Having secured the services of Perry Groves amongst some intense competition from a number of other football web sites including www.didntheusedtobeaginger.com and the ever poular and respected www.groveswasbetterthanronaldinho.co.uk, Perry has been on the training ground for his first Footy Boots video boot report.

Over the course of the next few weeks, the former Arsenal star and now Sky Sports pundit, will be testing various football boots including the SprintFit, AdiPure, Tiempo Legend II, V1.08, and Nomis Glove.

Umbro SX Valor 

This week, the 1987 League Cup winner has been trialling the Umbro SX Valor, as worn by Chelsea and England’s John Terry.

Our Perry might not be at his ‘spring chicken’ best any more (in fact it’s more like Kentucky Fried Chicken these days) but his football brain is still as sharp as ever. Find out what he made of the SX Valor by watching here.

Fresh from the recent release of their brand new Damn Boots video commercial which has caused a bit of a stir since it’s debut on Footy Boots, Nomis has continued the marketing offensive with an innovative idea which, in Germany at least, will give football boot fans a unique opportunity when it comes to selecting a new footwear.

In association with US brand experts Johannes Leonardo, Nomis has launched the Right Boot Store, which is currently doing business in Berlin. In fact, it’s across the road from the Adidas Originals shop in the Berlin – Mitte district. Wonder why they chose that particular venue?!

The store asks customers to stop buying into the hype surrounding the sports industry, and instead ‘Ask your feet’.

The Right Boot store is based on the fact that the human body is the perfect mechanism (they obviously haven’t been to the Footy Boots office recently) to compare the quality of one football boot against another. Customers can simply walk in, choose a right football boot that fits, take it home at no cost and test it by wearing their current boot on their left foot. Indeed, at www.nomisfootball.com there’s an 8 point guide to selecting the correct football boot for the experimental period.

If customers prefer the Nomis right boot after 2 weeks, they’ll then be sent a matching left football boot for the price of a regular pair.

Nomis asserts that the sector has also been plagued with reports over the past few years linking player footwear to blister, metatarsal and other foot related injuries (and if you’ve seen the video you’ll know why this such an important premise for the company) which aims to seize the opportunity by providing a comfortable, performance-based alternative.

Nomis was founded by Simon Skirrow, former VP at Adidas, where he was instrumental behind the hugely successful launch of the ‘Predator’. Despite being a relative newcomer on the boot scene, Nomis has certainly made its mark on the market place with an emphasis on competitor nose tweaking and patented technologies such as NoMud, Wet&Dry Control as well as other technical innovations including Stik and a redesigned stud system.

Nomis football boots, already widely available in Australia, New Zealand and Europe are soon to ‘do a Robbie Williams’ but without the birds and tattoos and try and break in to the US market with a launch across the pond imminent.

See the Nomis Glove Boot Test with Perry Groves

Nomis: Damn Boots - The Nomis football video

If you become Adidas Senior Vice President for Global Football at the age of 29, it’s pretty clear that you know your way around the football boot market. Even more so if, along with Craig Johnston, you come up with the design of one of the world’s most successful boots, the Adidas Predator.

That in a nutshell is the resume of Simon Skirrow, the man behind Nomis.

Based in Brisbane, Australia, Nomis have quickly established themselves as a resourceful and highly creative force and they’re certainly not backward about coming forward, clearly getting under the skin of some of their main competitors, most notably Skirrow’s former employers in Germany.

So perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised that the latest Nomis marketing assault is another classic piece of Skirrow thinking. The newly designed web site at www.nomisfootball.com plays host to a brand new video which is sure to become a hugely popular download over the next few days and weeks.

It would be mischievous of Footy Boots to offer a critique of what the video is trying to achieve, apart of course from increased sales, and who the targets of the narrative may be. We’ll let you decide that for yourselves after watching the new ad on our player. Let’s just say that this is a million miles away from a standard football boot commercial. Enjoy.

Nomis football boot wearer Harry Kewell may be on the verge of signing up to American sportswear brand Nike.

