Buying a New Pair Of Shoes For Netball? Use Your Old Runners To Make The Right Choice!
Netball is one of the most taxing sports on the lower limbs, especially the ankles and knees. SSPC is full of “middle aged” people paying for their love of netball with knees and ankles that have aged before their time!
Thankfully, there is some amazing research and technology that goes into shoes and runners these days, meaning that we not only have shoes that are much better than the old Dunlop Volleys, but we also have a wide array of choices to ensure we can find a shoe that fits our sport and wear patterns.
However sometimes this choice, whilst positive in many aspects, can also be daunting when you are faced with a wall of runners in front of you!
SSPC Podiatrist Rick Osler looks at the ASICS chart below and provides the following advice:
Rick’s View:
Here is a nice chart showing which netball shoe may be best for you (from asics in this case) based on how hard a player wears their shoe/surfaces. Lean more toward Netburner if playing outdoors on asphalt and this shoe also doubles as a good cross trainer at school to give the ultimate durability
From a podiatry point of view, I refer to the Super 5 a lot as it is very durable on all surfaces, is lighter weight, and testing at this stage shows better properties for ankle stability, and we all know that ankle sprains are one of the most common and debilitating injuries for a netballer.
The Netburner Pro really is for the more stable ankles and indoor use only, and is a little more expensive. It has a softer feel (running shoe feel) which is popular and captures those players who have traditionally leant towards using their running shoes for netball.
As always, it is ‘horses for courses’ and real life circumstances will influence your choice. If you have any queries, or wish to determine which category is best, beyond just asics of course, then you can make an appointment with Rick Osler at SSPC for a full screening & footwear assessment.
