back in 1999 and they were pretty good as far as ankle guards, but the ankle section disintegrated after 2 seasons, so I can't wear them anymore.

I think my next set will be some mold to fit guards w/ the tight sleeves that are supposed to hold them in place.

[Jamess]

Hmm, this is a strange dilemma.

I think I will go for some of those adipure shin pads which, like you said have the tight sleeve to fit them into. Then I'll probably tape it all up nicely to secure it.

Hopefully no ankle injury problems will spring up.

[ctoa23]

I've always found sleeves useless, as well as ankle pads. I just use slip in's and tape the top and bottom.

Ankle pads are really a joke though, they don't product anthing, and just are just clunky and useless.

[Jamess]

Ok, thats great, thanks for your advice, I might even start doing a torres/ ronaldo style white sock do. Though I'm not good enough to pull it off so It'll just make people want to tackle me harder I guess.

[InTheUpper90s]

I personally hate ankle guards. They are just extra mass added on to you. I use slip-in guards and usually use sleeves.

[kentishman]

I quit using them a few years back. With them on it just felt like I was running round with weights attached to my feet. Sleeves are pretty much a waste of time - I got some Adidas Formotion ones last year in an attempt to stop the slip but they still do even with the tight sleeve. So, I'm back to the old faithful tape now.

[Shrapnac]

Ankle guards are horrible. I've got a pair of the original Adidas F50 guards that have two velcro straps so they're pretty secure. I still tape top and bottom to keep them in place though.

Pro-tip, use clear hockey tape. It holds better than regular athletic tape and it's waterproof!

[actusreus13]

From my experience, every shin guard that comes with an ankle guard is heavy and clunky. When it comes to ankle guards, I think they would have protected me from being kicked or stepped on only a few times during the many years I've been playing. Embarrassingly, I tend to graze myself with my cleats sometimes and that has caused me more pain and bruises on my ankles than actually being kicked by opponents so I sometimes wear them for protection from self-inflicted pain.:(
I'd advise you that if you think you need ankle guards to feel more confident, or nurse an injury, you should get a pair of stand-alone guards rather than a combo of shin guard-ankle guard. I myself really like Nike J-guards that weight almost nothing and fit great under the sock. The bottom line is, you don't get kicked too often in more advanced games so ankle guards are, IMO, not necessary, but I would recommend slip-on shin guards just in case you get kicked in the shin, which is more likely.

[snolly g]

i have 3 scars from getting cleated in the ankle. (i got some chunks of skin and flesh gouged out by someone's cleats.)

so... i like the ankle supports in my shin guards. (nike air maximus.) it's just thin neoprene padding--but it provides just enough protection to prevent breaking skin.