Australian winger Kewell has been the figurehead of Nomis’ campaign to increase its share in the football boot market, but has recently been pictured wearing Nike Air Legend’s whilst playing for Liverpool, prompting speculation that his boot deal with Nomis has expired. The loss of such a high profile endorsee would be a huge blow for Nomis, especially as their only other featured endorsee in English football over the past few years is veteran Peter Beagrie, a now retired former winger, who wore the Nomis Glove during his footballing swansong at Scunthorpe United and Grimsby Town.

Kewell famously ditched his lucrative football boot deal with Adidas, in favour of wearing Nomis boots for free. The Liverpool winger famously wore them for the first time in Liverpool’s dramatic European Cup win against AC Milan in Istanbul in 2005. Kewell has recently been wearing the Nomis Spark MS, a football boot made of K-leather, with a two density outsole offering improved comfort, flexibility and stability. The Spark MS is ideal for a quick player like Kewell as it offers a new foot position by elevating the heel slightly, putting your foot in a better position for sprinting. The injury prone Australian will also have benefited from the raised heel reducing the impact force on his heel, helping to reduce the likelihood of heel injuries.

A spokesman for Nike said: “Harry Kewell is free to choose which football boots he wants to wear. He is not a Nike contracted athlete but has been wearing Nike football boots out of choice.”

The brainchild of Leeds born Simon Skirrow in 2004, Australian football boot brand Nomis is one of a number of emerging football boot brands bringing new ideas and technological innovation to the football boot market.

Nomis is based in Brisbane, Queensland, on Australia’s east coast, although the football boot specialist is now distributing its products throughout Germany, Scandinavia, Brazil and the UK in a total of 1200 retail outlets. Nomis is on course to sell 75,000 pairs of football boots this financial year. Next year’s target is 200,000. Indeed, as we previously mentioned on Footy Boots, Nomis’ new Futspeed range is to be released in the UK next April.

Nomis is probably most famous for having Harry Kewell as one of its contracted players. Australian Kewell famously ditched his lucrative football boot deal with Adidas, in favour of wearing Nomis football boots for free. The Liverpool winger famously wore them for the first time in Liverpool’s dramatic European Cup win against AC Milan in Istanbul in 2005. Kewell currently wears the Nomis Spark, a football boot made of K-leather, with a two density outsole offering improved comfort, flexibility and stability.

Skirrow who has been involved in the football boot business since joining Adidas at the age of 17, says it is, “the thrill of the challenge” that drives him to pursue better football boot technology. He says he loves the challenge even more today than he did as a teenager, as the development of new techniques and advanced materials provides more opportunities for diversification.

By the age of 29 he was Adidas’s senior vice-president of global football, overseeing the company’s sponsorship of 70 of the world’s leading teams. One of his greatest achievements was to develop the world’s most successful football boot, the Adidas Predator, alongside Craig Johnston.

Nomis’ goal is to create the most comfortable football boots possible for footballers, while at the same time boosting performance. Skirrow states: “Our aim is to be known as the football boot company. Not an elitist boot. One that is good for Harry Kewell and just as good for my son and your son.”

Nomis football boots retail for between £40 and £120, positioning them at the mid to top end of the football boot market.

The last few years have seen the introduction of increasingly lighter football boots; players often appearing to be running around the pitch in a pair of runners spikes! However the recent spate of metatarsal related foot injuries has highlighted a need for a more protective and supportive style of football boot.

Skirrow agrees that the weight of the football boot should be a consideration, though he cautions that it should not be the main feature. He believes light football boots tend to lack the necessary heel and midsole strength that the foot needs to support itself, which could lead to difficulties or even injury for players.

Click here for further information on Nomis football boots.

Australian Football Boot manufacturer Nomis have released details of its forthcoming Futspeed Football Boot Range.

The new and exciting Nomis Futspeed football boot range combine the uppers of the top selling Nomis outdoor football boot models with a new light weight, ultra-low profile outsole creating a football boot that commands style and performance both indoors and outdoors.

The top of the range elite Futspeed models, feature the one piece K-Leather uppers of the Nomis Glove and Spark football boot models and the pro Futspeed range features the bovine leather uppers of the Nomis Spoiler and Magnet football boot models. All the supple uppers feature the revolutionary Nomis Control Technology providing superior ball grip and control.

The Nomis Futspeed football boot also features a shock dispersion EVA midsole wedge and EVA sockliner to reduce impact forces and offer improved comfort. Combined with asymmetrical lacing for a cleaner ball strike and great fitting, the football boot helps improve players’ performance and looks stylish, whilst maintaining the trademark comfort of Nomis footwear.

The Futspeed football boot range will initially be released in Australia next week, before hitting the UK in April 2008.

We’ve loved the recent Nomis releases, and we’ll let you know how the Futspeed play, as soon as we get to try them!

Nomis’ Mix of Style and Cutting Edge Technology Reflected in their New 2007 Football Boot Range

Football boot maker, and producer of the innovative wet control system, Nomis has released details of the its football boot product range for 2007. The range will be initially available only in Australia, the home of Nomis, but a selection will be available in Europe after July 1st 2007.

The range features football boots incorporating Nomis’ nomud, wetcontrol and dual control technologies, and includes 21 adult, 9 women’s and 11 junior style football boots.

We’ll bring you more Nomis News as we get it!

See more Nomis 2007 Football Boots images.

Adidas Put the Boot into Nomis

Big time boys Adidas have taken a swing at Australian football boot maker Nomis following adverts and promotional material released by Nomis in January. The adverts made claims that clearly riled Adidas, and Nomis have held their hands up and apologised.

Fair enough for Adidas to be protecting its interests, but was it a case of sour grapes as they lost Harry Kewell in a well reported defection (Read the Footy Boots article) away from a big money contract to a smaller football boot maker? Adidas have been around a long time, and healthy competition from smaller companies is all part of the game.

As we see the large football boot makers getting larger and fatter from profits and sales, we at footy boots hope that they don’t go down the route of other markets where any competition is either bought out and diluted or financially clubbed to death by the might of the multinationals. We believe that the smaller companies like Nomis do a great job in moving the football boot market forward and they produce great football boots – so on this one we’re backing Nomis all the way!

View the www.nomisfootball.com and www.shopnomis.com websites.

Read more Nomis Football Boot articles.

Nomis sent us a pair of their Glove football boots, featuring the Wet Control Technology. We tested them…

A relative newcomer to the football boot market (since 2002), Nomis have been coming up with some interesting features. “No Mud Technology” “Wet Control” “Dry Control“. Is it all talk? We found out.

Nomis Glove

Out of the box, this football boot looks attractive, but it’s not just the looks that capture your attention, its the football boot texture.

Handling the Nomis Glove “Wet Technology“, you realise that the K Leather is remarkably soft, but also feels ’sticky’. A sticky football boot?

We dragged the football boot upper across a football and the football boot really does grip the ball. We couldn’t wait to try this football boot on a pitch.

Testing the Nomis Glove

On a wet, cold, English day, with a soaked pitch, we tested the Nomis Glove. We were using the firm ground bladed football boot, so the footy boots were really under pressure.

These football boots are light, slipping them on they ooze comfort. We were not disappointed when we started to run in them either.

A few keep me ups and you can tell that the ball is gripping the football boot.

Sprinting in the Nomis Glove, the football boots are lightweight, so no problem there. Using blades in these conditions is tricky though as the surface is incredibly wet and boggy. However, it will let us test the “No Mud” technology.

Nomis claim the “No Mud” technology can reduce mud sticking to the outsole by up to 70%. In our tests, we think 70% is a rather high, but the football boots did help stop the mud sticking - remarkable!

Comparing the Nomis Glove, we were using Mercurial Vapors (blades) and the Adidas Predator Power, with the bladed clip in stud.

Shooting, passing etc. the Nomis Glove did well, the tacky feel to the upper aids your control of the football boot. The “Wet Control” really seems to work. As the football boot becomes wet, the K leather seems to get stickier, giving you increased feel on the ball.

Summary

It’s rare that a football boot makes us feel that there are significant advances in technology, but the Nomis Glove did just that.

We’d recommend you give this football boot a try.

Good job Nomis!

See the Nomis Glove Boot Test with Perry Groves

Umbro Kit Launch

Our roving reporters are this morning attending the official New England Shirt launch (see the New England Shirt here).

Umbro have been busy lately, last week they did the press launch for the new X Boot III and the Destroyer. We’ll be talking about these football boots very soon.

Nomis Glove Wet Control

Nomis have supplied us with their Nomis Glove Wet Control football boots.

Our first reaction as we man handled the football boots, was that the upper has an incredible grip, very impressive!

We tested them at the weekend and will be letting you know shortly how we got on.

Wayne Rooney Ugliest Footballer

Wayne Rooney may miss England’s fixture with Spain this week, but that didn’t stop him coming in as No. 1 in a recent poll.

The ‘Shrek A Like’ England and Manchester United striker - was voted the ugliest footballer in a poll of 1,000 women.

In 2nd place was Peter Beardsley and Brazilian superstar Ronaldinho was 3rd.

Don’t Swap Shirts

Ever thought about swapping your shirt with the opposition after a game? Think again, we were sent this Umbro VIDEO today - it’s a cracker!

Nomis football boots have up to 16 times more grip than any other football boot!

Australian football boot manufacturer Nomis, have launched a video demonstrating their superior grip technology for football boots.

Nomis football boots are worn by Harry Kewell. Kewell decided to drop his lucrative Adidas football boot deal (Kewell drops Adidas), to wear Nomis football boots for free!

So why would Harry do that?

Well, Nomis have launched a video that shows their football boots grip on a football. The video shows a comparison against another football boot and the performance, although only demonstrated in a basic test, is remarkable. The Nomis football boot really looks to have a great grip on the ball. The leather is tested dry and wet and once wet the football boots really perform.

Watch the

Nomis video

Harry Kewell is swapping his lucrative football boot deal with Adidas, in favour of up and coming Australian brand Nomis.

In 2004, Kewell rejected offers from Reebok and Nike and plumped for an Australian record sponsorship deal with Adidas. His deal with Adidas saw the German brand pay Kewell a percentage of football boot sales, said to be in the region of £1.3 million.

Kewell, beginning his latest comeback from injury, is set to fly back to the UK from Australia, where he had foot surgery. Unfortunately, it looks likely that Kewell will have to wait until March 2007 before he will be gracing the Premiership in his Nomis football boots. That’s due to a combination of foot and groin injuries which have sidelined him since this summer’s World Cup.

Kewell’s change of football boots first came to light during Liverpool’s FA Cup Final against West Ham. Kewell played in a pair of Nomis football boots with the labels cut off to protect his contract with Adidas. During the World Cup his contract forced him to play in his Adidas football boots, but in training, he went back to his Nomis football boots.

Kewell is said to be wearing the Nomis football boots without receiving any sponsorship payment from Nomis.

In a crowded market, led by huge companies with established brands, it can be a daunting task trying to make a mark. That’s the intention of Nomis, a football boot manufacturer who first released football boots for sale last year.

Based in Brisbane Australia with a UK base in Chester, Nomis was founded by Simon Skirrow. Skirrow is no stranger to football boots. He is a former Vice President of Adidas and co developed the Predator with Craig Johnston.

Nomis, the name is an acronym of Simon, have developed football boots that they claim use technology that protects players from injury, a topic that has featured highly on this blog (boots to blame).

The Nomis football boots feature an elevated heel with additional support. A ‘nomud’ feature, which claims to reduce the amount of dirt that sticks to the studs. Possibly the most popular features are the Wet/Dry Control systems. This Wet Control system creates more grip in the presence of water. Grip being a key ingredient required for top quality performance. The Dry Control System claims to give up to 16 times more grip in dry conditions!

Their football boots are all made of kangaroo and bovine leather. These leathers have been known to provide excellent comfort.

Nomis currently have 6 soft ground boots and 9 firm ground boots on the market. This list includes the Nomis Glove, Nomis Instinct and Nomis Flare. It also includes the Nomis Women’s Spark, football boots made especially for women (see images).

Look out for a review on the Nomis football boots, just as soon as I can get my hands on a pair.